Broccoli is a sun-loving, cool-season crop that is best grown in the spring or fall. Here’s how to grow broccoli in your garden.
Broccoli is rich in vitamins and minerals, and is a good source of Vitamin A, potassium, folic acid, iron, and fiber. Because of this, broccoli has been dubbed the “crown jewel of nutrition.”
Did you know that broccoli, cauliflower, kale, cabbage, collard greens, kohlrabi, rutabaga, turnips, and brussels sprouts all come from the same species of plant? These popular vegetables are all cultivars (cultivated varieties) of “wild cabbage,” Brassica oleracea. This versatile species has been bred over generations and generations to produce cultivars that emphasize different aspects of the plant: the root (turnips, rutabaga), the leaves (cabbage, kale), or the flower (broccoli, cauliflower).
With broccoli, you may even be able to get a continual harvest throughout the summer and fall if you practice succession gardening and if you live in an area where the summer doesn’t get excessively hot. Even without successive plantings, once you harvest the main head of a broccoli plant, it will often keep producing smaller side shoots that can be enjoyed for months to come.
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Broccoli shoots
I live in Upstate NY, Zone 5. I harvest the broccoli heads late June/early July. Since then the weather has gotten quite warm, 85-90 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 Side Shoots
Side shoots should begin to form right away, so if the plant looks healthy otherwise, it’s likely that the heat has stymied their formation. Broccoli is a cool-season crop, after all. Once temps cool off, it’s possible that the plants will kick back into gear and begin to form side shoots, but it might also be the case that they’re done for the season.
why are my broccoli leaves
why are my broccoli leaves turning yellow?/
Broccoli
We planted seeds after last frost. We have greens that have come up but no green heads. What went wrong?
Growing Broccoli
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 .
Why my broccoli seedlings
Why my broccoli seedlings grow faster than cauliflowers?
cauliflower vs broccoli
Not all plants, even those in the same family, grow at the same pace. What’s more, cauliflower has special needs. See here for more information: https://www.almanac.com/plant/cauliflower
No head on broccoli
My broccoli plants have gotten about 18" in height but haven't gotten a head on them. Any ideas?
If your broccoli doesn’t have
If your broccoli doesn’t have any main “head,” there are a few possibilities. Often, it’s related to timing and temperature. Broccoli likes to be kept cool. It’s started in the spring and will bolt and flower in extreme heat. Or, is it too cold? If broccoli has days near freezing temperatures for several days or a cold snap, this is an issue and causes “buttoning” (tiny, immature heads).
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.
BROCOLLI
hae.an fom Nairobi kenya and was asking if I can get brocolli seeds here locally cause the plant is not that common and have never seen it grow here
Help!!!
I have planted my seeds in a burpee starter container 4 days ago and they have sprouted, if I wait 6-8 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). Is that timing ok, or did I really have to start them 6-8 BEFORE the last frost? I don't want to transplant them in June if that's bad timing and they won't grow. Thank you!
Broccoli started...
Read the information above, Franciele. Broccoli likes cool weather. Check your frost date here http://www.almanac.com/tool/frost-dates-calculator, and consider that the date is an average, not an absolute. Conditions in different parts of Massachusetts (as anywhere) can vary widely. As for starting 6 to 8 weeks before the last frost, that’s the idea, but it offers flexibility (two weeks’ worth or so). 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. Watch your plants’ progress; it may be that they will be ready to transplant before June. If this doesn’t work out to your satisfaction, buy some seedlings and plan differently next year—or try to get a fall broccoli crop.
Adding Broccoli!
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!
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 40-80 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?
Tip for getting a second broccoli head
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. So long as it has not been permitted to bolt by keeping the florets harvested, this technique works about 80% of the time. 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. Because it is growing as an offshoot it may need staking to keep it off the ground. I have gotten 6 inch heads that are ready to harvest in early fall by doing this and it lets me skip replanting seedlings in the heat of summer. I live in a zone 4; central Canada.
Broccoli HEAD is firm but is yellow with brown spots
Hi... I'm a new gardener. Most of my brocolli plants are doing well but one plant has a floret that has more yellow in it with brown flecks... not mold tho. The floret is firm and it looked like this since it was a bud. I wish I can attach a picture.
Is this floret diseased? Should I just toss it in our compost bin?
Thanks.
Yellow Broccoli Floret
Yes, cut it off and throw it in the compost heap. It sounds past its prime and on its way to making seed.
weather
plz
Broccoli Growing
Is it good to remove the larger leaves from the plant to allow it to give more to the heads
growing broccoli
No, leaf removal does not help growth In fact, it’s quite the opposite. Until the broccoli head is harvested, do not remove the leaves because this is the way the broccoli feeds itself and grows. If you like eating the leaves (which are fully edible), harvest once the main head is gone. This may affect growth of side sprouts, but it’s generally fine.
Need to join almanac
Good workload
got head of broccoli
I planted broccoli and it did grow. Got a head and then some side ones grew but not to big at all. Now I have flowers growing on top. What do I do? Pull out the whole plants or do I just cut them down? Help?!
flowering main head
If your main head shows signs of beginning to flower, harvest it immediately, taking at least 6 inches from the stem; cut at a slant. Ideally, you should harvest the head before those buds open, because it will be a little tougher and may not be as tasty, but they are still edible, especially if just a few of the flower buds have started to open.
The plant may also, as you have found, produce side shoots that will continue to develop after the main head is harvested. These will not develop into large heads, but are useful to harvest as florets. When they are of a decent size, harvest them to encourage more to develop. Eventually, after several weeks, the plant will stop producing. For more tips on harvesting, check the “Harvest/Storage” section in the above article. Hope this helps!
Broccoli
How do you determine when it is mature enough to harvest
When to Harvest Broccoli
Hi Floyd, it is best to harvest broccoli when the buds of the head are firm and tight before the heads flower.
looking for broccoli farmers
I am interested in buying broccoli for shipping weekly
am selling broccoli which are now mature
please contact me
Pulling the Broccoli Plant
When should you pull out your broccoli plant from your garden?
end of broccoli season
If the pant is no longer producing, there is no reason to leave it in the ground. Depending on where you are (and so how much more growing season you might have), you might be able to get a lettuce/greens crop in its place before frost hits.
This page is of great help to
This page is of great help to me as I enjoy growing my own veggies. Thanks
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