To promote quick growth, sidedress with nitrogen once or twice during the growing season. Just before bolting, lettuce plants start to elongate and form a bitter sap. To keep this from happening, pinch off the top center of the plant. Lettuce is crispest if picked in the morning. Watch your crop closely.
Mature plants decline quickly.
If you've had a hard time getting okra to sprout, here's the solution, say experts with the University of Georgia Extension Service . Freeze the seeds in ice cubes, they say, and plant the cubes. The U. S. Department of Agriculture sets minimum germination standards for vegetable seeds shipped in interstate commerce, and okra often has the lowest at 50 percent. The ice cube method has raised that percentage to 75 to 80 percent. Drop a seed into each compartment of the tray, fill the tray half-full with hot water and freeze for a couple of days.