Growing Claytonia (Miner's Lettuce): A Complete Profile
By Growing Home Greens Team · August 10, 2026
Claytonia, also known as miner’s lettuce, is a cold-hardy salad green with an unmistakable look: round leaves that appear pierced by their own stem, with small flowers seeming to emerge right from the leaf’s center.
Direct-seed for the healthiest roots
Direct-seeding is recommended and any time from midspring through late summer works. Sow half an inch apart in rows 4 to 6 inches apart, covering a quarter inch deep, then thin to 4 to 6 inches. The roots are sensitive to disturbance, which makes transplanting riskier than direct-seeding even though it’s technically possible.
Two harvest styles
For cut-and-come-again baby leaf, cut leaves above the basal plate, leaving the plant intact to keep producing. For full rosettes, harvest below the basal plate instead, taking the whole plant. Either way, claytonia keeps branching and adding new growth well past the first cut.
Claytonia has no well-established companion pairings, and nothing it needs to be kept away from. At 9 plants per square foot, it’s a dense, cold-season salad crop for the Garden Designer, useful for filling the gap when warm-season greens have finished.
Source: Claytonia: Key Growing Information, Johnny’s Selected Seeds.
Companion planting guide for Claytonia (Miner's Lettuce) · Find your planting dates
Typically viable in USDA zones 3-9. Not sure your zone? Look it up by ZIP code.
Mature height: 3-6 in
Method: Direct sow: Direct-sow outside. It doesn't transplant well, or doesn't need the extra time indoors.
When to plant claytonia (miner's lettuce), by zone
Every zone claytonia (miner's lettuce) grows in. Pick your zone in the header and it will be highlighted here. Each zone links to its full page.
| Zone | Start indoors | Sow or plant out | Harvest |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3a & 3b | Not usually | May 30–Jun 6 | Jul 9–Jul 16 |
| 4a & 4b | Not usually | May 15–May 22 | Jun 24–Jul 1 |
| 5a & 5b | Not usually | May 10–May 17 | Jun 19–Jun 26 |
| 6a & 6b | Not usually | Apr 25–May 2 | Jun 4–Jun 11 |
| 7a & 7b | Not usually | Apr 10–Apr 17 | May 20–May 27 |
| 8a & 8b | Not usually | Mar 25–Apr 1 | May 4–May 11 |
| 9a & 9b | Not usually | Feb 15–Feb 22 | Mar 27–Apr 3 |
Harvest dates are about 40 days after the sow or plant-out date.
See exact start-indoors, direct-sow, and harvest dates for your zone →
How many Claytonia (Miner's Lettuce) plants fit per square foot?
Spacing: 9 per square foot (square-foot-gardening spacing). Mature height: 3-6 in.
Varieties worth considering
- Straight-species claytonia (Claytonia perfoliata): Johnny's Selected Seeds sells this species plain, without competing named cultivars; the distinctive leaf shape and cold-hardiness are traits of the species itself. (source)
Why each variety is listed comes from the source shown next to it. We haven't grown these ourselves yet, so treat this as a research-backed starting point, not a personal endorsement. The buy links are separate from those sources: they go to seed suppliers that sell that exact variety, and we may earn a commission on some of them.
Where to buy claytonia seeds
High Mowing Organic Seeds (each supplier's claytonia seeds)
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See it growing
Search YouTube for "growing claytonia (miner's lettuce)" videos → (a live search, not a hand-picked video; results vary and aren't vetted by us)
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Growing Claytonia (Miner's Lettuce): A cold-hardy salad green with distinctive round leaves that look pierced by their own stem, and small flowers that appear to grow right out of the leaf's center.
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