Lettuce that suddenly shoots upward, stretches into a strange leafy tower, and produces a flower stalk has not failed. It has simply changed careers. Once lettuce bolts, the leaves often become tougher and noticeably bitter as the plant shifts its energy toward flowering and seed production, but that does not mean the entire plant belongs in the trash.
In fact, bolted lettuce can still give the garden something useful. A gardener can harvest any remaining palatable leaves, let the plant flower for pollinators, collect seeds for another crop, or return the spent plant to the compost pile. The trick involves knowing what stage the plant has reached and choosing the best second act instead of trying to force a salad out of a plant that clearly has other plans.
