100% Certified Organic & Demeter Certified Bio-Dynamic Seed
Grown, harvested, dried and packed on Transition Farm
NOTE - If ordering from Western Australia, please check the POSTAGE page for further information
Lettuce 'Optima' Butter
Lettuce 'Optima' Butter
Lactuca Sativa
With velvety soft, lightly textured, dark green leaves that blanch the exceptionally tender, sweet inner head, Optima is a melt in your mouth butterhead. This surprisingly uniform Spring workhorse is late to bolt even into the heat of early Summer. In the field Optima was very resistant to downy mildew, bottom rot, and tip-burn in our disease trials while post harvest, she held up well to washing and acidic dressing. A chef's favourite.
Released by French seedhouse and breeder Vilmorin in 1995. The flavour, colour and texture combined with uniformity in maturity and denseness of the heads make this worthy of market growers space .
We are in our 3rd season of seed production refining ‘Optima’ for tight, blanched heart, uniformity of head size and days to maturity, resilience to bolting through Spring temperature extremes experience in Southern Victoria in the early summer, resistance to bottom rot through wet, humid conditions, resistance to tip burn and resistance to downy mildew.
SEED COUNT: 250, 1000, 5000 approx.
Germination: Lot#12256 98% Apr 2024
PLEASE NOTE: We do not authorize the repackaging of our seed without written permission
Seed Raising, Growing and Harvest Information
| Plant Type | Site | Spacing | Height | Sowing Depth |
Days to Germination |
Days to Maturity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tender Annual |
Full Sun | 25cm apart in rows 25cm apart |
20cm | 3mm | 4-6 days @ 16-20°C |
45 days |
TRANSPLANT - Sow indoors early Spring, 2 seeds per cell, barely covering seeds with fine vermiculite, 3–4 weeks before transplanting outdoors. Thin to 1 plant/cell. Shade the flats on sunny, warm days if necessary to keep the soil surface cool, below 24°C, until germination. Harden seedlings by reducing water and temperature for 2-3 days before planting outdoors. Properly hardened transplants can survive temperatures as low as 0°C.
DIRECT SOW - Lettuce is hardy and can be planted as early as the soil can be worked. It is a cool weather crop and grows best at temperatures of 16-18°C. Seeds germinate even at low, 4°C, soil temperature, but poorly above 24°C. Sow seeds 2.5cm apart in rows 25-30cm apart. Lightly cover and keep moist. Enjoy thinnings ultimately leaving 25cm between plants. Ample water grows the sweetest lettuce. Careful variety selection is important for hot weather plantings. Sow every 3 weeks for a continuous supply of fresh lettuce.
