Miner’s lettuce - Winter purslane - Claytonia perfoliata

Miner’s lettuce – historical winter salad with nutritious qualities. 

This variety is a fast-growing, winter-hardy leaf lettuce with tender, fleshy leaves and a fresh, mild-nutty flavor. It is ideally suited for direct sowing, pot culture, and winter cultivation. Robust, high-yielding, and open-pollinated – perfect for self-sufficiency and organic farming.

  Origin & History

Miner’s lettuce, also known as common Winter purslane (Claytonia perfoliata), originates from the west coast of North America, where it has been used for centuries by Indigenous peoples as a vitamin-rich wild vegetable. The species was botanically described in 1794 and introduced to Europe. In the 19th century, it gained particular fame during the California Gold Rush under the name “Miner’s lettuce”, as gold prospectors collected it as an important source of vitamins against scurvy.

Since then, Miner’s lettuce has spread through European gardens and monastic gardens as a valuable winter vegetable. Today, it is preserved by organic seed initiatives as a historical, open-pollinated crop with wild origins. Characteristic are its plate-shaped, perforated leaves, which can be harvested even in winter. With its fresh, mild-nutty flavor, Miner’s lettuce is an exceptional enrichment for winter cuisine.

  Appearance & Characteristics

The plant grows compact and rosette-shaped, reaching a height of about 20 cm. It develops characteristic, plate-shaped leaves and bears delicate white flowers. Hardy down to -15 °C - occasionally to -18 °C under protected cultivation.

Leaf details:

• Size: Small to medium, rosette-shaped

• Shape: Plate-shaped, round, perforated

• Color: Fresh green, juicy

• Texture: Fleshy, crisp

• Flavor: Fresh, mild-nutty

 Usage & Cultivation Highlights

The leaves are excellent for fresh consumption in salads, for brief blanching like spinach, and especially for raw food. Their fresh, mild-nutty flavor and thick, juicy leaves make Miner’s lettuce a special highlight of winter cuisine and lend dishes a fine culinary note. Closed buds can be pickled like capers, developing a characteristic water-chestnut aroma. All parts of the plant — leaves, flowers, and stems — are edible and enrich the diet with variety and freshness.

Thanks to its exceptional winter hardiness and adaptability, the variety grows reliably outdoors, in greenhouses, and especially in pots. It ripens quickly and can be harvested continuously — even in the depths of winter. In addition, it is easy to care for, shows good adaptability to semi-shaded to shaded locations, and delivers stable yields even at cool temperatures. Miner’s lettuce prefers a cooler, moist climate and can also be used as green manure. The crop is extremely undemanding, requires little care, and is resistant to most typical leaf diseases. It is excellent for mixed cultivation, as it hardly suppresses other plants and protects the soil from drying out with its dense leaf cover. As an early spring vegetable, it reliably provides fresh leaves when other crops are not yet available.

Compared to other winter salads, Miner’s lettuce is exceptionally winter-hardy, fast-growing, and rich in vitamins — ideal for people who appreciate open-pollinated salad varieties with historical significance and year-round harvesting potential.