Sequential Cropping Romaine Lettuce (2015) - 7 pages
The objective was to determine yield and quality potential for sequential planted crops of direct-seeded and transplanted romaine lettuce under Saskatchewan growing conditions.
The project was conducted at the University of Saskatchewan - Horticulture Field Research Station in Saskatoon. The site features a Sutherland Series clay loam soil (pH 7.8, E.C.< 1.0dS/m). Establishing a small-seeded crop like lettuce from seed can be challenging in clay soils – however, once the crop is established, clay soils can readily supply the nutrients and moisture required to produce a vigorous lettuce crop. As the site has a long history of vegetable production, the soil tests very high for most required nutrients (> 400 kg P2O5/ha and > 1000 kg K2O/ha) and only limited applications of N fertilizer are required in each year. Every 4 years about 10 T/ha of composted cattle manure is added to the site in an effort to enhance the soil organic matter content. This manuring adds to the already abundant nutrient supply at the test site. The site is protected by a well-established shelter-belt system.
