Chapter 9: Cool Weather Staples: Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts, Cabbage, and Cauliflower

In This Chapter

Selecting cole crop varieties

Caring for your cole crops, from planting to harvesting

Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, and cauliflower: All these hardy vegetable are in the same family, so they get lumped together in this chapter. Even though they may look different, they all require similar growing conditions. So if you can grow one, you probably will have success with the others. These crops love it cool, so they thrive in northern areas or whengrown in spring, fall, and even winter in southern areas. This group is often referred to as the "cole" crops, because cole is the German word for cabbage — and since all these vegetables are related to cabbage, they often are referred to as the cabbage family of crops.

In this chapter, I discuss the major cole crops. Other related but less popular cole crops, such as collards, kale, kohlrabi, and Chinese cabbage, are covered in Chapter 11. All fall in the Brassica oleracea botanical family.

Paying Attention to the Often-Overlooked Cole Crops

In the beginning there wasn't anything glamorous about cole crops. They weren't as colorful, succulent, or sensuous as tomatoes or melons. Cole crops were simply known for being rugged, tough, good-for-you plants. Just look at variety names such as ‘Snow Crown' cauliflower and ‘Stonehead' cabbage, and you get the picture.

However, that reputation has begun to change. With the advent of interesting-shaped heirloom and hybrid varieties and the coloring of cauliflower into orange, green, and purple heads, cole crops are becoming trendy. They may never be as sexy as the melons, but they're getting a facelift.

Even with a new look, cole crops are still reliable staples in any vegetable garden. Given cool conditions, fertile soil, and proper watering, these plants produce lots of nutritious and delicious vegetables (as you find out in the later section "Growing Your Own Cole Crops").

However, many people still haven't warmed up to cole crops. I don't understand this aversion. Cole crops are tasty, easy to grow, and capable of producing over long periods of time. Plus, with the exploding interest in eating nutritious foods and the discovery of the great potential health benefits of broccoli and other vegetables in its family (see Chapter 2), more and more people are dipping, steaming, and stir-frying their way to health with cole crops. In the following sections, I provide details on different varieties of broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, and cauliflower.

Easing into cole crops with broccoli

Broccoli is one of the easiest cole crops to grow, and it's one that's close to my heart. Like my ancestors, broccoli hails from Italy. My mother and I still enjoy a good meal of garlic sautéed in olive oil and tossed with broccoli, accompanied by a loaf of fresh Italian bread. She likes the smaller-headed, old-fashioned, sprouting broccoli varieties such as ‘DeCicco', whose stems and leaves are so tender that they're eaten along with the head.

Modern broccoli varieties have been bred to form one large main head. This head is simply a tight cluster of flower buds. Once the main head is cut off, multiple side branches and mini heads form along the plant. In most areas, the side branches and mini heads continue to form until the plant is killed by frost, insects, or disease. So from one plant, you can harvest right through summer, fall, and winter (if your climate is warm enough). I explain how to harvest broccoli in more detail later in this chapter.

Choosing the right broccoli variety for your garden depends on a number of factors, including where you live and what you plan to do with the crop. Here are a few guidelines to follow when choosing a broccoli variety:

If you plan to stock up for the winter by freezing broccoli heads, choose a variety with large heads that mature mostly at the same time. Try ‘Green Magic' or ‘Premium Crop'.

Broccoli, like all cole crops, likes cool weather. Warm weather makes the heads flower too quickly, resulting in a bitter flavor. Gardeners in warm climates should choose varieties that withstand heat or mature early, before the heat of summer. ‘Packman' is a good choice.

If you want a long, steady production of small but tender side shoots, choose an old-fashioned variety with good side-shoot production, such as my mom's favorite, ‘DeCicco'.

If you live in a humid climate (such as Dallas) or a coastal area that has lots of fog and mist (such as San Francisco), broccoli heads can rot before maturing. Choose varieties with added disease resistance and tightly clustered flower heads that shed water easily, such as ‘Arcadia'.

Here's a list of some of the best broccoli varieties to grow. The days to maturity listed for each variety refers to the number of days from transplanting a seedling into the garden until the harvest of the main head. If you sow the seeds directly into the garden, add another 20 days to estimate the maturity date. Of course, the actual number of days varies depending on weather and soil conditions. All plants listed grow to about 1 to 2 feet:

‘Arcadia': A large, 8-inch-diameter, blue-green-colored head is formed high on stems above the foliage, making this variety easier to harvest than other broccoli varieties. ‘Arcadia' is a hybrid variety (see Chapter 3 for more on hybrids), so it's a vigorous grower, producing uniform-sized heads in 63 days, and has excellent disease resistance. It's also tender and tasty.

‘Belstar': This hybrid is a favorite of commercial organic growers. It's widely adapted, produces 6-inch-diameter heads equally well in spring or fall, and it also has good side-shoot production. This variety matures in 66 days.

‘DeCicco': This heirloom, old-fashioned Italian variety produces a 3-inch-diameter main head and multiple side shoots in 48 days and has tender leaves and stems.

‘Green Magic': This early-maturing hybrid broccoli is very heat tolerant, making it a good summer and fall crop. The plant produces a 6-inch-diameter head in 57 days.

‘Packman': A hybrid, this variety produces a 9-inch-diameter main head earlier (52 days) than other large-headed varieties such as ‘Premium Crop'. It also has excellent side-shoot production and heat tolerance.

‘Premium Crop': An All-America Selections (AAS) winner (see Chapter 4 for more about this designation), this hybrid broccoli produces a large, 9-inch-diameter head late in the season (after 62 days). However, it's slow to flower, so you don't have to rush to pick it.

‘Purple Sprouting': This Italian heirloom produces a 2-foot-tall plant with multiple 3-inch-diameter purple heads late in the season (after 125 days). It's best grown in cool northern areas to mature in late fall. Or, in mild-winter climates, you can plant it in fall and grow it through the winter to mature in early spring. (Refer to the section "Giving cole crops what they want," later in this chapter, for planting tips.) The head turns green upon cooking.

‘Small Miracle': This early hybrid variety grows less than 1-foot- tall, so the plants only need to be spaced 8 inches apart, which makes this variety great for small gardens. It produces 6- to 8-inch heads in 55 days.

Brussels sprouts: The little cabbages

Rows of Brussels sprout stems standing tall in the garden loaded with sprouts are a sure sign of fall. Although the sprouts take a whole season to mature, they're relatively maintenance-free, and the sprouts turn a sweet, nutty flavor after they're touched by cold weather.

To the untrained eye, a Brussels sprout plant can look like a strange life-form from another planet. Small, cabbagelike sprouts grow in clusters along the 3-foot-tall stem, and often gardeners remove most of the leaves so that the sprouts grow larger. The plants look like miniature palm trees (see Figure 9-1), with mini-cabbages on the stalk. In fact, if you like cabbage, you'll love the similar flavor of the smaller and more manageable Brussels sprouts.

The key to growing Brussels sprouts is having a long growing season and a cool fall to induce the best flavor. The flavor actually benefits from a light frost.

The following varieties are widely adaptable and worth a try in any garden. The days to maturity are from setting out seedlings to first harvest. Add 20 days to the maturity if direct seeding into the garden.

‘Diablo': This hybrid is a standout in American and European gardens. The 3-foot-tall plants produce heavy crops of medium-sized sprouts later in the season (after 110 days). The sprouts stay firm when mature and hold well in the garden (can be left on the plant in the garden until you need them in the kitchen).

‘Jade Cross E': A hybrid AAS winner, this variety's 21/2-foot-tall plants produce good-sized sprouts all the way up their stalks in 90 days.

‘Oliver': One of the earliest-maturing varieties, this hybrid matures in 85 days on 2-foot-tall plants. It is well adapted to many climates.

‘Red Rubine': Yes, even Brussels sprouts have color variations. This heirloom variety produces very tasty and attractive red sprouts on a hardy, purplish-red-colored 2-foot-tall plant. The red color remains even after cooking. This variety matures in 95 days.

Choosing cabbage: The age-old and dependable cole crop

When many people think of cole crops, they first think of cabbages. Broccoli and cauliflower may be gaining in popularity, and Brussels sprouts may be novel, but cabbage is a long-time, solid vegetable citizen. It has been an easy-to-grow staple in Europe for hundreds of years and for centuries before that in the Middle East.

Cabbage-growing isn't as popular as it once was, and you rarely find cabbage on the menus of finer restaurants, but the sweet, tender flavor of freshly harvested cabbage makes it worthy of a spot in your garden. With so many varieties to choose from, you can have fresh and delicious cole slaw, sauerkraut, and boiled cabbage almost all season long — from summer into winter.

Cabbage requires the same conditions as other cole crops — cool weather, fertile soil, and proper watering — but the variety that you select is a bit more important to ensure a continuous harvest. By selecting early-, mid-, and late-season varieties, you can extend your cabbage harvest season by weeks. You can easily get lost in the dizzying array of cabbage varieties:

Early-, mid-, and late-season varieties

Round, pointy, and flat-headed varieties

Smooth-leafed and savoyed (crinkle-leafed) varieties

Green and red-colored varieties

Growing two or three different varieties that mature at different times allows you to spread out the harvest over the growing season. And by spreading out the harvest, you avoid getting yourself into the "six heads of cabbage ready all the same week" situation. (Even the most ardent cabbage lover would have a hard time eating all that cabbage!)

To get you started on the right foot, in the following list I describe ten varieties that represent the universe of cabbages. (Note, however, that I cover Chinese cabbage in Chapter 11.) Cabbage plants can spread to 3 feet in diameter, and they all have green leaves and white centers unless otherwise noted. The late-maturing and fall-planted varieties are best for storage. (I talk more about storing cabbages in Chapter 19.) The days to maturity for each variety are from setting out seedlings in the garden to first harvest. Add 20 days to the maturity date if you directly seed in the garden. Without further ado, here are some varieties to try:

‘Danish Ballhead': This old-time favorite produces 8-inch-diameter, round, smooth-leafed heads late in the season (after 100 days) and is great for winter storage. This variety is good for sauerkraut and slaw recipes.

‘Early Jersey Wakefield': This early heirloom smooth-leafed cabbage with a pointed head measures 5 inches in diameter and has compact plants that are slow to split. (For more on splitting, see the later section on harvesting cabbage.) This variety matures in 65 days.

‘Famosa': This hybrid midseason, round-headed crop produces 2- to 4-pound, dark blue-green, savoyed heads with a yellow tinted interior and tender leaves in 75 days.

‘Golden Acre': This early-maturing, open-pollinated, round-headed variety produces 3- to 4-pound disease-resistant heads that are great in salads. The leaves are smooth. It matures in 58 days.

‘Gonzales': This popular European variety grows to be only 4 to 6 inches in diameter, making it a great selection for small spaces. This early-season hybrid produces round, softball-sized, smooth-leaved, aqua-green-colored heads in 66 days.

‘Late Flat Dutch': This heirloom, late-maturing, 10-inch-diameter variety features a flattened head and smooth leaves. It's excellent for sauerkraut and storage and matures in 100 days.

‘Red Acre': This red, early-maturing, 6-inch-diameter, round, open-pollinated cabbage with a dense interior, smooth leaves, and deep color has good disease resistance and is great for storage. The cabbages mature in 76 days.

‘Ruby Perfection': This red, midseason hybrid variety produces attractive 5- to 6-inch-diameter, smooth-leaved, reddish-purple round heads in 80 days.

‘Savoy Express': This early hybrid, AAS-winning, sweet-tasting, savoy-leafed variety produces 1- to 2-pound round heads that are perfect in slaw and salad. The variety matures in 55 days.

‘Stonehead': This widely grown, early-maturing hybrid variety produces 5- to 6-inch-diameter solid, smooth-leaved, round heads on compact plants in 60 days.

Considering cauliflower in a rainbow of colors

Think of cauliflower as broccoli's hard-to-get-along-with brother. Both are from southern Europe, require similar growing conditions, and are closely related botanically. However, cauliflower plants produce only one head and no side shoots, and they have a reputation for being a bit tougher to grow. (See the later section "Giving cole crops what they want" for more information.) But don't worry! With the right varieties, proper soil conditions, appropriate watering, and well-timed planting, cauliflower can be a joy to grow in your vegetable garden. It's especially exciting for young gardeners who are amazed to find a beautiful snow-white-colored head hidden under the green leaves. And if you're tired of pure-white heads, purple-, green-, and even orange-headed varieties are now available.

Broccoli and cabbage plants produce heads, and Brussels sprout plants produce, well, sprouts, so what does a cauliflower plant produce? A curd. (But I'll refer to them as heads throughout this chapter, because that's what folks are used to.) No, it's not a Middle Eastern ethnic group or something that Little Miss Muffet ate with her whey. Like a broccoli head, a cauliflower curd is comprised of miniature flower heads tightly clustered together.

On white cauliflower varieties, the heads stay white and tender only if you stop the sun from hitting them by covering the head. (This technique is called blanching; see the later section "Nurturing cole crops" for details.) If exposed to the sun, the heads turn yellow and develop a mealy texture.

Like cabbage, cauliflower comes in early-, mid-, and late-season varieties. All the varieties in the following list produce 6- to 7-inch-diameter heads. The days to maturity for each variety are from setting out seedlings in the garden until first harvest. Add 20 days to the maturity date for direct seeding in the garden. Consider these popular varieties:

‘Cassius': A favorite among commercial organic growers, this hybrid variety features vigorous, sturdy plants and picture-perfect, snowy white heads. The variety matures in 65 days.

‘Cheddar': Here's where the cauliflower color revolution started. The ‘Cheddar' hybrid has orange heads that become even brighter as they mature; the color even holds when cooked. The orange coloring is from the presence of carotene (the same substance that causes carrots to be orange), so this variety is also high in vitamin A and has a sweet flavor. The heads mature in 58 days.

‘Fremont': A self-blanching hybrid variety, ‘Fremont' is known for dependable midseason production (after 62 days), even under adverse weather conditions.

‘Graffiti': For eye-popping color, grow some purple cauliflower! The brilliant purple-colored head of this hybrid is great raw in salads. However, the color fades when cooked. This variety matures in 80 days.

‘Panther': Not to be outdone by its colorful cousins, ‘Panther' features lime-green-colored heads on hybrid plants. Large, uniform heads produce early (in 75 days) and hold well in the garden.

‘Snow Crown': This is the standard white hybrid variety that's easy to grow, early (60 days), widely adaptable, and dependable.

If you're looking for a cauliflower with class, try growing the Romaneseco types. Originally only grown around Rome, Italy, in fall, this cauliflower is getting broader play today. The heads are sweeter than white cauliflower, but take longer to mature (85 to 90 days). The reward for your patience is a pale to dark-green head consisting of mini-spirals that look like minarets. This variety is almost too beautiful to eat! ‘Veronica' is a new hybrid variety, and ‘Minaret' is an attractive heirloom.

Growing Your Own Cole Crops

As long as the weather is cool, cole crops are a snap to grow. They thrive in most parts of the country as a spring or fall crop just for that reason. Start with a rich, fertile soil; keep them well weeded and watered; and keep pests such as the cabbageworm at bay. You'll be rewarded with an abundant harvest. I explain what you need to know in the following sections.

Giving cole crops what they want

The keys to growing all cole crops are cool weather and fertile soil. Cole cropsare cool crops: They grow and taste best when temperatures are below 80 degrees Fahrenheit, especially when the crops are maturing. Cole crops grow best in raised beds (see Chapter 3) and are also fairly demanding of nutrients, so be generous with manure and fertilizers (after you've done a soil test as indicated in Chapter 14 and know what nutrient adjustments need to be made), and they'll reward you with plenty of growth and production.

Because cole crops thrive in cool weather, many gardeners can grow all of them to mature as a summer crop and then some as a fall crop. That's two crops in per year! I explain how to plant summer and fall crops in the following sections.

Two caveats apply:

Brussels sprouts may be hard to mature as a fall crop in far northern areas, but they're commonly grown in fall in most other areas of the country.

If the weather gets too cold or too warm when cauliflower plants are forming heads, all you end up with are scraggly, small heads. Temperatures in the 70-degree range are ideal, so it's best to avoid growing cauliflower when it will mature in the heat of summer. For that reason, many gardeners like to grow cauliflower only as a fall crop started in summer to mature in the cooler, autumn weather.

Planting summer cole crops

Even though you can direct seed most summer-maturing cole crops in spring — that is, plant the seed directly in the garden — it's easier to get a jump on the season by starting the plants indoors 6 to 8 weeks before your last frost date (see the appendix for first and last frost dates in your area). Then you can plant the seedlings in your garden 2 to 4 weeks before that date. Spring-planted summer-maturing cole crops can withstand a light frost, and planting them early gives them a jump-start on growing. After the plants have at least four leaves, cultivate around the plants to kill any weeds and mulch with hay or straw. (Check out Chapter 14 for information on battling weeds and Chapter 15 for mulching techniques.)

Here's a rule-of-green-thumb when it comes to spacing cole crops, especially cabbage: The closer the plants are to one another, the smaller their heads will be (the appendix provides plant spacing guidelines). A dwarfed crop isn't necessarily bad — you may want to produce smaller, more manageable heads of cabbage. So, instead of planting cabbages 12 to 24 inches apart, try 8 to 12 inches. You'll get smaller, more manageable heads.

Planting fall cole crops

For gardeners in all but the coldest areas, a fall-maturing crop of broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, and cauliflower may be easier to manage than a similar summer-maturing crop. Fall weather provides the perfect temperatures to mature cole crops to their sweetest flavor.

For fall cole crops, start seedlings indoors about 3 months before your first frost and then transplant the seedlings to the garden 1 month later. For example, if your first frost is November 1, you should start seeds indoors on August 1 and then transplant them in your garden on September 1. (Starting the seedlings indoors and letting them grow until they're 3 to 4 weeks old helps them withstand the shock of being planted in the garden in summer.) To protect the young seedlings from the harsh summer sun, mulch them with hay or straw immediately after planting, and shade them — especially in the afternoon — with a shade cloth or floating row cover (a plastic or fabric material that lets light through but insulates the plants). (Refer to Chapter 21 for information on row covers.)

In very mild-winter areas such as the U.S. West coast and the Gulf coast, try growing overwintering varieties of broccoli (varieties that can withstand cold temperatures better than other varieties and need a longer season to mature) such as ‘Purple Sprouting', which I discuss earlier in the chapter. Planted in fall, such varieties slowly grow all winter and mature in spring.

Nurturing cole crops

Cole crops like full sun and well-drained soil that's built into raised beds. Most importantly, though, cole crops really like fertile soil. A week or so before planting your seedlings, work a 3- to 4-inch layer of composted manure into the bed. About 1 month after you transplant your cole crop seedlings, apply about 3 to 4 pounds of an organic fertilizer, such as 5-5-5, to every 100 square feet of garden. (Chapter 15 has more on fertilizing.) Keep the soil moist, and a week or so after transplanting, apply an organic mulch such as hay or straw. These types of mulches keep weeds at bay and keep the soil cool and moist — just how cole crops like it.

I stress the importance of cool weather for cole crops throughout this chapter, but mild temperatures can be too cool for some cole crops. Even though mature cole crop plants can withstand temperatures into the 20s, young plants may not be so hardy. If broccoli plants are exposed to several days of 40-degree temperatures when they're still young, they can form flower heads prematurely when the weather warms (which is called buttoning). Cauliflower does the same thing when exposed to cold temperatures or other stresses, such as crowding, when young. In either case, you're left with a small plant and head. To avoid this premature flowering, plant in summer for a fall crop or cover young spring-planted crops with a row cover to keep them warm.

With older cauliflower varieties, such as ‘Snow Crown', you have to wrap the leaves over the head and tie them with twine, as shown in Figure 9-2. However, many newer varieties, such as ‘Fremont', are self-blanching (the leaves naturally grow to cover the head and avoid light) as well as disease resistant. However, even newer varieties benefit from careful inspection to ensure that the leaves are tightly covering the heads once they form.

Keep the plants well watered, weeded, and mulched so they grow steadily through the season. Side-dress cole crops with an organic fertilizer such as 5-5-5 about 1 month after transplanting in the garden. (For more on side-dressing, flip to Chapter 15.) Nurture your plants, and they'll reward you with a bountiful harvest.

Putting a stop to pesky pest problems

In general, cole crops have only a few problems that home gardeners need to watch out for. Many modern hybrid varieties have added disease resistance, so choose these varieties if diseases are a problem in your garden. I discuss general vegetable diseases and pests, such as cutworms, aphids, nematodes, flea beetles, and mildews, in Chapter 17, but the following list warns you about some specific cole crop pests:

Black rot: This bacterial disease is a problem particularly with cabbage and cauliflower. It causes the plant or head to rot before maturing. The telltale signs are a foul smell, a yellowing of the lower leaves, blackening of the leaf veins, and triangular yellow areas on the leaf edges. You can control this problem by rotating crops (planting other unrelated crops such as tomatoes, beans, or lettuce in that area for 3 years) and removing all old cole crop plant debris.

Cabbage maggot: If plants are stunted, pull one up and look at the roots. If you see small, white larvae (maggots) feeding there, you probably have cabbage maggots. The adult fly lays eggs on the stems at the soil line and then when the eggs hatch, the larvae tunnel into the soil and start feeding on the roots. The maggots are especially dangerous to young seedlings. To control the cabbage maggot, place a floating row cover over the young seedlings. After the weather warms, remove the row cover.

Club root: If your plants are stunted, pull one up and check the roots. If the roots are gnarled and disfigured, a fungus called club root may be to blame. To prevent this disease, rotate crops and raise the soil pH to 7.2 by adding lime (see Chapter 14 for more on acceptable pH ranges for vegetables).

Imported cabbageworm and cabbage looper: These two insects are the number-one problem with cole crops. The adult of the cabbageworm is a seemingly harmless white butterfly that lays single white eggs on the undersides of leaves. The eggs hatch, and then green caterpillars crawl out and begin to feed on the leaves. The adult of the cabbage looper is a gray-brown moth. These pests can quickly destroy your crop. As soon as you see signs of feeding — including the caterpillars or their dark green droppings — spray the crop with a biological control called Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt). Bt is an effective bacteria that attacks only the larvae of caterpillar family insects and is safe to other insects, animals, and humans.

Harvesting cole crops

If all goes well, cole crops should be ready to eat after a few months. However, be sure to check the days to maturity for the varieties you choose. In this section, I share some tips to help you get the best harvests.

Broccoli

Harvest broccoli by cutting the main head when the flower buds are still tightly clustered together without any signs of blossoming. Even if the head is smaller than you would like it to be, cut it now. After the yellow flowers open, the flavor turns bitter. If you leave a few inches of the main stem on the plant, many broccoli varieties respond by growing side branches that produce little heads (see Figure 9-3). Keep harvesting, and the broccoli keeps producing! When you harvest the side shoots, cut the shoot back to the main stem. Doing so creates fewer, but larger side shoots that are easier to use.

Brussels sprouts

Brussels sprouts taste best after cool weather helps turn some of their carbohydrates into sugars. Following a frost, pick off the marble-sized sprouts from the bottom of the plant first, moving up the stalk. The more sprouts you pick from below, the larger the sprouts above will get. Pull off the lower leaves for easier picking.

To make the sprouts mature faster, snip off the top few inches of the plant once sprouts have formed on the bottom 12 inches of the stalk.

Because Brussels sprouts tolerate temperatures into the 20s, you can harvest right into New Year's in some areas. I've picked frozen sprouts off plants for Christmas, and they tasted great. The flavor actually gets sweeter with cool temperatures! Just cook and eat them immediately; if you try to store them, they'll rot.

Cabbage

Harvest cabbage heads when they're firm when squeezed. By periodically squeezing your cabbages through the growing season, you'll be able to tell when they're firm. (Don't worry — they won't mind!) To harvest, cut the head from the base of the plant with a sharp knife. When harvesting early-maturing varieties in summer, don't dig up the plants. Cabbages have the ability to grow smaller side heads on the plant after the main head is harvested; you harvest these side heads the same way that you do the main head.

Sometimes, cabbage heads split before you can harvest them. Splitting occurs when the plant takes up too much fertilizer or water, especially around harvest time. This "overdose" causes the inner leaves to grow faster than the outer leaves, splitting the heads. Harvest splitting heads as soon as possible. To stop splitting once it starts, grab the head and give it a one-half turn to break some of the roots. You also can root prune the plant by digging in a circle about 1 foot from the base of the cabbage. Both of these methods slow the uptake of water and fertilizer to preserve the head.

Cauliflower

When heads are between 6 and 12 inches in diameter and blanched white (for white varieties) or fully colored (for colored varieties), pull up the whole plant and cut off the head. Cauliflower, unlike cabbage and broccoli, won't form side heads after the main head is cut.