If you are lucky enough to have your own garden, you should definitely grow vegetables. Cabbages, a he althy, vitamin-rich vegetable, are relatively easy to cultivate. Cauliflower is one of the real vitamin bombs.
When is the cauliflower ready to harvest?
Cauliflower is ready to harvest when the white flower is plump and firm, usually eight to twelve weeks after planting. To avoid discoloration, the heads should be covered as soon as they form in the leaf rosette.
Interesting facts about cauliflower
Cauliflower, from the cruciferous family, is one of our favorite vegetables. It probably comes from southern Greece. In the 16th century, the Sami reached Italy by sea and from there finally to Germany.
Few people know that cauliflower is the compressed and thickened flower of cabbage
. If the head is not harvested, an elongated inflorescence actually develops withyellowish flowers.
Cauliflower is rightly called a vitamin bomb. In addition to vitamin C, it contains mineralsand trace elements.
Minerals
- Phosphorus
- Kaluim
- calcium
- Sodium
- Iron
Trace elements
- Zinc
- Copper
- Iodine
- Fluorine
Reproduction and varieties
Growing cauliflower requires a little attention and work. To thrive, cauliflower needs good, humus-rich soil and a warm, sunny location. Since it is one of the
heavy feeders, it needs sufficient fertilizer to grow, such as: E.g. stable manure or compost. Three to four applications of fertilizer and plenty of water until harvest are recommended. In addition,the soil between the plants should be regularly cleared of weeds and loosened.
Once the soil is prepared, the cauliflower plants can be planted outdoors at a distance of 50 cm from mid-April. In the event of late ground frosts, they need protection with perforated foil, fleece or plastic covers. As soon as small white heads form in the leaf rosette, they should be covered so that they do not change color due to sunlight. After eight to twelve weeks, the cauliflower is ripe, the white flower is plump and firm.
There are several types of cauliflower that differ in growing period, color or taste.
- Erfurt dwarf, white, uncomplicated cultivation, growing in the greenhouse from February
- Walcheren Winter, white, summer sowing, harvest the following year
- Di Sicilia Violetto, violet, early sowing, strong taste
- Cheddar F1, orange, cultivation in spring
- Shannon, light green head, similar to Romanesco, summer sowing, autumn harvest
Pests
The joy of growing cabbage plants is often marred by various pests. The cabbage fly damages even the young plants. A cardboard sleeve wrapped around the stalk can protect, as can covering with vegetable protection nets.
The cabbage white butterfly lays its eggs on the underside of leaves. As soon as the larvae hatch, they eat all the leaves in a very short time. This can be remedied by stripping the eggs, collecting the larvae or using protective nets.
Tips & Tricks
Cauliflower also thrives in balcony boxes or flower pots. This special picking cauliflower isparticularly easy to care for and produces small, tasty heads several times over.
