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What do we want? Lettuce. When do we want it? All the time, apparently. Lettuce is historically overproduced to ensure a constant supply, but suppliers are working out new ways to cut waste. Duncan Jefferies meets the modern lettuce grower
“Lettuce is like conversation; it must be fresh and crisp, so sparkling that you scarcely notice the bitter in it.” So wrote the American essayist and novelist Charles Dudley Warner, whose main claim to fame is another bon mot that’s often mistakenly attributed to his friend, Mark Twain: “Everybody complains about the weather, but nobody does anything about it.”
Warner probably didn’t realise how closely the subjects of these quotes are linked: lettuce, like national character, is highly influenced by the weather. Cold snaps can significantly slow its growth. But it’s also very sensitive to high temperatures, and may “bolt” (flower and turn bitter) if it gets too hot. Continue reading...