Cabbage or cabbage is a delicious, nutritious and versatile vegetable, with its dense leaves. Cabbage can be boiled, steamed, eaten raw, or even fermented to make pickled cabbage (sauerkraut). Cabbage is suitable for growing in cold climates, but with a lot of sun exposure. As long as conditions are right, you can harvest cabbage in the spring and fall. This vegetable is resistant to freezing conditions, but can not stand the heat. So, if you live in the subtropics, cabbage is best planted in the fall.
Step
Part 1 of 3: Sowing Cauliflower Seeds
Step 1. Choose the right time
Cabbage seeds should be sown indoors in early spring, 6 to 8 weeks before the last frost. You can also sow them in late summer so you can harvest cabbage in the fall. To determine the best seeding time, check the weather conditions in your area.
Cabbage seedlings should be sown and planted indoors for 4 - 6 weeks, then moved outside about 2 weeks before the last frost
Step 2. Sow the seeds
Prepare a seed tray and fill it with ready-to-plant soil. Insert a finger and make a 1 cm deep hole in the center of each plot on the seed tray. Plant 2 or 3 cabbage seeds into each hole and fill the hole with soil.
Ready-to-plant soil specifically for vegetables is an ideal choice for cabbage seeds because it is fertile and well drained
Step 3. Water the seeds
After planting, water enough to keep the soil moist. As the seeds germinate and grow, keep the soil moist by watering it again as it begins to dry out.
Step 4. Keep the temperature
Cabbage seeds will germinate when the temperature is between 18 and 24 °C. Keep seed trays in a room, barn, hut, hut, or shed in the garden, where the temperature is well maintained within that range. Once the seeds have sprouted, move them to a spot that gets a lot of sun, such as on a south-facing windowsill.
Step 5. Place the cabbage saplings indoors until the leaves grow
Once the cabbage seeds germinate and start growing, shoots will emerge from the soil. Place the cabbage seedlings indoors until the stems are 8 to 10 cm high and each has at least 4 to 5 leaves.
Cabbage seedlings take 4 to 6 weeks to grow to this stage
Part 2 of 3: Moving and Caring for Kol
Step 1. Find out when the last freeze was
It's best to move the cabbage to an outdoor location about 2 to 3 weeks before the last freeze. Find out the long-term weather forecast in your area to determine the date.
- Once you know the date of the last freeze, schedule about 2 weeks in advance to move the cabbage outside.
- For fall plantings, move the cabbage outside about 6-8 weeks before the first average frost date of the year arrives.
Step 2. Choose a good planting location
There are several things that cabbage needs to thrive, and sunlight is one of them. When choosing a location for growing cabbage outdoors, look for an area that gets at least 6 hours of full sun each day.
- Don't grow cabbage in the same garden bed as cauliflower, strawberries, broccoli, and tomatoes.
- Cabbage will thrive if planted near cucumbers and chickpeas.
Step 3. Prepare the beds
Cabbage likes fertile soil. So, mix the soil in the bed with compost or weathered manure in a 1:1 ratio. Water the beds so that the soil is moist before transplanting the tillers.
- The ideal pH level for cabbage is between 6.5 and 7.5. You can test your soil's pH with pH test strips available at most department stores, garden supply stores, and hardware stores.
- If you need to lower the pH, just add compost or manure to make the soil more acidic. To raise the pH, add powdered limestone to the soil of the bed.
Step 4. Remove the cabbage saplings
Plant the saplings to the same depth as in the seedling tray, which is about 1 cm. Space each plant 30 to 60 cm, and 60 cm between each row.
For best results, choose an overcast (not sunny) day when transplanting cabbage seedlings. This will help prevent shock in fragile plants
Step 5. Cover the soil with mulch
Add a layer of mulch 2.5 cm above the soil surface. Mulch will keep the soil moist as the tillers grow, protect plants from pests, and help regulate soil temperature.
Ideal mulches for cabbage include ground leaves, finely ground bark, or compost
Step 6. Keep the soil moist
The cabbage plant will need 4 cm of water every week. If there is little rainfall in your area, water enough to keep the soil moist while the cabbage grows.
Keep watering until the cabbage reaches maturity. Once mature, stop watering to prevent the cabbage heads from breaking
Step 7. Fertilize the cabbage three weeks after the tillers are removed
When new cabbage leaves start to grow and form heads, fertilize the soil. This will occur about 3 weeks after the plant is transplanted. At this time, the cabbage will need a fertilizer rich in nitrogen.
Good fertilizers for cabbage include fish emulsion, liquid fertilizer, blood meal, and cottonseed meal
Part 3 of 3: Harvesting Cabbage
Step 1. Pay attention to the growth period
The growth period of cabbage depends on the variety, but generally takes between 80 and 180 days to mature from seed sowing.
Once the saplings are removed, the cabbage will take about 60 to 105 days to mature
Step 2. Perform a “squeeze” test
Once the cabbage has matured, you can do a test by squeezing the heads of the cabbage to determine if the plant is ready for harvest. The base of the cabbage head should be about 10-25 cm in diameter, depending on the variety.
To perform the "squeeze" test, squeeze the head of the cabbage with your hands. If the head of the cabbage feels solid and sturdy, it means the plant is ready to be harvested. However, if the head of the cabbage feels loose and soft, it means the plant is taking longer to mature
Step 3. Harvest the cabbage
Once the plants are ready to harvest, use a sharp knife to cut the heads of cabbage from the stems. Cut off the outer leaves and add them to the compost pile if they look healthy.
- Once the cabbage heads are harvested, place them in the shade or in the refrigerator to store until you are ready to use them.
- After harvesting, let the cabbage stalks continue to grow in the soil. Many cabbage plants will grow new, smaller heads that can be harvested again in a few weeks.
Step 4. Save the excess cabbage
You can eat the freshly harvested cabbage right away or save the rest for later. Clean the cabbage under running water to remove dirt and insects. Put it on a clean cloth and let it dry completely. You can save cabbage by:
- Wrap it loosely in a plastic bag and store it in the refrigerator for up to about 2 weeks.
- Store it in a cool place or in the basement for up to about 3 months.
- Dry or freeze the leaves.
- Process it into pickled cabbage.
