How to grow head lettuce with the Paperpot Transplanter

Paperpot settings for head lettuce

Use 4″ paper chain pots, drop one seed in every other cell with the Kwik Klik Slide, and transplant 3 rows on a 30″ bed, 10″ apart. Plan on about 4 trays per 100′ bed.

Paper chain pot	4″
In-row spacing	8″ (skip)
Rows per 30″ bed	3 (10″ apart)
Trays per 100′ bed	4
Kwik Klik top plate	Paperpot skip plate (132 holes), 3 mm thick, 5 mm holes
Seeds per cell	1 (every other cell)
Seed per 100′ bed	528 seeds (+/-)
Cultivars	Green Forest (romaine), Adriana (butter)
Germination	48 hours at 68°F
Days to transplant	28 days
Days to maturity	56 days
Harvest window	8 days
Harvest unit	Head
Yield per 100′ bed	426 heads

Bed figures are for a 100′ x 30″ bed. From the Paperpot Co. Growers Notes, developed with farmers Erich Schultz (Steadfast Farm) and Seth Davis. Adjust for your climate and conditions.

Bed preparation

• Broadfork the bed to aerate and loosen the soil.
• Smooth and shape the bed with a bed prep rake, removing any debris.
• If the previous crop was fertilized, head lettuce will do fine without reapplying. If not, either layer on 1″ of compost (enough to mostly cover the native soil) or sprinkle on alfalfa meal and pelleted chicken manure.
• If you layer compost, don’t tilth it in, so surface weed seed stays smothered. If you add amendments, tilth the top 1-2″ to mix them in.
• Irrigate for 10 to 14 days* to germinate weed seed in the top layer of soil, then flame weed once the weed cotyledons are up.

Seeding

• Set a germination tray with 4″ paper chain pots and fill with potting mix.
• Set up the Kwik Klik Slide with the Paperpot bottom plate and the Paperpot skip plate (132 holes), 3 mm thick, 5 mm holes top plate.
• The skip plate drops seed in every other cell, for 8″ between plants in the row.
• Pour seed on the top plate and work it until one seed sits in each hole. Line the seeder up over the tray and slide the plate to drop seed into every cell at once.
• Water the tray, then germinate for 48 hours at 68°F.
• Move trays to greenhouse benches as soon as you see germination.

Transplanting

• Water the trays thoroughly before heading to the field.
• Plant three rows of head lettuce with the Paperpot Transplanter: 10″ between rows, 5″ from the outer rows to the bed edge.
• New to the transplanter? See the how-to guide and videos.

Bed layout

Irrigation

• Water the bed in thoroughly with overhead irrigation or four lines of drip.
• Frequent, consistent watering keeps lettuce succulent and keeps bitterness away.

Cultivation

• 14-16 days after transplanting, cultivate with a collinear hoe. A flex tine weeder also works.
• After that the heads fill in and shade out weeds.

Harvest

• Harvest kneeling beside the bed, pushing a tote ahead of you.
• Use a freshly sharpened knife and remove slugs and damaged leaves as you go.

Washing and packing

• Dunk the heads in cold water when they come in from the field. Don’t soak longer than 1 minute or they get waterlogged.
• Lay the heads on a drying screen to drip dry, then stack them upside down in totes to keep draining.
• Store at 35°F until market.

Head lettuce in paper chain pots: FAQ

Other crops

basil · beets · bunching onions · cabbage · cilantro · dill · fennel · garlic · kohlrabi · leeks · Little Gem lettuce · mesclun mix lettuce · onions · snap peas · salad turnips · spinach · storage radishes · summer crisp lettuce. All crops in one table: the Paperpot growers notes.