Lamb's Lettuce is very delicate and appears in little rosettes level with the ground. Its leaves are velvety and there are two main varieties:

• the "shell" variety with attractive round green leaves
• the "blonde" variety in which the leaves are longer, more or less spoon-shaped, and light green

Though this little salad green is quite resistant to cold, it does have some requirements. In particular, it needs a temperate climate; light, deep soil; and nice loose earth that flows freely between your fingers.

Lamb's Lettuce: an unusual growing method
To open up, Lamb's Lettuce needs sand. Sown in fields in the open air, unaffected by cool winter temperatures, Lamb's Lettuce is covered with a layer of sand that allows the bunches to open up without the leaves being damaged. In 4 to 12 weeks, the Lamb's Lettuce will be fully developed.

A Gentle Harvest
Harvesting Lamb's Lettuce is done with a blade that slides delicately under the layer of sand to cut the bunches of Lamb's Lettuce without tearing off the leaves.

Lamb's Lettuce's pre-packaging "beauty treatment"
Immediately after being picked, the Lamb's Lettuce is carefully picked over, then washed several times in a kind of jacuzzi filled with cool potable water, which uses a system of air bubbles to remove each grain of sand lodged between the leaves. The Lamb's Lettuce is then drained on a vibrating mat.