Cabbage is a nutritious garden staple with foliage that looks as good as it tastes.
Kindra Clineff
Cabbage (Brassica oleraceaspp.)
is a classic vegetable that has been a staple in Western diets for hundreds of years.
Credit:Kindra Clineff
Early, mid-season, and late varieties have round, conical, or flat-head shapes.
Some selections have smooth leaves, while others have crinkled foliage.
The colors range from yellow-green to blue-green, deep green, or purplish red.
Credit: Illustration by Gary Palmer
Each has a distinct flavor, with the red types being among the sweetest.
For the best flavor, use homegrown cabbage when its fresh.
When its young and tender, it has a milder flavor.
Addshredded cabbageto mixed salads or in classic orinnovative coleslaws, as well as other tasty cabbage recipes.
It grows best in fertile, well-draining soil that retains moisture well.
Cabbage that matures in the cool temperatures of fall is sweeter than cabbage that matures in hot weather.
Prepare a garden bed with fertile, well-draining soil byadding compost.
Sow the seed and cover it with 1/4 inch of soil.
Keep the soil evenly moist.
Cabbage Care Tips
Light
Cabbage grows best in a spot with afternoon or all-day sun.
Soil and Water
Cabbage grows best in moist, well-drained soil thats rich in organic matter.
Cabbage enjoys humidity conditions of 90% or higher.
Fertilizer
Cabbage is a heavy feeder.
Be attentive to the soil moisture level, as container soil dries out quicker than in-ground plantings.
There is no need to replant this garden annual.
Start with a fresh plant each year.
Cabbage butterflies lay eggs that hatch intosmall green caterpillarsthat eat unsightly holes in cabbage leaves.
Cabbage plants also attractaphids, slugs and snails.
However, you have to forego harvesting a cabbage to get them.
Leave the cabbage in the garden.
It will eventually split and grow a flower spike.
When the resulting flowers dry, they set seed.
Cut the dry spike and put it in a paper bag.
Shake it to loosen the seeds and store them in a dry location until needed.
Green Cabbage
Green cabbageis the cabbage most of us see in the market.
It grows in a tight spherical shape with leaves that are pale green and crunchy.
It is the main ingredient intraditional coleslawand appearscooked in many recipes.
This cabbage has a mild flavor that accents the other ingredients while putting on a colorful show.
It isnt limited to slaw, though.
It also works well incooked dishes.
It is an excellent source of calcium and contains more vitamins than green cabbage.
It enjoys short days and cool temperatures and usually matures in 30-45 days.
Savoy Cabbage
Savoy cabbage is recognizable mostly by its green, crinkly leaves.
It has a mild, sweet flavor and can be eaten in slaws orcooked in dishes.
It can also be used as awrap for spring rolls.
The attractive foliage looks great by itself, in groups, or mixed with finer-leaf plants such ascarrotsorsweet corn.
Enjoy cabbage plants in clusters, along walkways, or in the middle or back of the border.
For extra appeal and a visual surprise, mix green- and purple-leaf varieties together.
They do their best growing in lower temperatures and can even take a light frost.
Enjoy the freshest flavors of the season.
It has a little bit of everything: leafy greens, root veggies, herbs, and tasty pods.
This plan includes broccoli, peas, cabbage, carrots, and lettuce.
