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Description
LETTUCE Little Gem (Mini Cos) - 250 HEIRLOOM Seeds
Little Gem is just that, a little gem of a Romaine! The tiny head is seemingly delicate but just as crisp as any larger romaine lettuce. Very flavorful!
Their small size makes Little Gems ideal for containers, patios and smaller plots.
Care & Sowing Instructions
Sow approx. 5mm deep direct or in punnets throughout the year, except during extreme hot or cold days or other types of extreme weather. They prefer the FULL SUN position; however, partial shade could greatly extend the lettuce growing season, especially in summer.
The plant emerges in 2-10 days depending upon weather and growing conditions.
Harvest baby leaves in 28 days and full size in 50-70 days.
Keep moist during dry weather. Don’t pull the entire plant; keep harvesting leaves to encourage further tender growth.
Protect from the heat with a shade cloth. Likes fertile soil and ample water. Best when picked minutes before your meal.
Sprouting Lettuce Seed in Warm Weather
In warmer temperatures, imbibing or soaking the seeds in water for at least 16 hours before planting in a well-lit area will greatly increase the germination percentages. Red light is the best colour, but many home gardeners won’t have access to a non-heating red light and sunlight, or full-spectrum light was found to be almost as good. Soaking the seeds in the dark in warmer conditions decreased their germination rates.
Another technique that has shown to be successful is to soak the seeds in cool water in a well-lit area for 16 – 24 hours. This approach has increased the germination rate up to 97% when planted in warmer conditions. Soaking for less than 16 hours has little to no positive effect on germination.
Other successful methods of extending the season for lettuce in the garden include laying a thick mulch of straw or wood chips on the ground of at least 4-6 cm. This insulates the soil from becoming too hot and drying out too fast and preserving moisture in the soil.
Shading the lettuce plants can give enough of a temperature drop to keep them from bolting, sometimes up to 3 – 5 weeks. Shade can be from a shade cloth on a row cover or hoop type structure or companion planting of tall wide leafed plants such as pumpkin types.
The traditional rule of thumb of “plant early and the plant often” for lettuce can also be said as “plant late and the plant often”, but some of the more heat-tolerant varieties, along with soaking in the light and providing some mulch and shade can greatly extend your lettuce season in the garden this year.
A propagation note will be supplied with the seed packet for your convenience.
All orders are dispatched from our warehouse in Sydney, NSW, Australia
AUSTRALIA-WIDE SEED DELIVERY
Order dispatch time: 1-3 business days, excluding weekend & public holiday.
Transit time: Depends upon the postage service that you choose and pay. Usually, 1-2 business days for express post & 3-8 business days for standard post.
WA order dispatch: Once a week, regardless of whether Express Post is chosen. Express Post seed orders do not receive priority during the Quarantine WA inspection.
Note: We're sorry, but we cannot prioritise order packing service for customers who have paid for Express Post. We pack orders with a first-in, first-out policy.
Please see the table below or use the shipping calculators on this website.
Standard Post & Parcel (Australia Post or Courier Services) – WITH TRACKING |
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Delivery Estimates: 3-10 business days* (WA, NT Remote areas may take longer) |
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Order Contents |
Delivery Cost |
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Seed packets only / or any seeds or garden supplies upto 200g |
$4.95 FREE domestic tracking letter or courier shipping on seed packet-only (less than 0.5g) orders of $60 (after discount, if any) or above |
| Seed packets & bulk weight-based items, garden tools, tubers, canes, rhizomes & seeds 200g to 400g | $5.95 |
| Seed packets & bulk weight-based items, garden tools, tubers, canes, rhizomes & seeds 401g to 2kg | $9.95 |
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Seed packets & bulk weight-based items, garden tools, seed potatoes, tubers, canes, rhizomes & seeds over 2kg |
$15.95 (Capped) |
Express Post & Parcel Service (Australia Post or Courier Service) - WITH TRACKING |
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Delivery Estimates: 1-3 business days* (WA, NT, TAS & Remote areas may take longer) |
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Order Contents |
Delivery Cost |
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Seed packets only |
$16 |
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Seed packets & bulk weight-based seeds up to 500g |
$19 |
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BULK Seeds: 0 – 500g |
$19 |
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BULK Seeds: 501g to 1kg |
$21 |
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BULK Seeds: 1.01kg to 3kg |
$26 |
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BULK Seeds: 3.01kg to 5kg |
$45 |
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BULK Seeds: 5.01kg to 10kg |
$80 |
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BULK Seeds: 10.01kg or 15kg |
$120 |
An additional $6 fee applies to cover quarantine inspection fees. All WA seed orders are subject to Quarantine WA inspection, which may result in delays beyond our control. For more information, please refer quarantine policy.
An additional $3 fee covers Biosecurity Tasmania paperwork—maximum 1kg per seed line item. Biosecurity Tasmania restrictions apply. |
WA order dispatch time:
WA orders are packed once a week on Wednesday and shipped out on Thursday. To ensure that your orders are processed and shipped out each Thursday, please place them before midnight (AEDT - Sydney time) on Tuesday. This applies no matter whether Express Post service is chosen for the order.
WA orders go to the Quarantine WA office at Perth Airport for inspection before being sent to your shipping address by the Quarantine Officers. Your tracking number will be activated once the inspection is complete, which may take up to 10 business days after we have packed and dispatched your order.
The tracking number will stay in a 'Pending' status until Quarantine Officers have inspected your shipment at Perth Airport.
Depending on the postal service you pay for the order, it will generally take an additional 1 to 5 business days for your shipment to arrive from Perth Airport to your address within WA. However, please note that delays beyond our control may occasionally occur.
Signature on delivery: An additional $3.95 applies if you require a signature on delivery service. If you haven't requested a signature, the postie or courier driver will check for a safe place or letterbox (if it fits) to leave your item. They may take it to the Post Office or nearest collection point for mail order collection if a safe place can't be found.
No Discount on Shipping charges: Our special discount event means seeds are available at discounted prices. However, postage costs remain the same, i.e. there won't be any discount on the postage costs - so check out our postage rate table to find out exactly how much it will cost before you stock up on your favourites!
You shall receive an email notification with a tracking number as soon as your order has been dispatched. We dispatch ALL seed orders via Australia Post or Courier Service with a tracking for a peace of mind.
We may use Australia Post Registered Post or Courier (Sign on delivery), which requires a signature on delivery, or you may need to present your ID to collect it.
Express Delivery
It's the fastest possible delivery service within the Australia Post network.
Important:
We will process your order after we have received clear payment in the accounts.
Dispatch and delivery times are estimates only; we cannot guarantee delivery times as these can change for reasons beyond our control.
Postage rates are calculated based on each order. If you have placed multiple orders with the same recipient and address, we may combine all items in single postage.
INTERNATIONAL DELIVERY
Sorry, we do not ship seeds outside of Australia.
Estimate shipping
Shipping Restrictions
Western Australia Customers: We can ship most seed line items, except Quarantine WA restricted seed lines to WA. To help us ship your order as quickly and efficiently as possible, please do not include any seed items prohibited in WA; they are listed with the label 'NOT to WA'. Due to quarantine restrictions in WA, there is a 10kg seeds limit per variety. WA orders require additional handling time. Please remain within an approved limit when ordering seeds. We review every WA order before dispatch and remove (or reduce) excess seed quantity from your order to comply with WA biosecurity regulations. Please check further information here
Tasmania Customers: We can ship seeds to Tasmania. Please do not include seed line items labeled 'NOT to TAS'. Please note that the maximum allowable limit per permitted seed line item is 1kg per order.