PSB advice please

[Oleander]

I have acquired some PSB seeds - don't know what variety, the label just says Early.

I understand that it's not a quick crop, so I don't want to give it a prime position in the garden. Would it tolerate a semi shady area? And would it be happy to start off between rows of early spuds, which will be gone before the psb gets big?

thanks

Oleander

[Two_Sheds]

It would compete too much with spuds for food and water.... and when you dig up your spuds, you're likely to dig up your PSB too. PSB (well, all brassicas) like a firm bed.

You can sow it into a nursery bed (closely spaced) then space it out later in the year and transplant it.

Or you can transplant it at correct distance (about 2 foot) and grow salads in between

[Eyren]

I have acquired some PSB seeds - don't know what variety, the label just says Early.

There are some named varieties of psb, most of which crop more or less outside the traditional psb season (usually earlier) but as I understand it the older "early" and "late" varieties have a longer season.

Would it tolerate a semi shady area? And would it be happy to start off between rows of early spuds, which will be gone before the psb gets big?

Not sure about the shade, but I would think it would be OK (might crop a bit later than usual). I agree with Two_Sheds about not putting it with spuds; leafy veg such as lettuce or spinach would be better, especially if you are putting them in semi-shade.

BTW don't forget to net them - cabbage white butterflies love all brassicas

[Snadger]

PSB is a huge plant which needs to stay in the ground and take up room for a long time.
Ideally suited to what I would call 'dot' cropping..........thats not in rows or blocks, but basically a single plant dotted wherever there's room.
Being a brasssica it will tolerate a bit of shade but may grow even bigger and take up more room!
A dozen plants would feed a family, but a dozen plants grown together would take up a lot of room!
This year, I will be dot planting PSB and brussel sprouts (another 'space grabber')

[sqweek01]

Hi Oleander,

I planted my PSB last year (7 May) as 4 inch plants in the little 'garden' down the side of my house. It does get some sun but is mostly shady, they're about 3ft high now and have started to sprout broccoli (it would be a surprise if it was anything else! )

This is the first time I've grown it so not entirely sure how big it can get. I think I'll be trying the 'dot' cropping mentioned by Snadger this year, which means I can put some in with the flowers!

Regards

Clare

[Jillyreeves]

I have acquired some PSB seeds - don't know what variety, the label just says Early.

Oleander

I have just acquire some too, same as you just says Early, nothing more.

I think I had better read up on the stuff as never grown it before and not sure of its requirements

[Lavenderblue]

I am going to have a bash at PSB this year too. I didn't realise it grew so big, there are only the two of us (plus grateful neighbours and parents) so i will probably only do a few plants then. I think i will try the nursery bed method and dot it in amongst other things rather than give it a whole bed to itself. Glad i read this thread now, thanks!

oh one question, do the pidgeons like it? We are having a lot of trouble with them at the moment, our sparrowhawk has obviously upped and left the site? Will I need to net it?

[womble]

I won't be trying the dot method said by snadger, for a few reasons. I enviromesh my brassicas now and not only are you not going to get me to give it up without a fight, you are also not going to get me to chop it up to fit several plants either!
My rotation would go to pot and if I didn't mesh them, I would be fighting a battle against various pests in all directions, at least when they are all together, you've one area to deal with all the same types of pest.
However if you remember exactly where you plant them and can somehow deal with the caterpillars, I can see it has its merits spacewise.

[Flummery]

I don't dot simply because the pigeons love it as much as I do - so I put 6 or 8 plants in 2 rows and cover with my crop protection panels. Mine's only just hearting up - first plateful next weekend I hope

[FionaH]

I still dont have anything resembling broccoli on mine, and they were planted as little plants last June! Is it worth holding out for a while or bin them?

[womble]

I'd leave them until you need the plot for something else, you never know.

[Demeter]

Mine were planted out in about April or May last year and have only just started looking like broccoli in the last couple of weeks. (Well, the one surviving plant, that is...)
Leave it for now, if you don't need the space yet.

[Sanjo]

Had our first picking of PSB yesterday from one of my beds and it was delicious.
I have sown more for this year but I am concerned about the amount of space and the time they take up.
I did also "dot" a few round the garden last year, most got eaten by the slugs but two of them, up near the house, didn't get eaten by the pigeons and the butterflies left them alone too. However, they don't give any appearance of being about to produce shoots!! The first lot were covered by netting all summer and I was very lucky in that I only got a little trouble with caterpillars.
This year I am also going to try cabbages on the basis that they are lower growing and I won't need the large cage we built last year for the PSB.
It's all experimenting isn't it?

[butter fingers]

i put about 30 psb plants in my p;ot last year and all i have left are 5 plants of which only 3 are just producing small florets and are about 2 feet tall.
Not exactly productive based on time and effort, but im not giving up.Got seedlings on the go ,this year psb and another sort just in case sown this weekend.

[Oleander]

Well I have decided to give psb a try, but instead of a nursery bed, I am planning a few plants in pots of gradually increasing sizes, until they are in b&q orange buckets (1 each) and then eventually they will go in a bed against a wall where I grow my toms, when those come out in September/October. That particular bed would otherwise be empty until the following April.

No idea if this is going to work, but I have nothing to lose by trying (the seeds cost about 20p!) and I'll be dead chuffed if it does!