羽衣甘蓝已经成为现代健康运动的代名词,但这种营养丰富的绿色蔬菜几个世纪以来一直是好食物的堡垒。事实上,有一个古老的苏格兰故事,讲述了一个年轻的医生,旅行寻找一个城镇开始他的执业。He was advised, “If you see kale growing in the gardens, move along … they won’t be needing your services there.”
当凉爽的天气席卷许多家园的山丘和田野时,喜爱寒冷的农作物的季节又来了,与此同时,你也有机会清理一下花园的床铺,准备好迎接世界上最美味的蔬菜了。
How To Grow Kale
As you start researching the ideal kale for your garden, you may start to realize an unexpected fact: Both kale and collard greens are essentially the same plant with different names! The wavy-leafed green is usually called kale and the smooth-surfaced plant is called collards, but they are virtually identical in terms of care and habit. The only real difference between the two is that collards can take the heat a lot more handily than kale can—no wonder it’s such a southern staple!
Whatever you call it, kale is an easy plant to grow and harvest. The tiny seeds remind me of mustard seeds, and they’ll fall happily from your hands into well-drained soil in a sunny location in pretty much any growing zone. They can be started indoors if you want to get an early spring crop, but you can sow them into the ground as soon as the soil can be worked.
当谈到一段长期的园艺关系时,甘蓝是你长期的朋友。从早春到夏末的任何时间都可以种植,连续播种将确保健康的绿色植物不断出现。如果你生活在夏季非常炎热的地区,你可能需要种植更耐热的羽衣甘蓝品种,直到气温再次下降。
Planting Kale
For planting in the ground, try to space and thin seedlings so that they are 8-12 inches apart. Kale plants grow about 12 to 18 inches tall and grow just as wide, so they’ll need some space to spread. If you don’t have the space for a lush kale bed, however, not to fear! Kale doesjust fine in a pot—just make sure that the pot is at least 12 inches in diameter.
For fall plantings, try to get the seeds in the ground about 8 weeks before the first frost. Those plantings may be able to then supply you for the entire year. Once the first hard freeze hits, it’s curtains for many garden produce but not cold-loving kale! If youmulch the ground heavilyonce the cold sets in, kale will continue to produce leaves.
The leaves usually become even sweeter after being touched by winter’s cold. Even if you live in colder climates, acold frameor some heavy mulching will keep your plants alive enough to greet the spring!
Though kale is usually grown as an annual, it is actually a biennial. This means, if you live in zones 7-9 and water them adequately, you can harvest from these fabulous greens all year round. But don’t despair if you live in colder climates! With a bit of protection, it can over-winter in most areas.
羽衣甘蓝是两年生的植物,这意味着它们需要两年的时间才能吐出亮黄色的花茎和随后的种子。让你的一些植物度过冬天的寒冷——它们无论如何都会很乐意为你提供绿色——让它们长出它们的心皮。Jere Gettle ofBaker Creek Heirloom Seed Companyrecommends cutting off the seed heads as they are ripe and dangling them over a bucket—the tiny seeds will drop into them as the dry out.
Harvesting Kale
Kale is ready to pick once the leaves are at least the size of your hand, though you can certainly pick them when the leaves are bigger than that. Just be careful to not pluck off theterminal bud—the tender growing tip of the plant that will continue to produce tasty leaves.
如果你种的是羽衣甘蓝,尽量在每片叶子的中脉还很小很嫩的时候收割。如果太厚,它们需要更长时间的烹饪,但它们仍然美味和营养。
This generous plant will continue to produce leaves until the temperatures dip below 20 degrees Fahrenheit. Even then, they’ll often stay alive—particularly if well mulched or protected in a cold frame. They’ll just slow down production until the spring spurs them back into action!
Common Diseases And Pests
Kale is part of the huge, generous brassica family—directly related to such estimable veggies as cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, and kohlrabi. And as such, it is subject to the same pests such as flea beetles, cabbage loopers, andaphids. Jere Gettle warns that kale’s most serious enemy isharlequin bugs, large red-and-black striped devourers of leaves.
The best organic control against them is to have good soil and healthy plants and to hand-pick them off leaves before the population gets established. Drop your striped kale-thieves in a jar of soapy water, and they’ll bother you no more!
Guinea fowl have also been used to clean up garden beds—they may seek and destroy every bug they find, but be sure to introduce them into your garden after plants are well established, and even then with a bit of surveillance—you wouldn’t want them to eat your plants along with the pests!
Cabbage wormsmay also try to skeletonize your kale long before you get the chance to harvest. Some old-time remedies to control them include sprinkling kale with cornmeal and rye flour, the rationale being that the flours will cause the worms to either dry out or swell up and die. Since you’ll be eating kale leaves directly, I recommend using any non-chemical method of control that you can—you certainly don’t want to be ingesting insecticide!
Another one of the best ways to control pests in your garden is to weed regularly and remove old, used-up plants. Insects often lay eggs in curled-up, dried leaves, so keeping your garden beds in clean, orderly shape is more than just a matter of aesthetics!
Some Varieties Of Kale
I loveSiberian kale. The fringed, feathery leaves are as beautiful as they are tasty, providing an interesting, purple-tinged texture to any garden.
Nero di Toscana kale—在杂货店里通常被称为“恐龙羽衣甘蓝”,它是一种味道鲜美、叶子深的品种,生长在超级诱人的深绿色集群中。
And what is a southern dinner without collards?Morris Heading collardsare a great choice for year-round plantings that are slow to bolt in the heat and yet also good for fall harvests.
If you’re not growing kale right now, take this coming winter to plan out your spring garden and get some in the ground! With how expensive organic greens can be in the grocery store, it’s a no-brainer to grow your own. They’ll be cheaper, fresher, and you, of course, will be healthier. Happy growing!
Resources
- The American Horticultural Society Illustrated Encyclopedia of Gardening: Vegetables
- The Complete Vegetable & Herb Gardener, Karan Davis Cutler
- The Heirloom Life Gardener, Jere and Emilee Gettle
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