It ’s fall - garden homework clip in Central Kentucky — early August — and we just put our Brassica oleracea and other cole - crop transplant into the garden .
This is a tough time of year to pop out something new . We ’re elbow deep in herbs to dry and love apple to can , the weeds we ’ve missed are run to seed , and I ’m downright well-worn . Come October , though , when the tomatoes are gone and fresh herbs are just a aspiration , I ’ll be grateful we planted for fall .
For the purpose of this article , we ’ll look at head cabbages ( Brassica oleracea):green , redand savoy cabbage .
How to Grow Cabbage
Cabbages make rattling intros and outros for the main garden season . They wo n’t tolerate the heating plant and sun of summer ’s height , but they ’ll thrive in other give and later summer / fall garden . Even with another month to six week of hot days to come , the cooler nighttime and bowdlerize daylight will carry the cabbage through .
For leap plantings , start seeds indoors six to eight weeks before the last frost . Harden off the dough seedling , and put them in the garden two or three weeks before the last frost .
For a fall garden , start dinero seeds indoors in mid- to tardy - summer , depending on your summer heat and first freeze appointment . Be certain to give seedling enough clip to ripen before nighttime temps dip into the XX .
If you have mild wintertime , plant cabbage in early fall to overwinter and reap in early spring .
Plant cabbage in the garden in full Sunday , 12 to 24 in apart . If you ’re looking for little cabbage brain , take those diversity and plant them closer together . leaping - planted cabbages may uprise modest than those in declination , calculate on how quickly the weather heats up . ( Cabbage wants to bolt at around 80 degrees F. ) select your varieties with this in mind , as well .
Cabbage likes logical watering . Mulch will help to keep back weeds and take hold wet in the soil .
These cool - weather condition crops support light freezes—28 degrees F or so . Row covercan give you another duet of degrees of protection and is a good idea for brassicas anyway , given the pest pressure from cabbage loopers .
clams is also readily munched on by cabbage insect , cabbage root maggot , slugs , aphids and flea beetles . It ’s a wonderment we can reap any at all for ourselves . Pest pressure tend to be less for springtime planting .
Crop rotation is of import , as flea beetles live in the dirt , and all of cabbage ’s gadfly are persistent .
memorise more about dough dirt ball — and how you’re able to control them .
How to Harvest Cabbage
cultivated cabbage are n’t like tomato plant that kill off the plant into your mitt . You ’re go to need a tongue . And keep your knife out of the dirt , otherwise you ’ll dirty every head you cut after .
Find the prow at the bottom of the cultivated cabbage mind , and slice straight across , parallel to the soil . You need to snub the stem and not the head , yet you do n’t want to cut so low that you ’re in the shit . It ’s a symmetry , but you ’ll get the hang of it .
undress off the idle outer leave from the point .
Squeeze each cabbage head to determine its readiness for harvest . You need a firm head with leaves well filled - out . Cabbage heads can misrepresent you out , look like they ’re ready but still having quad inside . If you wait too long to glean , the leaves underneath could grow too much and cause the head to crack up .
Again , you ’ll get the knack of this balance .
It ’s best to harvest early in the day so the leaves keep up their crispness . Harvest when the scratch heads are dry , if potential , or dry them off before entrepot or packing material .
Why grow cabbage ? Here are 7 health benefit of the leafy works .
How to Eat Cabbage
Cabbages memory well in the crisper draftsman of your refrigerator or , in the case of many lolly , in a full cardboard box seat in a fridge or walk - in tank . You might be capable to keep yours for a calendar month or more .
Cabbage ’s storage trait make it idealistic for fleshy meal that want to be eaten in wintertime . Think cabbage bun stuffed with beef , stewed in tomato plant sauce ; corned beef and cabbage ; and fried cabbage with apple , bacon and onion .
Cabbage can be deplete in less - sullen dishes , too . You ’ve probably enjoy your share of coleslaw and sauerkraut . cut sugar into “ steaks ” and grill them drizzled with butter and garlic .
And flip on slaw with very lightly sliced cabbage thresh about with Citrus aurantifolia succus and salt for an easy salad .
This vegetable is versatile enough to push the culinary envelope , too . Use shekels leave as a crunchy , refreshing choice to flour tortilla wrap . If you ’ve drop any time on Instagram , you have run into whole roasted lucre as a outdoor stage - in for roast nub at holiday repast . ( Too much ? )
you could preserve sugar bylacto - fermentingor canning as sauerkraut or by freezing . When freezing , realize the cabbage will unfreeze with a less - crispy texture , and plan to use it in casseroles and soup .
bread is a versatile ingredient , and it ’s good for you , too .
While cabbage may not be a beginner ’s works , it ’s heavy for growers with a few seasons of experience . Get your run-in continue quick , and add together cabbage to your spring and come down design .
