Spring Cabbage Gone To Seed!?

[Gary]

Hi, the majority of my spring cabbages has gone to seed. Does anyone know why this has happened? (I am wondering if I was a little heavy handed when breaking off the brownish leaves?). And how can avoid it in the future? Thanks.

[charles]

It depends… on which variety, when you sowed them, your soil and climate! Possibly you sowed too early so they started to heart before Christmas. I reckon best sowing date in S of England is last week in August, to have smallish plants over winter.
Some varieties tend to flower early and especially in dry soil, so the weather is a factor too.

[Rhys]

Gary

I planted my spring cabbages (Durham Early) out on the last day of September straight after removing the runner beans and they were all still pretty small at the end of March.

We’ve harvested 4 so far for leaves only (started around 10th April) and are taking 2 at a time for a meal using leaves whilst waiting for the larger ones to heart up, such as they do.

We’re hoping they will last out to the end of May, as swede and corn are to follow the last to be harvested whilst leeks transplanted out will fill the remainder of the space.

[Gary]

I planted Precoce De Louviers and it’s a clay soil in Leicester – they are massive so it would seem I planted them too early.

[charles]

I think that is it, aim for planting around the equinox, from sowings in the second half of August.
You can eat the seed stalks as broccoli before they open flowers.

[Author]

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