7 Tips to Grow Great Cabbage, Cauliflower, Broccoli, and More!
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Date: 2022-07-18
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Comments and reviews: 15
R.
Hi, Kevin! Congratulations on a great series! In this episode you concentrated on Western brassicas and mentioned your challenges with them in San Diego. You would have far fewer challenges and much larger harvests if you grew East Asian brassicas, which have been bred for warmer climates. My wife grew (organically) tons of various types of Chinese brassicas while living in San Diego, with four or five harvests per year. Cold climate brassicas are unsuited for your climate zone. In my native Northern Europe we traditionally dont even as much as look at kale and Brussels sprouts before the first frost. Here in California, I have been known to put them into the freezer for at least one hour before cooking, and they taste sweeter then.
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Hi, Kevin! Congratulations on a great series! In this episode you concentrated on Western brassicas and mentioned your challenges with them in San Diego. You would have far fewer challenges and much larger harvests if you grew East Asian brassicas, which have been bred for warmer climates. My wife grew (organically) tons of various types of Chinese brassicas while living in San Diego, with four or five harvests per year. Cold climate brassicas are unsuited for your climate zone. In my native Northern Europe we traditionally dont even as much as look at kale and Brussels sprouts before the first frost. Here in California, I have been known to put them into the freezer for at least one hour before cooking, and they taste sweeter then.
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Iron
I try to grow cabbage every year, organically and fail because I haven't tried using a cover cloth or cage of some kind. However, this year we got rabbits and I learned that the urine resists pests. So I usually take grass clippings, or leaves or whatever mulch I have and let them poop and pee on it then spread it around my brassicas and wala, cabbage moths don't come near it. It had only been one month on this experiment and something started eating a plant so I had to respply, but the benefit is the natural fertilizer at the same time
The leaves are huge and growing nicely
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I try to grow cabbage every year, organically and fail because I haven't tried using a cover cloth or cage of some kind. However, this year we got rabbits and I learned that the urine resists pests. So I usually take grass clippings, or leaves or whatever mulch I have and let them poop and pee on it then spread it around my brassicas and wala, cabbage moths don't come near it. It had only been one month on this experiment and something started eating a plant so I had to respply, but the benefit is the natural fertilizer at the same time
The leaves are huge and growing nicely
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Kat
Really interesting piece, thank you. I admit was hoping this might cover raising brassica seeds indoors, something Ive had no success with despite trying every year. Here in Tasmania, I plant seedlings of broccoli and cauliflower in mid-March (early spring, covered with wire waste baskets until the cabbage whites disappear in late April. This timing gives me a late winter harvest. But trying to raise the seeds indoors starting in the last couple of weeks of summer (late Feb) is, for me, impossible, I always end up buying seedlings. So maybe sometime you could do a piece on this?
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Really interesting piece, thank you. I admit was hoping this might cover raising brassica seeds indoors, something Ive had no success with despite trying every year. Here in Tasmania, I plant seedlings of broccoli and cauliflower in mid-March (early spring, covered with wire waste baskets until the cabbage whites disappear in late April. This timing gives me a late winter harvest. But trying to raise the seeds indoors starting in the last couple of weeks of summer (late Feb) is, for me, impossible, I always end up buying seedlings. So maybe sometime you could do a piece on this?
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Michelle
Did you get any brussel sprouts to form? I planted a brussel sprout seedling last year with 6 broccoli/6 cauliflower from the store. I got some good broccoli and 3 of 6 cauliflower turned out. The brussel sprout plant was about 15-18 tall last winter with no sprouts. I kept it in the ground and it is now double the size (almost 36 tall) and is finally starting to grow sprouts, but they're small (some pea size, the largest is about a marble size. Any suggestions on how to get them bigger? I'm located in Escondido - grew up in Penasquitos - Did you have a sister named Joy?
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Did you get any brussel sprouts to form? I planted a brussel sprout seedling last year with 6 broccoli/6 cauliflower from the store. I got some good broccoli and 3 of 6 cauliflower turned out. The brussel sprout plant was about 15-18 tall last winter with no sprouts. I kept it in the ground and it is now double the size (almost 36 tall) and is finally starting to grow sprouts, but they're small (some pea size, the largest is about a marble size. Any suggestions on how to get them bigger? I'm located in Escondido - grew up in Penasquitos - Did you have a sister named Joy?
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Angelina
Loved this video! I have 50% rate for both success and failure. Ive noticed that collard greens can be more heat tolerant than other types of brassicas. I had to pulled it out at the beginning of summer because in Sydney it gets too much (and the aphids were loving it! . Ive also notices that the moths only come to my brassicas when starts to warm up, not during winter, which is a blessing. What I have though its a BIRD PROBLEM is young seedlings I put outside. The tip on water: 100% true, my water bill goes to the roof with these guys!
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Loved this video! I have 50% rate for both success and failure. Ive noticed that collard greens can be more heat tolerant than other types of brassicas. I had to pulled it out at the beginning of summer because in Sydney it gets too much (and the aphids were loving it! . Ive also notices that the moths only come to my brassicas when starts to warm up, not during winter, which is a blessing. What I have though its a BIRD PROBLEM is young seedlings I put outside. The tip on water: 100% true, my water bill goes to the roof with these guys!
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Chinatown
As a novelty, I replanted the scraps from last year's St. Paddy Day corn beef meal. The celery grew, bolted, dropped seed, and I now have a fresh batch of celery grown from that seed. The cabbage grew into huge plants with stalks, bolted, and also dropped seed. Carrot tops grew, and flowered. But I don't see any new carrots from those seeds. Potato grows and regrows in my yard without effort - like a weed. It's now February 1st, and I see little cabbage seedlings scattered about. I'm hoping that they survive and give me cabbage heads.
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As a novelty, I replanted the scraps from last year's St. Paddy Day corn beef meal. The celery grew, bolted, dropped seed, and I now have a fresh batch of celery grown from that seed. The cabbage grew into huge plants with stalks, bolted, and also dropped seed. Carrot tops grew, and flowered. But I don't see any new carrots from those seeds. Potato grows and regrows in my yard without effort - like a weed. It's now February 1st, and I see little cabbage seedlings scattered about. I'm hoping that they survive and give me cabbage heads.
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Julie
I have cauliflower heads that often outgrow the leaves, so I have to harvest the cauliflower heads before they grow large. Before harvest, as soon as the heads start to appear, I gather the leaves around them and secure them, but by the next day, they have sprung back open. Repeat day after day and the heads are starting to grow wild, look weird and turn funky colours, as they have been exposed to light. Of course, they dont taste any different, but Id love to be able to present a normal cauliflower at the dinner table!
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I have cauliflower heads that often outgrow the leaves, so I have to harvest the cauliflower heads before they grow large. Before harvest, as soon as the heads start to appear, I gather the leaves around them and secure them, but by the next day, they have sprung back open. Repeat day after day and the heads are starting to grow wild, look weird and turn funky colours, as they have been exposed to light. Of course, they dont taste any different, but Id love to be able to present a normal cauliflower at the dinner table!
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Johnnie
The first time I planted broccoli in California, I lived in the desert and planted broccoli and cauliflower seeds in late May. I had about 40 beautiful 2 foot tall broccoli, and 40 cauliflower plants, but NO broccoli or cauliflower come October.
I had harvested all of my other vegetables and abandoned my garden.
In December I walked out to the garden and I had broccoli galore. Still, not one sign of any cauliflower. I learned then that brassicas hate the heat.
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The first time I planted broccoli in California, I lived in the desert and planted broccoli and cauliflower seeds in late May. I had about 40 beautiful 2 foot tall broccoli, and 40 cauliflower plants, but NO broccoli or cauliflower come October.
I had harvested all of my other vegetables and abandoned my garden.
In December I walked out to the garden and I had broccoli galore. Still, not one sign of any cauliflower. I learned then that brassicas hate the heat.
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Crisper
Hey Kevin, I've used calendula lately as a sacrificial plant in my garden kind of near my brassicas for aphid issues. It worked nicely in the spring here in Toronto. The ladybugs came shortly after, so I didn't have to sacrifice too many of the flowers. They're great though because they grow back to easily with the heat of summer. I struggle a lot with kales and broccoli in my garden too, so I hope this year I can enjoy some from the garden.
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Hey Kevin, I've used calendula lately as a sacrificial plant in my garden kind of near my brassicas for aphid issues. It worked nicely in the spring here in Toronto. The ladybugs came shortly after, so I didn't have to sacrifice too many of the flowers. They're great though because they grow back to easily with the heat of summer. I struggle a lot with kales and broccoli in my garden too, so I hope this year I can enjoy some from the garden.
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louise
Many years ago, when we lived further north, there weren't very many bugs to bother our brassicas, except that darn cabbage moth. Floating row cover made all the difference, and the cabbages were absolutely perfect. The variety names were Quartz and Centron, and of course they aren't available any more. Its very windy here, and I'm afraid the row covers won't stay on very long. Going to try the chicken wire idea, thanks.
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Many years ago, when we lived further north, there weren't very many bugs to bother our brassicas, except that darn cabbage moth. Floating row cover made all the difference, and the cabbages were absolutely perfect. The variety names were Quartz and Centron, and of course they aren't available any more. Its very windy here, and I'm afraid the row covers won't stay on very long. Going to try the chicken wire idea, thanks.
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Cassie
Great tips! Brocolli for some reason is so hard for me to grow! I typically let some of my kale overwinter then go to seed the 2nd year. They are my seed savers as well as a nursery for the little cabbage moth caterpillars. I don't have the heart to kill them and haven't yet set up a cover system. I might do that this year for the cabbages though because it's hard to get the little worms from all the nooks and crannies!
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Great tips! Brocolli for some reason is so hard for me to grow! I typically let some of my kale overwinter then go to seed the 2nd year. They are my seed savers as well as a nursery for the little cabbage moth caterpillars. I don't have the heart to kill them and haven't yet set up a cover system. I might do that this year for the cabbages though because it's hard to get the little worms from all the nooks and crannies!
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Mike
If you live in San Diego you could probably benefit from from some calcium in your fertilizer that youre adding to your brassicas. also as long as you have lots of organic material youre probably going to have a pH under seven thats very useful for brassicas and since our water is kind of salty and has a high pH thats something to look out for. Oh! BTW I live near Escondido and have very similar growing conditions to you
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If you live in San Diego you could probably benefit from from some calcium in your fertilizer that youre adding to your brassicas. also as long as you have lots of organic material youre probably going to have a pH under seven thats very useful for brassicas and since our water is kind of salty and has a high pH thats something to look out for. Oh! BTW I live near Escondido and have very similar growing conditions to you
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Denise
I am in Wisconsin, I stopped growing these plants a couple years ago but this year Im trying again. I made a covering with Bridal bridal veil
I dont see a spot to put a picture but I do have them. Thank you so much for your help and ideas. Also there were a few leaves already getting to Chewed on So hoping this works but I got each plant wet and then sprinkle corn meal on the leaves. Ive heard that might work
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I am in Wisconsin, I stopped growing these plants a couple years ago but this year Im trying again. I made a covering with Bridal bridal veil
I dont see a spot to put a picture but I do have them. Thank you so much for your help and ideas. Also there were a few leaves already getting to Chewed on So hoping this works but I got each plant wet and then sprinkle corn meal on the leaves. Ive heard that might work
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Weirdo
This was a great video! Love all your tips and tricks but I do have a question. A few years ago, I got a bunch of wood flakes that I was wanting to use as mulch but never had the time to do so and I was scared that putting the flakes themselves in would ruin the roots or plants health. Now that pile is all decomposed and Im just wondering, would it be a good idea to use that as mulch for a garden?
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This was a great video! Love all your tips and tricks but I do have a question. A few years ago, I got a bunch of wood flakes that I was wanting to use as mulch but never had the time to do so and I was scared that putting the flakes themselves in would ruin the roots or plants health. Now that pile is all decomposed and Im just wondering, would it be a good idea to use that as mulch for a garden?
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Gardening
For me in a cold zone. Kentucky, starting my brassica plants now indoors. As soon as once they sprout start bringing outside daily to acclimatize them for 20 minutes or so. Once temps here are constant 50s put in ground. Cover with tulle/netting immediately because of white flies. Replant indoors in late late summer to have ready to plant outside in cooler fall temps. Good luck
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For me in a cold zone. Kentucky, starting my brassica plants now indoors. As soon as once they sprout start bringing outside daily to acclimatize them for 20 minutes or so. Once temps here are constant 50s put in ground. Cover with tulle/netting immediately because of white flies. Replant indoors in late late summer to have ready to plant outside in cooler fall temps. Good luck
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