What's the absolute smallest pot you could use to grow one single solitary lettuce?

[gardening_gal]

As title really.

I realise watering would be an issue but if that was kept up with, what's the smallest pot you could feasibly get away with?

[Alison]

Depends on the type of lettuce, some are bigger than others but you can definitely get away without much depth for any variety. Is this a challenge or are you just trying to fit more in? If the latter then you might be better putting a few in a shallow trough.

[veggiechicken]

Do without a pot completely and grow it in water!!

[bretty666]

Small plastic coffee cup..espresso kinda small

[gardening_gal]

Well it sounds very much as if I could get away with what I was planning. I have loads of small square tubs that I kept 'in case' and OH has been trying to throw them out for ages. I keep telling him they are useful and I could grow something in them but he's adamant I can't grow anything that would be useful for us (as opposed to something else small that might fit but we wouldn't eat).

I'm now going to give the lettuce a go in some of them now just to prove a point.

Thanks.

[solway cropper]

OK then, what's the smallest pot you could grow a spring onion in?

[gardening_gal]

*waits for replies in case I could do that too*

[cheops]

I think the answer is anything which is big enough to accomodate the roots and a little water - nothing bigger than that. Plants don't need soil just nutrients and light. So a liquid feed often would be suffice.

[AllInContainers]

I'm going to attempt taking square foot gardening to a smaller level this year. When my strawberry runners arrived, I had to buy a couple of those trays of 18 pots for potting seedlings on. My strawbs have gone out in their final position, and one of the trays has been filled with wild white strawberry seedling. The other one I'm planning on trying out for salady stuff. Mini lettuces, baby turnip, beetroot, radishes etc etc all one per pot. Not so much square foot gardening, as round 4 inch gardening Probably a bonkers idea, but the tray is sat there doing nowt, so I might as well give it a go

[Penellype]

It depends a bit on how big you like your salad greens are when you harvest them. I like my leaves small (about 1-2 inches long), so I grow the following in 3 inch pots, a pinch of seed sprinkled in each: lollo rossa, lettuce salad bowl, salad mixes, pak choi, broccoli, beetroot. As an example I have some lollo rossa which should be ready to start eating next week. I have 2 pots with about 15 plants in each in the grow light garden. As I eat them they are thinned out and get bigger. Bigger seeds like beetroot and spinach get more room - the spinach is not that keen on this treatment to be honest.

Obviously you couldn't grow full-sized plants like this, but for tiny lettuces you can grow 15 to a 3 inch pot and have a tasty sandwich in about 3 weeks, particularly if you grow one of the mixes available.

[chilli_grower]

I grew lobjotis fully hearted lettuce last year in 6 inch pots, no problems at all.