Three Tricks to Grow Great Broccoli!

Laura.YSG
by Laura.YSG
2 Materials
Have you ever tried to grow broccoli only to be disappointed by small heads, black rotted spots, yellow fruit and leaves, or worse…worms? Eww! Isn’t it so disappointing?! I know, I’ve been there! Just like every garden failure, I learned from the experience, and I have figured out the tricks to growing great broccoli!

The first trick to growing great broccoli is getting your timing right.
Try to let your broccoli come to age during a time of cold rather than heat. Every variety has a somewhat different time to harvest, but it can take up to 90 days. That means if you’re down here in zone 8, you’ve got to get your broccoli plants in the ground about February and October. In other areas, 2 weeks before your last frost and 4-6 weeks before the first frost are recommended.
The first trick to growing great broccoli is getting your timing right.
Try to let your broccoli come to age during a time of cold rather than heat. Every variety has a somewhat different time to harvest, but it can take up to 90 days. That means if you’re down here in zone 8, you’ve got to get your broccoli plants in the ground about February and October. In other areas, 2 weeks before your last frost and 4-6 weeks before the first frost are recommended.
The second trick to growing great broccoli is to encourage a slow and steady growth rate. Feed your broccoli plants organic fertilizer once monthly and don’t let it get dry. A lack of water will cause tough inedible stems. Install a soaker hose to keep water from puddling in the heads and leaves.
The third trick to growing great broccoli is to harvest and eat it at the right time.
You can harvest your broccoli head at any time you want to eat it. There is nothing wrong with harvesting the baby sized broccoli heads if that’s how you prefer to eat them.
To harvest, cut under the broccoli head and take some of the stem, but leave the plant in your garden, and it may keep producing. Or, if you like, you can wait and let it start to bolt so you can eat the flowers!
Broccoli flowers are delicate little yellow flowers, and they can be picked and eaten fresh in salads or cooked as you would the rest of the broccoli plant. If you wait too long, and the flowers dry up, they won’t be very tasty at all. At that point, just harvest the dried flowers for seed.


Suggested materials:
  • Broccoli plants
  • Garden soil and compost
Laura.YSG
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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