Lamb's lettuce: provenance, origin and synonyms

Lamb's lettuce has been cultivated for centuries. We will inform you about the origin and history of the tasty salad.

the Lamb's lettuce is one of the most popular types of lettuce in Germany. Especially in winter, it cheers up many lovers with its nutty aroma and rich nutrients. In its wild form, the vitamin bomb lamb's lettuce probably originally comes from the areas between the European and Asian continents. It can be assumed that it grew wild as early as the Neolithic Age and was used as a medicine for various rituals. Lamb's lettuce, also known as lamb's lettuce, was first used as a weed for medicinal purposes, especially in monasteries, which can be traced back to the 16th century. century is known. However, its distribution has increased enormously over the centuries: from the Canary Islands to areas in North Africa to the Caucasus and of course in Europe, lamb's lettuce grows splendidly and is popular consumed.

Lamb's lettuce and its growing popularity

Lamb's lettuce has only been cultivated by humans since the last century. It is also known as vine salad and, along with a few other green salads and types of cabbage, which thrive in the cool winter months, are particularly popular at that time of the year. Due to the high vitamin content of beta-carotene via vitamins B1, B2 and B3, it is an excellent supplier of nutrients. In addition, it also contains numerous essential oils that give the salad its special touch. Due to its nutty nuances, the juicy lettuce is also often referred to as nutlets or in Switzerland as nutmeg salad.

Regionality promotes the spread of lamb's lettuce

In German outdoor cultivation, lamb's lettuce takes second place behind iceberg lettuce with a good 2417 hectares of cultivation area. The largest growing areas are in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, where a good 40 percent are planted, followed by Baden-Württemberg and Lower Saxony. Due to the professional cultivation, different varieties were gradually bred, which are also suitable for the planting suitable in the home garden. Unfortunately, the original, wild strains are often overtaken by the new and more large-scale compatible ones sorts repressed. One more reason to rely on old and traditional varieties in your own garden in order to preserve the diversity of lamb's lettuce.