Sprinkle broken eggshells around plants to deter slugs and snails. Flea beetles — Use row covers to help protect plants from early damage. Put in place at planting and remove before temperatures get too hot in midsummer. Control weeds. Cabbage root maggot — White maggots larvae attack all plants of the cabbage family. Larvae tunnel in and feed on roots of plants. Damage causes wilting early on, death of plants a little later on.
Cabbage aphids — A hard stream of water can be used to remove aphids from plants. Wash off with water occasionally as needed early in the day. Check for evidence of natural enemies such as grey-brown or bloated parasitized aphids and the presence of alligator-like larvae of lady beetles and lacewings.
Cabbageworms — Handpick and destroy. Row covers may be useful on small plantings to help protect plants from early damage. The leaves are healthy and I have mulched the plant How do I get them to produce the broccoli head. Most broccoli plants produce heads in cool weather; only a few produce in temps over 85F. Additionally, the folks at the Missouri Cooperative Extension Service suggest that broccoli that is planted too late in the spring will experience heat stress and flower early.
Transplanting an oversized transplant will often result in premature flowering. Other causes of early flowering include nitrogen stress too little or overhardening.
I live in Upstate NY, Zone 5. Since then the weather has gotten quite warm, degrees for several days. I have left the plants in the garden - is there a chance I will get side shoots once the weather cools off?
The plants don't look stressed or have pests. I have in the past, gotten a-lot of side shoots as late into November, but I don't remember having the plant being "dormant" no shoots for so long. Appreciate your insight. Perhaps it depends on the weather. Broccoli is a cool-season crop, after all. We planted seeds after last frost. We have greens that have come up but no green heads.
What went wrong? I live in Ontario Canada and have the same problem. Leaves only after 8 weeks and taller than tomato plants. I had to pull them out so tomatoes get their share of the sun. First time trying to grow Broccoli. I also planted from seed. Not all plants, even those in the same family, grow at the same pace. My broccoli plants have gotten about 18" in height but haven't gotten a head on them.
Any ideas? Broccoli likes to be kept cool. Or, is it too cold? Another reason for lack of heading is a lack of nutrients or water. Is your soil nutrient-rich? Spread some some nitrogen such as fish emulsion. Another issue can be watering. Water the broccoli plants deeply and infrequently, about 1 to 2 inches of water per week. I have planted my seeds in a burpee starter container 4 days ago and they have sprouted, if I wait weeks before transplanting them outside after hardening them it will be around June 3rd here in Massachusetts our last frost is around the first week of May.
I don't want to transplant them in June if that's bad timing and they won't grow. Thank you! Read the information above, Franciele. Broccoli likes cool weather. Conditions in different parts of Massachusetts as anywhere can vary widely.
While we do not write seed packet directions, that time range is suggested to give the grower a wide window of opportunity to get seed started. Ideally, you should have started the seeds six to eight weeks before the first week of May. I have killed indoor plants, so I never thought I would be able to maintain a vegetable garden. For the past 4 years, with the help of your site, tips and the email sowing reminders, I have a garden and am able to provide fresh, pesticide free vegetables to my family, neighbors and others!
Thank you to the people who maintain this site. This year we add broccoli! I live in Amarillo texas. We have had some warmer weather this winter and was wondering when the best time to plant would be. Our days are ranging around f and the nights are still in the low 30s with a couple of 20s coming up.
Should i wait about 1 more month to sow outdoors? I've been using a technique that most of the time produces a second head after a light harvest of the florets that come after the first head is harvested.
By then the plant is large and is often infested with aphids or shows some signs of stress. It might work for plants that only produce a button head as well. Simply cut the plant back to the point on the stem where there are two good leaves remaining at the base. Yes, that means that most of the plant will be taken off, leaving only a sad looking stump and a couple of leaves.
Side dress with well rotted compost and work that into the top couple of inches of soil. Water it in and just keep the soil moist. I use a 4 inch wood chip mulch to keep it moist and the soil cool. Within a few weeks a leaf bud followed by a new stalk will appear in the crotch of one or both remaining leaves. If there are two, select the most vigorous and clip the other one.
That sprouting stalk will thicken up and will produce a new head in 4 to 6 weeks. It's important to keep you seedlings properly watered before you plant them out in the garden. You are actually far better to under rather than over water your plants.
This may sound odd but making the roots search for water helps to develop a better root system. It's a bit like keeping fit. You do need to be careful, however, not to let the compost plug completely dry out or it will form a crust on top and won't absorb the moisture the next time you water.
It will all depend on the weather of course but on a hot day you will need to water twice a day, if it's it's dull every 2 days will be fine. Plants that have been raised indoors will need to get used to the outdoor temperature and conditions before they can be planted outside, this will take about a week to 10 days depending on the weather.
The best way is to use a cloche or mini greenhouse. You can leave the cloche off the plants on dry frost free days and replace at night. Gradually increase the time with the cloche removed until the end of the week when you leave it off day and night. If the weather is mild you may not need the cloche, just move the plants outside for longer periods each day. If you have started your seeds on a window sill you will need to leave them in an unheated room for a day or two before moving outside to the cloche.
Broccoli is a much larger plant than you'd think so giving it plenty of space is important, 75cm around each plant is essential.
To plant your seedling make a hole in the soil the approximate size of the seedling 'plug'. You need to push the soil in around the roots firmly with your fingers to get good contact with the soil. Don't firm down on the top of the soil as this can compact it and prevent moisture getting down to the plants roots. Don't forget if the summer is dry to water your broccoli. You can add a mulch of compost or bark around the plants to help conserve moisture.
Keep an eye out for the cabbage white butterfly eggs on your purple sprouting broccoli plants. Look under the leaves for the little yellow eggs and brush them off. Also if the weather is dry be aware that broccoli needs plenty of water at all stages in its growth. Dry plants will lead to poor growth and premature budding resulting in small heads.
With winter approaching it's a good idea to prepare your broccoli for the coming bad weather, especially if you live in an exposed site. Draw soil up around the stems of the plants to help prevent them rocking in the wind.
If you live in a very windy area you can also stake the plants to be on the safe side. Drive a wooden stake in beside the plant and tie with some suitable soft twine. If the stems do become loose by the action of wind or frost firm them up with your boot. Pigeons can will be getting hungrier this time of year and may turn their attention to your broccoli.
Netting is the only answer here and highly recommended if you have a pigeon problem. You will see sharp v-cuts in the edge of the leaves made by their beaks if this is your issue.
Harvest your broccoli when the purple heads appear and well before they turn to yellow flowers. When they first start to produce you'll probably be wondering was it worth the wait as you'll have a couple of little purple heads poking out of a lot of greenery. Don't worry, they'll keep producing new shoots when you cut them.
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