For harvests in autumn mostly| the key sowing date and a taste comparison| Charles Dowding
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- Опубликовано: 26 июн 2024
- For harvests in autumn mostly| the key sowing date and a taste comparison| Charles Dowding
It's early autumn at Homeacres no dig garden. Long stems of Tenderettte and large domed heads of calabrese are cropping. And cauliflowers including white ones, and Romanesco later on.
I sowed them all on the same date of 21st June, including purple sprouting broccoli. That will not crop until next spring.
It's important when sowing seeds, to understand these kinds of differences, mainly in when they come ready. Read the small print about when the plants you grow are expected to produce a harvest.
All these varieties are hybrids, which makes a worthwhile difference for broccoli harvests in my experience. Most other vegetables in my garden are not hybrids.
Just for comparison I show you some cauliflower, sown one week earlier in the middle of June and cropping now. It's closely related to broccoli, but rarely makes any secondary harvests after you cut the main curd.
00:00 Introduction, and a brief recap of the summer’s weather
00:58 A bed of calabrese (broccoli), and how to assess readiness - I harvest one to demonstrate, it's a hybrid variety, Marathon
04:01 Purple sprouting broccoli in the same bed, variety Claret F1
05:04 Pests that affect brassicas, incl. gall/swede midge, and how to protect them
06:27 Removing the lower leaves
06:54 Protecting against pigeons
07:19 A look at some cauliflower - White Excel F1 sown two weeks before the broccolis - and how to assess readiness
10:27 Tenderette F1 broccoli - I show a recent harvest and compare it with some tenderstem broccoli bought from a supermarket
15:20 A taste test between the two
16:51 Disease affecting plants, and caterpillars
19:05 Spraying Bascillus thuringienis
19:44 Outro
More details in my No Dig book www.charlesdowding.co.uk/prod...
From my website I sell a guide on growing broccoli www.charlesdowding.co.uk/prod...
Filmed mid September 2023 by Edward Dowding, in my no dig garden in Somerset, UK.
You can join this channel by paying a monthly fee, to support our work with helping gardeners grow better, and to receive monthly videos made only for members:
/ @charlesdowding1nodig
#nodig #nodiggardening #broccoli #sow #cauliflower 
Хобби
The on-screen caption during the broccoli packet opening really cracked me up. Thank you to whoever edited this for brightening my evening, ha!
Omg I was rolling 😂😂
😂
😂
I've not steamed broccoli. From grandma just get water to a full boil then blanche it a 3 to 5 minutes . Season to taste, of course.
😂🥦❤
It is always impressive how productive a NoDig garden is. And especially yours Charles. Thank you for promoting healthy food growing.
Thank you Robert
As a new veg grower, I am half way through your audiobook. This is great listening during my lunch break each day. Packed full of knowledge from your vast experiences and such a great go to guide when I prepare for sowing, planting, harvesting and storing each veg. I cannot thank you enough for sharing this.
Great to hear, thank you
Have just harvested my first purple sprouting broccoli planted early June. Delicious. 1st year No dig on allotment. Best crops I've ever had and my knee pain has gone! Thank you.
Great to hear Katherine 🙂
Another 20 minutes of sheer relaxation, joy and vegetables, thank you Charles. I always say I learn something new from every video. This time it was when to harvest cauliflowers. I had a bumper crop last year as my garden helper had sort of mixed up plant start trays and planted all caulis and no cabbage! (Never mind, the excess went into pickled cauli and carrots, still being enjoyed.)
Glad you enjoyed it, and a nice 'problem'
the information per second ratio on all this man's videos are simply amazing, thank you for the incredible work
So kind thank you Sean
I love watching videos whilst I work - currently sorting out the last of the tomatoes. Yours are such a nuisance to watch 😀as I have to stop every few seconds to take notes!! Such gems of information in every word. Thank you for another great video - love the calming serendipitous music too.
Glad you like them! Nice music feedback too, new song by Edward's friend
Glad you enjoyed it Karen
One comment I would add, about cauliflower is, when growing some Chinese varieties, some are naturally more open/spread apart because they are bred for stir frying. I was very tempted to cut the heads sooner but held off a little and was rewarded accordingly. ☺
Great tip, thank you
13:35 Good one Edward 🤣🤣🤣🤣
😂
I live in the middle of France. It always makes me feel so envious to see the lush vegatable garden you have, in comparison to mine. Because of the drought here.... 😢
The downside is that we have to put up with grey skies for six months of the year. And for the other six it's raining.
Their vegetable gardens are a sight to see and taste.
Great riff as per usual.
Nice one by the editor there 😂 I would love to see a few bloopers hidden at the end of these tours!
Would be hilarious 👍
😂
Last year, and again this year, I grew from seed some Burbank F1 White Sprouting Broccoli (Thompson and Morgan) which is frost hardy and crops in February/March. Not a huge harvest but tasty enough and some fresh home grown organic greens in the coldest days of winter are always a welcome treat.
You are right, less harvest in February is worth double
great crops i must say well done
Thank you Steven
About the sprouting Calabrese - don't waste the more mature, not so brittle older stems. I just use a peeler and peel off fthe more fibrous covering and it's good to go. We use it like Kai Lan.
Thanks
Beautiful garden Charles, I am amazed everytime! Blessings💕🤗
Thanks so much Cami
Thanks Mr Dowding I appreciate the information as waiting for a harvest from my Broccoli
my pleasure
Beautiful Charles!!!🥦
Thank you
I think its worth remembering for poeple like me who love growing veg but aren’t thinking about it 24hrs a day and therefore do not retain many things its great to have the videos you do as a reminder to give seeds the best chance to flourish and not get upset when things dont work out,just enjoy the things that do,ask questions about the things that dont and dont dwell,and buy a couple of things for your garden as a treat when your munching on a tomato on a hot afternoon with a pinch of Himalayan pink salt and think how it can get any better.thanks for everything
Nice comment Andrew 💚
A few bird boxes for great titmouse and two boxes for hornets did wonders in my garden to get rid of 90% of the caterpillars.
Great video. Nice to see the results in the kitchen.
Thank you! He did a tasty roast
Glad you enjoyed it 🙂
Only you Charles can make a 20min video on broccoli and keep me riveted 😍
😂 😍
Charles, one of your best vids so far. Brassicas have been really challenging for me to grow and this year I have club root for the 1st time. I need to extend the rotation and apply more lime.
I learnt a lot here, thanks.😊
Glad you enjoyed it David
Absolutely loved this detailed video on Broccoli. Can you possibly do one on celeriac? It's so hard to find growing info on how to successfully grow them.
Thanks shall see
Hi Charles,my autumn broccoli also have hollow stems this year. They were second planting after the potato crop with no dig cow manure,however they are they have given me the best crop of broccoli heads I've ever grown (had to freeze half it was so bountiful). Thanks for the no dig videos they have transformed my allotment. Brian
Great to hear Brian 🙂
Always happy to see Minty make an appearance 😊 even if she plants her rear end on the lamb's lettuce!
😂
That’s You so much 🙏☘️💚Green,fresh green juice ,from keil,broccoli leaves,sprouts and more of green is my basic many years 💚💚💚🙏
Thank You that You help people to understand that green,fresh food is the is so important,and eat bio fresh food we all help our Planet 🌎🙏🙏🙏☘️💚
Wonderful thanks
Thanks!
Hi Charles, great informative video on brassicas. I'm relieved to see that it's not only me to have been suffering from the hollow stems and the rotting/stinking aftermath - both my calabrese and cauliflowers were affected this summer. I had thought that this had been due to infection from cabbage root fly, to which i had lost a few young plants to early in the season, and had assumed that although the majority of plants had managed to get away the damage had been done. However, from reading the comments below, it could be a deficiency of some sort. I've never experienced it before so shall keep plugging away and keep adding the compost!
Could be a surplus too, of whatever is now in the rain. So many variables
My Lowe's in the USA has BT by Monterey. Not an advertisement, but we do have it.
Excellent Charles!
Dang it!!! Just ripped out my purple sprouting thinking it had failed to crop. It was an unlabelled seed packet so assumed I just got it wrong.
Oh so sad!
Next year...
That's a fine mouser! I've put brassicas on hold for now. As you've said, everything loves to eat them and I've found it too much a battle.
Just had our second crop of tenderstem😁🥦 thanks so much for the advice Charles 🤗 very little information on this variety and was great to see you enjoying the delicious stems 🥦 my second year growing and your Chanel has been invaluable to me 🌱 your new book is on my Christmas list along with plug trays 👍
Just checked and no signs of rot 👍 I have cropped individual stems rather than the whole top and they appear to heal quickly 😊🥦
Great to hear Lynda, I am happy to hear of your success 🙂
@@CharlesDowding1nodigwe are not worthy sir 😊
I bought some broccoli growing this season … cooked it in lots of raw 100 % grass fed butter with sockeye salmon…yum 🙌
Sounds great!
We call it broccoli 🥦 here in Australia. We also by law had bird netting changed. It must be no bigger than 5mm x 5mm and must be white in colour. I also tie up the top leaves of cauliflower so the sun doesn’t change the colour from white to yellow.
Good info thanks
The Tenderette looks like broccoli rabe, which is really good too. Hope whatever is going on with that disease, you can get it under control.
I have the No Dig book, audiobook & 2023 digital calendar and I consult them every week! They've been a wonderful resource and I'd recommend to anyone (I really enjoyed the Veg journal in the past as well).
Incidentally, the stem has been my favorite part of broccoli since childhood. I didn't appreciate the move toward an emphasis on florets that's happened over the years 😢 So now, I'm trying to grow my own. Haven't succeeded yet but I'm sticking with it! 😂
Thanks for sharing! Glad you like the book and Calendar
@@CharlesDowding1nodig Thank you for the guidance! 🌱💚💪
💚
I emptied the Johnson-Su today (thanks for reply to my comment on ur compost advice blog last July) it was filled with chipped green conservation hedge trimmings, judicious waterings + worms after thermo cycle, +LAB at ~10 months, result was 1.3 M3, not quite the biodynamic-esqe putty substance I've seen some produce, but not far off, more like a slightly woody peaty consistancy (another few months or extra N would have got to putty IMO) looked very good under the microscope, the most micro-arthropods I've ever seen in compost; next fill will include same mix with ~15% pure chicken poo (no bedding etc.). Great video, thanks for all you do Charles.
Wonderful result, thanks for sharing the details 😎
Taste test comparison before our eyes and my mouth watering. Come on guys. Okay. We'll be planting some.
Charles had no scissors to cut package. Videos are very enjoyable.
Cameo of kitty. Kidding aside. Lots of valuable education for success and 2nd planting same year of this veggie I did not think of. Netting too. Gotta make a list. Zone 6b Ct valley USA. Thankyou.
That's nice!
Hello Charles!! Big idea. Make an audio book so that more people can join your work. This is a characteristic of quality service, without a doubt.
Didn't you watch the video first??
Charles told us that he recorded his latest book "No Dig" last December!
How wonderful to have Charles' own voice, and not some AI robo-voiceover.
It's here www.audible.co.uk/pd/No-Dig-Audiobook/B0B3243L9V
He already has and I've had it since February. It's great! I like to listen to it while I'm doing other chores & preparing for the gardening week ahead.
Que fartura adoro seus vídeos obrigado ❤
Nice to hear, obrigado :)
Ótimo ouvir Luisa
I love broccoli. It's easily my favorite vegetable, and we always eat a lot of the stem as well. Its much sweeter than the head, actually, although we do have to peel some of the outer layer off when we get them from the supermarket, as the skin is a bit tough.
Never had success with the tenderstem broccoli! It might just be an issue of timing, but they seem to just go tough and fibrous at the first sign of a hot day.
My best friend has actually been to leave a number of kale plants to flower in the spring. Zero maintenance - compared to sprouting broccoli - and much the same effect. It's such a treat when you harvest the first tender flower shoots, and they are so sweet and mild in flavour. Stronger as spring progresses.
Nie results Jakob
I’ve been using more open pollinated calabrese seed lately. For a home gardener it’s been great as it spreads the harvest over a longer period and prevents the glut. Calinaro has been great. Same with cabbages.
Thanks for sharing Ben
I was wondering about the very same thing. I don't want all my broccoli maturing at the same time, as we eat as the summer progresses. I think I'll try a few open-pollinated varieties, while keeping the hybrids for their size and speed.
Charles, I love your content and my son and I are in a grudge match comparing your no dig philosophy in my partition of garden with his deep wood chip mulch on his sunnier and better orientated monoculture beds.. but man I saw a utube clip with you and a kiwi woman discussing water memory and other homeopathic unscientific gobbledegook.. 2 problems I have with that is 1, as a kiwi I'm pretty sure her accent was Australian (who often masquerade as Kiwis overseas for obvious reasons), and secondly your approach is normally very scientific and evidence based (much more approachable than Red gardens who is the master of this) but at least tied to a coherent underlying theory. Please please please check your friends passport (it should have a small flightless bird on it (not an emu) and no Kangaroos) and please keep up these excellent youtube videos full of great gardening content as you are a treasure.
Thanks Alan, she is half Maori half English!
Me encanta tu canal, recien lo descubri.
A pesar de que tenga que leer los substitulos, lo hago con mucha atencion.
Gracias!!
That is nice thanks Maria
Me alegro de oirlo Gracias 🙂
What a tiny little oven 😊
Seems big to me!!
In Ireland, we called it broccoli. Dad used to grow purple sprouting, and I loved it. Sadly, along with other brassicas, it makes me bloat incredibly now. PSB more than brussels even. So I have to be careful. I love wild mustard greens - they grow all over here in CA, for free, and have as much foliage/heads as PSB. But same problem. Regular broccoli, no problem. I think its related to how bitter/spicy they are. Anyway, just wanted to point out for everyone that if you're eating the stems, you can peel off the outer stringy bit, and then just steam with a little garlic/chili/sesame oil/salt. I also peel asparagus, chinese broccoli and sometimes lettuce stems. If they are a little older, you can just grab the skin at the top with a knife and it will just pull off.
"You can harvest these over a long period depending on when you want to eat them, its a bit of a moveable... spectrum of possibilities"
For a moment there, I thought you were going to say "moveable feast". LOL
Thanks for sharing. I love the stems too
First time I've ever heard a dog barking in one of your videos. Congratulations 😂
😁
Thank you Charles: that's a really useful, full demonstration of just about my favourite vegetable. I grew some Calabrese this year, thinking the home-grown (no-dig, organic of course) would be tastier than the rather uninteresting shop-bought heads. In fact I could taste no difference. But that is NOT true of purple sprouting, which is one of the biggest pleasures of the eating year. So I decided to get some seed for next year of one described as 'Green sprouting' (from Chiltern) which seems to be similar to 'Tenderstem' from the description. I will let you know if that one gives an autumn crop to compare in taste with the spring one from Claret et al. Claret is brilliant but, as you say, F1s can produce a glut, so as I'm growing mostly for two people I've gone back to a mixed packet for next year.
All interesting Alan, good luck with the green
Thank you Charles and sorry, I must correct something: the Green Sprouting is from Marshalls, not Chiltern: I was buying lots of things at the same time.@@CharlesDowding1nodig
I enjoyed seeing that your cat is welcome in the garden. Does she/he nibble any plants? No matter, I find your garden extremely attractive. Blessings 🌻
Thanks, and she's always welcome because she's so endearing! Also very light so she can jump on plants and not cause a problem, plus she does not eat them!
@@CharlesDowding1nodig Thanks Charles!
I’ve had leaf miner in some of my cabbage and Swede leaves for the first time ever. It’s in the white chard as well. Leaves show white tunnelling. Not bad just dotted about on some plants. Wonder if it gets into stem holes…..
Your camera man/shopper/editor/cook is a comedian too! 😂
Yes worse every year! That is Edward my son :)
I had a successful broccoli year. Pests were minimal. I did have the help of a wren who took up residency in a nest box nearby.
Great to hear of your success Sarah
yes, here in the US we call, Calabrese, 'Broccoli'. No idea why...guess 'we' just have to be different. ;-)
😊
tengo un brocoli en una maceta aun tengo espereanza que me de algo..lo mas interesante mister charly es verlo crecer! por cierto te ves lindo 😊👍donde esta la hermosa gatita
Yo tambien lo espero. ¡Gracias y ella estuvo con nosotros! Nunca muy lejos
In my freshness to gardening I've planted broccoli at the wrong time (so they try and come to harvest in warmer weather)... the side effect is finding that they are quite a nice scented flower :D I do look forward to growing them at a better time though :D
Lovely to hear how positive you are!
As I grow Marathon I don't expect much in the way of secondary shoots, so I cut a lot lower.
Reason for this is I cut off the hard/stringy outer layers & the centre gets eaten as sticks with my home made cheese dip.
I do the same with cauliflowers.
Yes that is a very tasty option
I love growing broccoli, but like you say pests are a big problem in summer and they just get hammered so I only grow them in early spring. I use the mesh covers to protect winter brassicas like swede and turnip
Hi! I grow veg seedlings for our local farmers market and have been doing so for many years. Interesting to see your issues with Tender Stems….. it is no longer available in NZ and has been replaced by ‘Tasty Stems F1’. Depending on which way you look at it, we are either 6 months ahead or 6 months behind the UK. It is so frustrating as we only have a couple of seed suppliers who fit into the small scale commercial sector…. Sungold tomatoes were another favourite but we don’t get those anymore. Saving your own OP seed is rewarding but hard work!! Thanks for all tour wonderful videos. 😀😀
Hi Jo, thanks for your interesting feedback. Seed business is big business! I'm shocked you can't get Sungold anymore, but at least there are other good options. I keep a few F1 plants alive through winter by taking a side shoot in mid autumn and keeping it as a plant until spring.
Ah I wonder why my purple sprouting was taking so long. It looks healthy tho so I'll look forward to that!
That looks like a beautiful book from a beautiful man with a beautiful garden. What's not to like about that?
Ah thanks
This video has me clutching my heart… 😩 a baby bunny made it into my cold frame somehow and eradicated my June-started brassicas!! I’m left with some little defoliated twigs of purple sprouting broccoli that are valiantly attempting to rally, I’m planting them out this week under cover as it’s too late to sow again (5b/6a, northeastern USA) and I have nothing to lose haha… may as well try!!
Re worm control, I’ve spent 6 years doing my best to create habitat and attract wrens and am proud to say I’ve been wildly successful even though I’m on a half-acre urban property… they start breeding mid spring and ravenously devour my cabbage loopers and later the sawfly larvae that otherwise would devastate my huge collection of organically grown old fashioned roses ❤
Ps that cat is a doll!!! 😻❤ What’s her name?
13:40 your editor needs a raise 😂
Listen at the end, Charles is talking to the cat and uses her name, Minty.
@@SierraNovemberKilo thanks! I did listen to the end but couldn’t tell if it was Mindy, Minty, Minnie… Minty is adorable ❤
Oh so sorry about the rabbit, but brilliant work to attract wrens like that!
The cat is Minty and yes he edits well 🏆
Mushrooms! I want to start the adventure myself but I am in the pre-contemplation phase. I have plenty of shade and I’d eat them daily if I could.
Go you, it's quite a lot to do
@@CharlesDowding1nodig you think?
I think home grown would contain less chemicals than shop brought. I feel the standard of shop veg is very low these days and I would say nutrition density would be less but i couldn't back this up. Thanks for the sowing dates.
Great points Billy, yes low quality but more choice!
This year, my broccoli, calabrese and kale have been targeted by slugs, snails and caterpillars. The sprouts and cabbage have been targeted by caterpillars only since the end of September. My lettuce has not been touched even though they are right next to the worst affected brassicas.
I'm still having some heads off three calabrese plants that have been in the beds since last year. They won't last too much longer.
In my garden I observed hollow stems often in hybrid varieties. Hollow stems are associated with boron deficiency. Heirloom varieties seldom showed these symptoms.
Nice tip thanks
@@CharlesDowding1nodig
I was about to mention boron deficiency, which my soil suffers from, presumably the main reason that boron-hungry beetroot just don't thrive here.
But your beetroot always romp away and grow large in no time, so obviously boron deficiency is normally not a problem for you.
But it is boron deficiency which causes both hollow stem and brown rot in brassicas, also curly leaf in cauliflower.
The heavy rainfall you've had this summer would have washed soluble boron out of the soil, causing a deficiency which affects some varieties more than others, especially if they are presenting a cut hollow stem to the rain.
The remedy is to spray on a stunningly tiny amount of borax in solution. Which I must do! Our winter has been very wet here in the Antipodes.
I only grow stem broccoli here in Canada. It's much tastier, and just keeps on producing all summer.
If or when you buy seeds over the internet be careful what you want to eat
My lettuce and spinach seeds were an amazing mix of flowers. Fine if I was into bedding plants.
How frustrating!
Need the frosts bud, cos the brassica are suffering from major bug damage
I did very well with purple sprouting. It was supposed to be broccoli but instead turned out purple, but it started cropping in July and is still going strongly. I think it might be Purple Rain but I got the seed trays mixed up. The muntjac ate my broccoli.
Amazing results!
Love this video... Thank you so much. ***** Is your cat named "Mitzie"?
Minty.
Great video Charles! Any tips on what to follow Calabrese with, when it's grown for summer harvest?
Thanks. Calabrese for late autumn harvest, fennel, beetroot
Mine get ruined by bugs all the time. Even with nets they got white fly.
Hi Charles, I have been following your videos religiously, I love every moment. however, I cant seem to find one that just covers interplanting, plants following other plants etc. Have you not got a separate video just for that or is it me and I cant find it. I tried last year but not much luck. Also when will you post your dates for courses for the new year? Look forward to both.
Hi and no, huge subject! Course dates are up bookwhen.com/charlesdowding#focus=ev-srcr-20240316103000
Good afternoon Charles, could you talk about storing vegetables? For each group of vegetables?
Will do shortly + see this in the meantime ruclips.net/video/7d2GUHB2ggc/видео.html
My goal is to eventually stop buying hybrid seeds completely. Seed companies who pushes lots of hybrids are getting too greedy. I'm not paying $8 + shipping and tax for 10 F1 tomato seeds.
The hollow stems are either boron deficiency, which I doubt, as the organic treatment is to add compost, or too much nitrogen/potassium.
According to what I've read, wide spacing can also cause this & recommendations for commercial growers are 25-30cm between plants & 30-38cm between rows, which is a lot closer than I've ever used.
Thanks
I’ve had the same issue with brassicas having a hollow stem. From my limited research, I found boron deficiency to be the issue. I’m not sure if that is the issue here, but wanted to share. Love your videos
Good to know although hard to be sure. Most of my brassicas do not have hollow stems.
We just got out of the 100s this week. Couldn't get brassicas to sprout.
My brassicas have been full,of holes this autumn.
In the netherlands and belgium its broccoli as well
Thanks Jessie
I'm in the midst of planning a small market garden and these videos are really helping me understand what I need to do. But one thing that's been causing me some anxiety is the business end of things. You mentioned you'd probably sell some of that broccoli and I want to know...to whom? How do you get Customers? What kind of record keeping do you do? Is it by hand or is there some software designed for market gardeners? Is there a video that explains all of this that I might have missed? If not, would you consider making one? :-) Thank you for your time and consideration in making these incredible videos. I'm learning so much.
Takes time to find customers, see this video we made ruclips.net/video/MvUelPDApiE/видео.html
Thanks Charles. Broccoli is one of my favorite vegies. I had a main crop way back in May and June but left the plants in for sporadic side shoots over the summer. They died back pretty bad in August but I cleaned them up and put a layer of compost down, got the white flies under control and there are a lot of new shoots I'm hoping produce small heads later this month and Nov. Do you think the purple sprouting broccoli would survive a 6b/7a winter? Would love to have them in April when you're dying for some garden brassicas. We go down to the teems and maybe single digit Fahrenheit here in the winter so not sure they would make it.
Cheers Frank and I think you're right, don't be unlikely to survive that
Hi Charles, would you recommend this sowing date (21st June) if you wanted broccoli & cauliflower ready for Christmas dinner? or maybe slightly later to avoid going to flower or maybe harvest when ready and store? Thank you 😁
Maybe a week later but it depends on your climate and how much frost there might be in December
❤❤❤ A Charles Dowding 20 minute video!! 🙏 Longer the better!
Broccoli, Brussels Sprouts, and Kale are among the most nutrient-dense, healthy things one can put in ones mouth.
What you say about sowing in the proper season for a given variety is so true, and something I hard-headedly learned the hard way.
I was in zone 7b USA, approx 50% chance of measurable snow any given year. I wasnt quite yet committed to all-seasons growing yet, so I didnt have anything covered that winter despite the fact that I had quite a few residual plants hanging around. We got a few inches of snow, and I will never forget seeing the Brassicas covered in a few inches of snow, and later noticing that not only did they survive when other veg families did not, they seemed to love it. I suppose the snow served as both a sort of blanket to hold in some heat, and of course some extra moisture when melted. I will never forget those broccoli plants holding up a few inches of snow like they were proudly wearing a hat and later giving a nice harvest. Of course in that zone it didnt get extremely cold, maybe only around 25F for a few days.
Sounds similar to here Ted
Hi, really enjoying your videos & all the tips. A question - I planted some All Year Round Cauliflower & Stromboli Broccoli (Calabrese) in the greenhouse back in December. They're now around 8/9" tall. Running out of greenhouse space so wonder if it's ok to plant them out under fleece? Im in South Devon.
Thank you, I'm happy to hear that. And yes you can do it, just because the weather is not warm yet and they will have time to adjust before trying to grow too much. The resulting harvest might be smaller, from the interruption!
Thank you for saying American words and Fahrenheit 😊
Never cooked broccoli like that. Usually just steam it for 10-15 minutes. I’d imagine the tastes would be different. Sometimes I eat it raw, shop bought.
I’m still having trouble growing it perfect tho.
Watch out for the water police. 77th brigade 😉
Yes different and 😂 thanks
Grazie Charles ,ti seguo sempre ,il tuo modo di coltivare lo trovo meraviglioso, i tuoi consigli sono preziosi,vorrei comprare i tuoi libri ,saranno tradotti in italiano?
È carino, grazie. Non sono sicuro che ci siano piani per tradurre i miei libri, temo, in italiano, chiederò agli editori
@@CharlesDowding1nodig speriamo di si ,io di sicuro non mancherei
wow your garden just looks amazing.. talking about caterpillars, i have a big problem with a small green one in salads.. they are on the earth and make a little hole in the neck of the stem and the plant dies.. what can i do? thanks a lot
Thanks, and all I know for those worms is to find them and remove them because otherwise they keep eating new plants. As soon as you see a plant falling over, use your fingers to look through the surface soil/compost and you should find one near the surface
Thank you Charles for another wonderful teaching video ! I have a couple of questions. One is , when how often do I spray B.T . On my Brassicas ?
My other question is , now that it’s October 25th , and we live in a very cold climate (zone 6 -7) in Oregon . When can I start lettuces inside under grow lights to have winter lettuces ? Do I need to wait until early Spring now , since it’s so late in the season ? We get a lot of snow through the winter and frozen solid ground .
Glad you liked it, and spray Bt every 18-20 days, usually between July and October.
I'm unsure what you mean by winter lettuce - I guess under the lights and in that case I would sow as soon as you can, so that plants have time to develop a root run before the end of December
my biggest problems for broccoli is aphids and bugs eating wholes into the leaves.
I tried the variety off both Calabrese and cauliflower you mention here and in your book and I'm still finding them one veg I struggle the most with. slugs have been a huge issue for me as have caterpillars ( still finding the later now in my polytunnel and the few remaining outside plant) what ever I do cover wise they always seem to get in. they also always seem to go from not quite ready to opening up within days or I find them rotting :(
Caterpillars here have been worse than ever. I would struggle if not using the Bacillus thuringiensis, search Dipel on the Internet
i think the sweetness is the gas in the gas they store it in. i been even eating the lower leaves of all sorts and when even woody a stow cook can sort that. I found that the higher up leafs/ stem are full of the flavour not sweet but not bitter or that lower i cant work out what it is carbs but not like bread or spuds comes with some sugers and even if an earth like plant or tuber will be like a real filler. Oh for cooking if you not need to peel it dont as that binds it all together and omg the fun. I also believe you consume less in food but with the energy of a bull . i would like to know more on how the interactions of the Safe plants leafs, fruits and tubers how they interact in my body and my health .
Very thoughtful, these are good questions
@@CharlesDowding1nodig well i am sticking to no dig as i grown toms differently due to germination issues, also the ground and soil being looked after and the health thing you and the US bloke was talking about i believe has merit as i am fuller on less and my emotional state has evened out, healthly than i was in my 20s and i did a 7mile ike ride not ridden a bike in a few year in under an hour in my 20's nowhere near that and i am 43 . i can work a season as gardener do my garden make my own stuff like bread and still have time left over for other things. my work even when i am not 100% still is good and the only thing thats has changed is increased food in the no dig garden and living as much as i can from it . i still need to shop but thats reduced 70% over the year. And in 21/22 i was very hand to mouth with money there is an improvement not like ages ago but i'll take any win . the life in my garden i saw a war with the dragonflys and the pest i didn;t touch the soil not even to weed only food dragonflys won birds in the wildlife pond all versions of the newts lizards frog lives but not breeding as yet try for a toad to live and i hope to get a bat box as the moths and knats need controlling more
Wasps are great at hunting down the caterpillars. I discourage the spraying of wasps in my garden
Yes I like them in the garden
Same here! They are big helpers.
Hi Charles
I bought the book when you released and signed it for me.
Is the audio version of your book free to listen to as ive paid for your hard copy?
Thanks for another great book its my favorite. Ive still never purchased your calendar ill have to to try and buy 2024 adition. Thanks
That's nice. I don't think the audible version is free and that is all handled by the publishers
i quess asparagus cut down video coming up soon??
I had for first time a broc that rotted after cutting. The bug nets are a dream, however, they need to be big enough and secure. Nothing like checking the veg and seeing butterflies underneath netting 🙄. I did find a net that was very large and highly suggest it because there is enough to close ends and tuck.
The Brussels didn’t fair well in new garden and drought as I didn’t have drip irritation soon enough. They liked a bed that has heavy clay like soil as the roots like being compacted and the fact that soil holds more nutrients and water.
I wonder if the store broc was sweeter because it wasn’t as fresh as from garden.
Interesting comments thanks, and interesting about variety choice!
@@CharlesDowding1nodig I grew huge Brussels in a bed with heavy soil, cabbage also. Variety is key. The broccoli that split and stalk rotted was Packman and it has a thick stalk and very dense head. They were not sweet tasting as other broccoli I have grown. I didn’t cut the crown off at an angle like I normally would either and that could have contributed to rotting.
So my brassicas will continue next year back to the bed with heavy soil-And netting. Nothing worse than trying to get cabbage worms out of Brussels sprouts😂
I really tried to avoid any powder/chemicals in my veggies but some bug had a feast! My cabbage, kale, broccoli and a long tub radishes had nothing left but a stem. It was the worse bug damage I have ever experienced.
Oh wow! All brassicas, the caterpillars' favourites
But what's the solution?
very nice! there is one issue you didn't mention, which I have almost always: it grows a big stem with only a tiny head. Would you know what I do wrong? Its an issue I have with almost all broccoli I grew in the last years. Usually I harvest the fist (tiny) main head and then they keep producing small heads. The issue is unique to broccoli, my cauliflower is usually doing fine. Other cabbages are great too.
Strange. In my case, this happened for both cauliflowers and broccolis, although they were on the same patch of soil (same quality of soil, nutrients, watering and sun eposure). I would even say that my broccolis had less discrepancy in size than the cauliflowers, and on average had larger heads. They seem easier to grow. I suspect the reason could mainly come from the fact my broccolis were F1 hybrids, my cauliflowers were ancient varieties.
There are several factors that could cause this issue. Insufficient water and or nitrogen, soil quality, weed competition or swings in temperature after planting may all contribute. Getting starts that are too small or too overgrown in their cells can stress plants and prevent them from performing well. What part of the world do you live in?
Could be an older, open-pollinated variety of broccoli
I had to giggle cause the first year I tried growing broccoli I pulled it out too soon thinking I messed up. My goats didn’t mind the treat😂
😂