Why?

[Bill HH]

Last October ish I bought some plug plants, cabbages and cauliflowers about 20 of each. I built a large anti butterfly cage to house them. They grew well and in february I dared to congratulate myself on a job well done. The savoy cabbages were starting to form and also the cauliflowers were forming. Within 2 weeks the entire crop of cabbages and cauliflowers went to seed! They all now sit in my compost bins. What did i do wrong?

[Martin H]

Savoys are winter cabbages, you need to eat them by about the end of March after which they run to seed. Timing of caulis is dependent on variety but once the curds form you have to cut and eat them before they run to seed. At this time of year they don't "sit" more than a couple of days even if you bend the leaves over the head.

Do you know what varieties you got? E.g. my savoys (January King type) get sown this month and planted out in June or July to give them a chance to get to a decent size.

[AlanP]

I would have thought that October-ish was a bit late for winter cabbage and winter cauli. As martin says, now is about the time to be sowing the seed and probably planting out about the end of May.

Winter cabbage I have eaten, Purple sprouting we are eating, just waiting for the winter cauli.

Alan

[Bill HH]

Brassicas are something I have scant experience with, i grew a superb cauliflower last year (spring sown)
so i was a bit taken in by them selling these plants in October. Maybe I should sue them.

[Python15]

Brassicas are something I have scant experience with, i grew a superb cauliflower last year (spring sown)
so i was a bit taken in by them selling these plants in October. Maybe I should sue them.

Good luck with that Bill!!

[bario1]

I guess my savoys are going to come to nothing then? They were plugs I planted in September. They are quite big now, but no sign of a head. Can I eat the outer leaves anyway?

[Alison]

I'll be sowing my savoys in a couple of weeks time for potting on and then planting out mid June. They have then grown well and are ready to harvest before the depth of winter sets in but will stand until spring. If planted in the autumn they just don't have time to head up. The one or two plants which I didn't get round to eating bolted a few weeks ago and are now in the depths of the compost heap. Will be sowing carrots in that bed either later today or tomorrow.

[kathyd]

Won't cabbages send up little shoots like other brassicas, that you can eat like broccoli sprouts? I know my pak choi does, and my khol rabi, and even my kale - at least you get 'something' to enjoy from them before composting... don't think I've tried with cabbages though?

[Mark Lottie]

same thing happened to me Bill.

Savoy (january king), april and spring hero cabbage all gone to seed. I think it's the dry weather the last two weeks coinciding with the end of their growing period; but I sowed em in September in fertile ground so it's a bit disapointing they hadnt really formed heads yet.

[Alison]

Winter cabbages, sow in April (May at the latest), spring cabbages, sow in August. Re the flower stem, cabbages produce a single flower stalk and I find it bitter unlike kale etc which is nice when bolting.

[Nicos]

Didn't we have an unusually dry/warm/hot spell in Feb/ March ( well...we did here)
Could that have just pushed them into flowering?

[Bigmallly]

I also have mixed experience growing Brassicas Bill so this year I'm only growing sprouts.

[marchogaeth]

Since reading the original post, I have had some strange things happening. This cauli (All Year Round) didn't "pass go", it formed no curds just went straight to flowering.



It is in the tunnel in a bed of others that are making heads. Also, one of my tunnel PSBs has done the same thing: no pause between making buds and suddenly being if full flower. Again its stable mates seem to be unaffected.