Scientific Name: Claytonia perfoliata

Common Names: Miners Lettuce, Winter Purslane, Indian Lettuce

Family: Montiaceae

Origin

Miners Lettuce is annual herbaceous plant with fleshy leaves that is native to the coastline and mountain ranges of Western North America.

Culinary Uses

Miners Lettuce is a leafy green vegetable that can be eaten raw in salads with dressings, or used as an alternative to spinach in cooked dishes.  The flavour of Miners Lettuce is mild with a hint of nuttiness, with younger leaves having the best flavour.  The name Miners Lettuce comes from the the use of the plant by Californian miners during the gold rush who ate it to prevent scurvy as it's a very rich source of vitamin C.

Growing Tips

Choose a shady location to grow Miners Lettuce as it tends to struggle and have bitter leaves when grown in full sun.  Miners lettuce grows best in damp, sandy loam soils rich with organic matter, it will tolerate poorer soils but its growth will not be as vigorous.  Dig through lots of worm castings, well-rotted manures or compost through your soil prior to sowing Miners Lettuce to give your plants the nutrients they need to thrive.  Miners Lettuce shouldn't require additional fertiliser once established but you can apply a complete organic liquid fertiliser, worm juice or compost tea if your plants are showing signs of a nutrient deficiency.  Mulch around your Miners Lettuce plants well with sugar cane mulch to help keep their root systems cool, suppress weed growth and retain moisture so you don't have to water as often.  Miners Lettuce grows best in soil with a slightly acidic to neutral pH between 6.0 and 7.0.  Miner's Lettuce is frost hardy.

Companion Planting

Ideally Miners Lettuce should be grown with other plants that like growing in damp soil such as American Upland Cress and Kang Kong.

When To Sow

In cold and mountainous regions of Australia sow Miners Lettuce from February to April or from September to November.  In temperate regions of Australia sow Miners Lettuce from March to May or from September to October.  In subtropical regions of Australia sow Miners Lettuce from April to June or from August to October.  Miners Lettuce is unlikely to grow well in tropical regions of Australia.

How To Sow

Miner Lettuce seeds are small so surface sow them and cover them only lightly with soil.  Once they have grown for several weeks you can thin to the strongest seedlings about 15cm apart to give them additional room to grow.

Time To Germination

Miners Lettuce seeds germinate rapidly, with most seedlings emerging within 7 to 12 days after sowing the seeds.

Time To Harvest

Miners Lettuce takes between 7 and 8 weeks to reach a size big enough to harvest good quantities of leaves.  Harvest the youngest leaves as needed leaving the older leaves and roots still in the ground so that they can continue to produce new leaves over a longer period.