Brusstles sprouts still small

[Marb67]

I bought quite a few brusstles sprout plants to get a crop for Christmas but I can't plant them out yet because the slugs will decimate them as they did my broccoli and kale's. I have had to keep them in pots that they were transplanted into from the small modules I purchased them.

If I plant them in large pots filled with mole soil and blood fish and bone to get a crop for Christmas would this suffice? I don't have any shop compost as too expensive now.

[Snoop Puss]

They would need to be extremely large pots, Marb. Sprouts have very extensive root systems and, like all the big brassicas, they don't like to be pot bound.

[Jungle Jane]

Their roots are shallow,they grow wide outwards for stability as they’re heavy plants. Those look too small to be producing for Christmas. I sowed Evesham special brussel sprouts in the autumn once,they grow very slow over the winter. Your plants might still be growing in the spring,worth the wait tho. Pots need to be at least 12 inches wide per plant,they need the root space between each other. I’ve used a couple of potato grow bags in the past that produced small sprouts. Mole soil is just soil,it won’t be light & fluffy once firmed around the plants,normal soil might work the same,the stones in it will help with drainage. Plants need to be firm in the soil to avoid wind rock,to produce sprouts.

[Marb67]

Well, I hoped to get sprouts for Christmas and they now seem even smaller ! In fact the ones still in pots are much larger so bang goes the theory of planting out.


Ignore the twigs, they are to stop the cats who seem to want to use the whole garden when a large, blank areas of soil are provided.

[Jungle Jane]

That’s a good example to keep cats off with the sticks poking out the ground. October is quite late to have them in the seedling stage of growth.
I didn’t plant three pots of brussel sprouts out once,I’d planted enough out but the three that weren’t planted out looked like this - photo from Feb 2018 - each plant had made one little sprout each at the top Definitely best planted out between spring & summer so they’re strong plants in October -

[Marb67]

Perhaps a crop in Spring then ?

[ameno]

Perhaps a crop in Spring then ?

Very unlikely, sadly.
Depending on the maturity level of the plants, one of two things will happen once the weather starts warming up. They will either just continue growing and get bigger, then eventually probably crop in late summer, or else they will just start flowering, and at that point the plant has had it and will never produce a crop of sprouts.
Like most brassica crops, sprouts are biennial plants. So as long as the plant got to a large enough size the season before (and that size doesn't actually need to be all that big; certainly not full grown), they will just start flowering as soon as the days start lengthening.

[Marb67]

Well, still very small and no sprouts (they were expected at Christmas but for goodness sake it's now almost April and still nothing.

[Jungle Jane]

They do grow slow over winter,they were seedlings in October it’s normal slow winter growth,nice looking plants healthy & growing. Have you made little collars to go round the stem,there’s a pest (cabbage root fly I think?) that lays eggs by the stem,I cut a circle of compost bag 7cm ish diameter,then make one cut to the middle so it can go around the stem,then put a bit of soil round it to hold it down. Got that tip off this forum years ago about using compost bag

[Marb67]

Will do thanks as I forgot about the cabbage fly. If they don't sprout I can at least use the leaves from them.

[ameno]

Well, still very small and no sprouts (they were expected at Christmas but for goodness sake it's now almost April and still nothing.

That's completely to be expected considering how small the plants were when you planted them in October.
For a Christmas crop, plants that size need planting out in May or June.

[Andraste]

If you're thinking of trying Brussel Sprouts from seed this year Marb67 it's about the right time to sow some (I did mine on Monday). I found seed in Lidl for about 50p a pack I think it was - although it's not a named variety (just literally says Brussel Sprouts on the pack) so much cheaper than buying plants. x

[Marb67]

If you're thinking of trying Brussel Sprouts from seed this year Marb67 it's about the right time to sow some (I did mine on Monday). I found seed in Lidl for about 50p a pack I think it was - although it's not a named variety (just literally says Brussel Sprouts on the pack) so much cheaper than buying plants. x

Thanks, I will do that.

[Marb67]

Ok, now they are huge. I can't see any sprouts yet 🤔

[Jungle Jane]

Its because it’s early spring,the sprouts don’t grow for a while (as they were small plants throughout winter). You have stronger plants to not be as bothered by aphids,cabbage whites etc