Lettuce Grow Makes Harvesting Produce a Possibility for Anyone—And It Is Super Easy

There are many reasons to love living in SoCal, but having lots of land is rarely one of them. If your outdoor space is a balcony, patio or small yard, growing a vegetable garden is a challenge.  

Enter Lettuce Grow, a company that makes easy-to-use vertical “Farmstands” that have a remarkably small footprint and an attractive look. With a base diameter of less than 2 feet, a Farmstand fits just about anywhere, and its modular nature allows you to choose the right height to fit your space. If you want to grow 24 seedlings, for example, your Farmstand will be almost 5 feet high, but you can opt to grow less and reduce height.

Farmstands are user-friendly, even for first-time gardeners. Starter plants arrive in the mail in individual cups, having already matured under the care of a horticulturist. Next just snap each cup into the stand. You’ll need to place the stand near an electrical outlet, because a water tank at the bottom hydrates the plants in a timed cycle. Because the water is used over and over again, you’ll not only be harvesting your own produce but you’ll be using 98% less water than a typical garden.

Need a little help figuring out what will grow here in the South Bay? Using your zip code, Lettuce Grow will send you the best seedling options. You can also hand-select produce and flowers from a list or buy groups of seedlings in a bundle. 

No sun or space at all? No problem: Lettuce Grow sells an LED lighting system. Put the stand in the kitchen, fire up the lights, and you’ve got yourself a garden.

Above right: Photographed by Jessica Schramm