Lettuce
Little Gem lettuce
Little Gem lettuce: Sowing, planting and harvest calendar
Sucrine is a lettuce type with a small, upright, tight and often elongated head, valued for thick, crisp leaves. It belongs to Lactuca sativa, in the aster family. The name here describes a lettuce profile rather than establishing one exact cultivar. Little Gem is often associated with this type, but the whole Sucrine category should not automatically be reduced to a single variety.Its silhouette resembles a small cos lettuce, with leaves standing around a compact heart. Its overall shape is shorter than that of a large traditional romaine. Outer leaves are generally green, while the heart is lighter, sometimes yellow-green. Exact colour, volume and shape depend on the cultivar and the plant's development.The French term laitue grasse, also used for Sucrine types, refers to the consistency of the foliage, not its fat content. The leaf blade is fleshy and the central rib adds firmness. Together they create a dense, crisp…
