Features
The Brassica Bunch
The Brassica family, which includes all the cabbage tribe, is one of the largest groups of vegetables we have. Versatile and always in demand, both the market grower and kitchen gardener will find plenty here to experiment with.
Apart from the instantly recognisable cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts and broccoli, there is a host of oriental greens from Chinese cabbage to pak choi, bok choi and dozens of leaves now grown for baby leaf salad mixes. These include rocket, mizuna, red and green mustard, namesia, sessantina – the list goes on.
There are red cabbages, purple sprouting broccoli, the lime green romanesco – an endless variety of tastes, texture and colour for the plate and the market.
Grow Your Own
Before we get too carried away however, producing these is no cake walk as the list of pests and diseases lining up to have a piece of the action is pretty daunting, to say the least. For this feature, I will concentrate more on cabbages, of which there are many types. Spring greens, pointed and round heads, savoy cabbage and even a novelty walking stick cabbage.
Traditionally, in my part of the country, bare-rooted cabbage plants, grown by local farmers to earn a little extra income, would have been for sale on fair days. Flower of Spring was a great favourite. This practice has almost died out and cabbages are usually sown in plugs or seed trays, for sale in garden centres in early spring into summer.
For the organic grower it is undoubtedly best to grow your own and there is also a market for raising and selling transplants especially in view of the resurgence in home gardening – something of a recession busting boom at the moment. Good sized blocks, plugs or modules should be used to produce a strong plant and, above all, use good, reliable organic compost.
Poor quality compost will produce poor transplants that you cannot sell. We are currently using Klaasman compost and we sow into one and a half inch blocks, one seed per block. Germination should take about five days, depending on temperature, if using fresh seed. Brassica seed, properly stored, should have a life span of about four years.
Keep your blocks or modules well watered, but not water logged, until they reach transplanting size at about four to five weeks old. If growth slows or the plants start to lose colour or vigour, transplant immediately.
Preparing Ground
Soil preparation for growing cabbages should be thorough, as for any crop. Work in plenty of compost or well rotted farmyard manure to produce a nice tilth, but not too fine. Reasonable potash levels are appreciated. You can plant on the flat, or on a smaller scale, on ridges or lazy beds (far from lazy if you have a half acre of these to make up). Firm in the plants as they are prone to wind damage. If grown on the flat, on a larger scale, plants can be ridged mechanically using a two-wheel or ride-on tractor to provide support and discourage weeds.
Spacing is very much down to type and what end product you require but fifteen to twenty-four inches between plants is a good guide. Spacing between rows will depend on what you are using to control weeds. For hand or wheel hoeing two foot is good. As with any crop, control weeds from early on. Some growers are experimenting with growing nitrogen-fixing clovers between rows (undersowing). Timing of sowing the green manure is the key to success here.
The cabbages need to be growing well but not too far on to hinder the establishment of the clover which is seeded using some form of hand pushed seeder. A problem I would have with this is that the green manure provides a hiding place for slugs which are the bane of the brassica grower.
Pests and Diseases
I will deal with a few of the major problems facing the grower. A healthy, vigorous stand of growing plants, not stressed for water or nutrients, is the first port of call. Preventing pests starts early in summer with cabbage root fly. This aerial bombardment shows in flagged out plants during warm, dry spells. The flies lay their eggs at the base of the plant and the maggots tunnel into the roots.
Covering the growing crop with fleece will prevent the flies access to the crop. Because the plants become so large, you will need to leave plenty of fleece at the sides to accommodate the growing crop and prevent the fleece from lifting off the soil.
On a small scale, squares of old carpet or used yoghurt pots can be placed around the cabbage stems (brassica collars) to deny the flies access. Another trick which helps is to place compost around the stems and earth up the crop which should lead to new root development allowing the affected plants to recover.
Later on come the cabbage white butterflies which lay their eggs beneath the leaves or in the ‘folds’ of maturing heads. Left to their own devices, the caterpillars will shred the leaves leaving them unsaleable. Fleece will do the job of prevention once again or you can spray with Bacillus thuringiensis which targets specific caterpillars. On ingesting the spray, caterpillars will stop feeding and eventually die. You will need to spray again in a week or so for newly hatched eggs. On a small garden scale, remove caterpillars by hand and squash eggs – be thorough, not squeamish!
Slugs need to be rigorously controlled from the outset to keep the crop saleable. Use Ferramol slug pellets right through the growing season as slugs will move into the heads for safe haven as the crop matures. Ferramol pellets are made from iron phosphate which is harmless to birds, pets and other wildlife.
Soil Borne Disease
The worst disease which will threaten your cabbages or any brassica is clubroot (called finger and toe in the past). It causes white lumps or swelling on the roots leading to a lack of vigour or death of the plants in severe cases. It can survive for up to fifteen years so rotation of brassica crops is vital in preventing a build up of soil borne problems.
Wild mustard or black mustard are weeds which will also carry clubroot. Try to avoid getting it on your plot by raising your own transplants. Again, feeding and earthing up affected plants will help – it’s at its worst in hot dry conditions, so irrigate regularly. There are lots of leaf spotting fungal diseases which can be a serious problem with winter crops.
With time and experimentation you will find what does and doesn’t work in your area. Don’t be put off by the list of potential problems – just be vigilant and follow sound gardening practices and cabbages will be no problem. Don’t forget some Dutch white and red cabbage for summer coleslaw.
Gillian Westbrook has been appointed to the new position of
General Manager with IOFGA. Coming from a background in the regulatory area...
