Sweet Lettuce Seeds

Sweet Lettuce Seeds - Reichardia picroides - French Scorzonera

Reichardia picroides
French Scorzonera

Hardy to Zone 7
Full Sun to Partial Shade
Germination Tested October 21, 2025: 85%

Approximately 50 seeds per packet

$6.95 CAD

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Sweet Lettuce, also called French Scorzonera or Common Brighteyes, is a perennial plant with edible leaves and roots. The leaves are sweet and mild year-round and not fibrous, and remain tasty even in the heat of summer when the plant is in flower. It's a great leafy green to have in summer while other greens like lettuce tend to bolt and become bitter.

It blooms for a long time, supporting pollinators, and the flowers can be eaten as well. You may wish to cut back the flowers to increase leaf production.

Interestingly, slugs don't seem to bother the plant much even though the leaves are mild, so if you struggle to grow lettuce because of slugs, this could be a great plant to try! It tolerates rocky and poor soils, and drought, too.

The plant will survive -15 degrees Celsius for sure, possibly lower. It does not seem to overwinter in pots. After growing these plants for 5 years, all of my plants died in the harsh winter of 2023/4, I assume because the cold set in very quickly, or it did in fact go below -15. Fortunately lots of seeds did survive, and possibly some small volunteer seedlings as well, so this wonderful species lives on in my garden.

Grow French scorzonera in full sun or part shade. Shade may increase leaf size. The plant grows about two feet tall when flowering. May self-sow.

I recently tried nibbling on a root raw, and it was very mild. However, the roots are pretty long and spindly so it may take a long time to harvest enough for a meal. I think the best time to harvest the roots would be in the late fall or early spring.

Growing Instructions

Start indoors 4-6 weeks before last frost, and transplant out after all danger of frost has passed. Don't let it remain in small pots for long because it may harm the plant's taproot. Or direct sow April-May. Grow plants about 8-12 inches apart.
Make sure to overwinter in the ground- I find they don't survive winter in pots in my zone 7 garden.

Shipping & Returns

By placing an order, customers agree to the shipping & refund policies detailed on this page.

Most orders are sent via Canada Post to keep costs low.

Shipping within Canada

We ship seeds in Canada via Canada Post's regular letter mail, which is an untracked service, and usually takes 1-4 weeks to arrive once we fulfill your order, but occasionally letter mail takes up to 6 weeks, especially to the Eastern provinces and rural areas.

Customers can now opt for tracked, express shipping options at checkout if you require faster delivery and/or tracking.

Larger bulbs and plants are usually sent via tracked flat rate box.

Shipping to the US

UPDATE FEB 2, 2026: WE ARE TAKING A BREAK ON ACCEPTING US ORDERS DUE TO ISSUES WITH USPS

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Shipping Internationally

International customers can select tracked or untracked shipping at checkout. The package will list the contents as "Garden Seeds". It is your responsibility to ensure you have the required import permit. We are not able to send any live plant materials internationally. Cicada Seeds will not be responsible for any orders held or confiscated by customs, or for any additional duties or tariffs placed on your order.

International shipping countries include: Hong Kong SAR, Ireland, Japan, Malaysia, Netherlands, Norway, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom. (List updated Aug 31, 2026)

This list may change without notice. Sometimes Canada Post will not allow us to ship to certain countries due to wars or natural disasters, see this page for delivery service alerts.

Refund Policy

Refunds: We stand behind our seeds, so if for some reason you are not satisfied with your purchase, please reach out to us via email and we will do our best to make it right. Please note that shipping costs are non-refundable.

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