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Definition: lettuce from Philip's Encyclopedia

Edible annual plant that is widely cultivated for use in salads. Most varieties of Lactuca sativa are cool-weather crops. The large leaves form a compact head or loose rosette.


lettuce

From The Columbia Encyclopedia
annual garden plant ( Lactuca sativa and varieties) of the family Asteraceae ( aster family), probably native to the East Indies or Asia Minor, possibly as a derivative of the widespread weed called wild lettuce ( L. scariola ). L. sativa has been grown as a salad plant since antiquity and is unknown in the wild. Three types of lettuce are planted: head, or cabbage, lettuce; the leaf, or loose, type; and Cos lettuce, or romaine. The first forms a tight, crisp, white head; the second has many more leaves and a less compact head, which is white toward its center only. Cos lettuce, or romaine, forms long, upright leaves, which, according to variety, may or may not have to be tied up to blanch and form a head. It is not as commonly planted, but is useful where summers are too hot for the other two varieties. As lettuce has increased in popularity in the United States, forcing it for winter use is becoming an extensive industry, especially near large cities. Much of the winter crop comes…
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Full text Article lettuce

From The Oxford Companion to Food
Lactuca sativa , is by far the most popular of the leafy salad vegetables. The lettuce belongs to the very large family Compositae, which includes cultivated species such as chicory and endive , and various wild plants with edible leaves, all more or less tough and bitter, e.g. the dandelion and…
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Full text Article LETTUCE

From Encyclopedia of American Food and Drink
Any of a variety of plants in the genus Lactuca , especially L. sativa , cultivated for its leaves, which are used in salads. The word is from the Latin lactuca , which in Middle English became letuse. England had cultivated lettuce as of the fifteenth century, but Christopher Columbus may have been…
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Full text Article lettuce

From The Deluxe Food Lover's Companion
lettuce
There are hundreds of lettuce varieties grown throughout the world and, because they peak at different times of year, there's always a plenitude of this universal salad favorite. There are four general lettuce classifications— BUTTERHEAD , CRISPHEAD , LEAF , and ROMAINE ( see individual listings ), …
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Full text Article lettuce

From Library of Health and Living: The Encyclopedia of Nutrition and Good Health
Lettuce This edible member of the Asteraceae or...
A green vegetable with a leafy head that may be compact or loose. Lettuce belongs to the sunflower family, and it may have been cultivated in ancient Egypt or Persia. Lettuce is a popular salad vegetable in the United States. California is the leading lettuce-producing state, followed by Arizona, …
| 366 words , 1 image
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Full text Article lettuce

From The Columbia Encyclopedia
annual garden plant ( Lactuca sativa and varieties) of the family Asteraceae ( aster family), probably native to the East Indies or Asia Minor, possibly as a derivative of the widespread weed called wild lettuce ( L. scariola ). L. sativa has been grown as a salad plant since antiquity and is…
| 240 words
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Full text Article leaf lettuce

From The Deluxe Food Lover's Companion
leaf lettuce
Any of several varieties of lettuce with leaves that branch from a single stalk in a loose bunch rather than forming a tight head. The leaves are crisper and more full-flavored than those of the HEAD LETTUCE varieties. Depending on the variety, leaf lettuce (also called looseleaf and Simpson lettuce…
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Full text Article lettuce

From Britannica Concise Encyclopedia
Lettuce (Lactuca sativa, variety capitata)...
Cultivated annual salad plant ( Lactuca sativa ) that produces clusters of crisp, water-filled leaves. The best-known varieties are head, or cabbage, lettuce (variety capitata ); leaf, or curled, lettuce (variety crispa ); cos, or romaine, lettuce (variety longifolia ); and asparagus lettuce…
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Full text Article Yuma Lettuce Days

From Cultural Studies: Holidays Around the World
Held annually, Yuma Lettuce Days celebrates the agricultural abundance of Yuma, Arizona. Originally held at a historic state park, the event was moved in 2015 to the University of Arizona's Yuma Agricultural Center, a working research farm, which allows visitors to learn about growing methods as…
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Full text Article butterhead lettuce

From The Deluxe Food Lover's Companion
One of two varieties of head lettuce (the other being CRISPHEAD ). Butterhead lettuces have small, round, loosely formed heads with soft, buttery-textured leaves ranging from pale green on the outer leaves to pale yellow-green on the inner leaves. The flavor is sweet and succulent. Because the…
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Full text Article lettuce

From Collins English Dictionary
| 79 words
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