Lettuce in Sacramento Summer Heat?

My gardening friend and KFBK/KSTE Gardening Show host Fred Hoffman tells me "good luck with that." And I probably should listen to Fred, since he knows just about everything there is to know when it comes to vegetable gardening.

Still, I'm always willing to burn $10 on seeds to at least TRY something new, and that something new would be Jericho Lettuce.

This is the very first year that Venus and I have tried growing lettuce extensively. And, true to her green thumb, just about everything the wife planted sprouted and grew well this spring. But the harsh summertime heat came early this year -- five days of 100 plus degrees in mid-May. And that's got the Romaine lettuce looking sad and deflated, and other varieties are taking on that depressed "singed" look. The spinach, sadly, is also starting to bolt.

So, in looking for new varieties to try, one grower suggested Jericho. It seems intriguing enough. Bred to withstand the heat of desert conditions in Israel without bolting? If it's good enough for the desert, it's good enough for Sacramento summertime heat, right? So, we'll see. An interesting experiment with a $10 bill.....