What do I need to know to grow cauliflower? - Page 2

brownrexx · December 6, 2018

Last year I had it drop below freezing overnight and four out of five seedlings survived.

brownrexx · December 6, 2018

Yes they can tolerate frost.

Nan_PA_6b · December 6, 2018

Do you start them indoors? Do you plant them out as soon as the ground can be worked? (Mid March? Mid April?)

brownrexx · December 6, 2018

I can't usually find Amazing as seedlings so I start them indoors under my lights. Last year I got lazy and bought seedlings of Snow Crop and I got ugly heads about the size of golf balls. We didn't eat any of them.

I roto till my garden in the fall and then cover it with a thick layer of straw so it is fluffed up and ready for planting as soon as it warms up in the spring.

I just looked at my notes and we had a Nor' Easter on March 21 with 12" of snow last year so I planted cabbage and cauliflower seedlings on April 14. Normally it would be about the first week of April. Of course I harden off my seedlings before planting out into the garden.

greenthumbomaha · December 6, 2018

I was recently lamenting about my difficulties growing cauliflower in another thread, so this is very helpful. I've looked all over google for seeds of "Incredible", but could only find "Amazing"! Do you remember your seed source for Incredible? Is it OP or hybrid, which would give some clues as to where to look. If it was a Burpee seed (who are suspect for renaming their old inventory as the new latest and greatest), it will be a bear to find.

- Lisa

brownrexx · December 7, 2018

Quote:

Originally Posted by greenthumbomaha

I was recently lamenting about my difficulties growing cauliflower in another thread, so this is very helpful. I've looked all over google for seeds of "Incredible", but could only find "Amazing"! Do you remember your seed source for Incredible? Is it OP or hybrid, which would give some clues as to where to look. If it was a Burpee seed (who are suspect for renaming their old inventory as the new latest and greatest), it will be a bear to find.

- Lisa

OMG I am so sorry it IS the variety called Amazing.

I don't know what I was thinking. Incredible is my corn variety. Sorry, sorry sorry. I will try to edit my previous posts to avoid confusing other people.

clkeiper · December 7, 2018

thanks for clarifying the variety... I was in search of it too.

GoDawgs · December 7, 2018

I would so love to be able to grow cauliflower but it just doesn't work here. Tiny heads and if a few should get bigger, a pink discoloration. After many failures with both spring and fall plantings I finally did some deep reading and discovered it's our temp swings here that are the problem.

Apparently cauliflower needs steady cool and here we get alternating warm and cold stretches both fall/winter and spring. The same temp swings can get my onions bolting too.

Nan_PA_6b · December 7, 2018

Just ordered "Amazing" from Baker Creek. (They gave me 6 months free shipping when I started an account- best move ever on their part. Every time I forget something or change my mind, they get an order from me.)

brownrexx · December 7, 2018

So sorry to make some of you look for the wrong variety. I was stressed out about getting a package in the mail before the post office closed and I didn't think clearly but that happens to me a lot this month!

Best of luck with the cauliflower Nan. I hope it grows as well for you as it did for me.

clkeiper · December 7, 2018

oh, don't fret over that. pfft. if something that little was the biggest problem some people had they would be rejoicing. don't sweat the little stuff.

b54red · December 7, 2018

I have been growing cauliflower here successfully for over 30 years. I had some hits and misses and still do due to our frequent and huge temperature swings. I usually set out my plants in the fall as soon as the temperatures get cool and again in January and February. I usually have to have a hoop and plastic ready to cover them as they will get damaged by the cold or even killed if it gets really cold. If a head has started forming and it gets too cold the resulting head will have dark rotten spots in it when it gets mature so make sure it doesn't experience temps below about 28 or 29 without and adequate cover.

BT is a must. Keep the plants dusted or sprayed to prevent the worms from doing too much damage.

They are heavy feeders so keep them will fertilized and side dress them regularly to improve the size of the plants and thus the heads. Make sure the heads when they start forming are protected from the sun so they will remain white. I take a few of the outer leaves and pull them over and clip them together with a clothes pin or two. This keeps the heads covered and allows them to remain white.

It is better to cut them too soon than too late. If you wait too long to harvest them they will get a bit grainy in texture and taste stronger.

My favorite and most dependable varieties are Snow Crown and Bishop. Snow crown is faster to head and makes a good size head which is a real plus in the spring when sudden heat can really mess them up down here. Bishop is slower to head but makes huge heads so I always try to plant both. I still try out a few different varieties but haven't found any others as dependable.

Bill

Tormato · December 7, 2018

When y'all get done harvesting your normal cauliflower, I've got the impossible for you (Romanesco seed).

Nan_PA_6b · December 7, 2018

Is Romanesco hard to grow? Its fractals are adorable.

Tormato · December 8, 2018

My success with broccoli and cauliflower is about 50%, romanesco... 0.0%.

I have 100% success with kohlrabi (almost no place for bugs to hide within it), but the taste is not inspiring.

I hope you can put your cauliflower in a sunnier location. Five hours of sunlight, along with using row covers, doesn't sound like the best combination.

December 6, 2018	#16
brownrexx Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: Southeastern PA Posts: 1,420	Last year I had it drop below freezing overnight and four out of five seedlings survived. Last edited by brownrexx; December 6, 2018 at 09:38 PM.

December 6, 2018	#19
brownrexx Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: Southeastern PA Posts: 1,420	I can't usually find Amazing as seedlings so I start them indoors under my lights. Last year I got lazy and bought seedlings of Snow Crop and I got ugly heads about the size of golf balls. We didn't eat any of them. I roto till my garden in the fall and then cover it with a thick layer of straw so it is fluffed up and ready for planting as soon as it warms up in the spring. I just looked at my notes and we had a Nor' Easter on March 21 with 12" of snow last year so I planted cabbage and cauliflower seedlings on April 14. Normally it would be about the first week of April. Of course I harden off my seedlings before planting out into the garden. Last edited by brownrexx; December 7, 2018 at 10:00 AM. Reason: corrected variety name from Incredible to Amazing

December 7, 2018	#22
clkeiper Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: ohio Posts: 4,350	thanks for clarifying the variety... I was in search of it too. __________________ carolyn k

December 7, 2018	#26
clkeiper Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: ohio Posts: 4,350	oh, don't fret over that. pfft. if something that little was the biggest problem some people had they would be rejoicing. don't sweat the little stuff. __________________ carolyn k

December 6, 2018	#18
Nan_PA_6b Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2016 Location: Pittsburgh, PA Posts: 3,194	Do you start them indoors? Do you plant them out as soon as the ground can be worked? (Mid March? Mid April?)

December 6, 2018	#20
greenthumbomaha Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Omaha Zone 5 Posts: 2,514	I was recently lamenting about my difficulties growing cauliflower in another thread, so this is very helpful. I've looked all over google for seeds of "Incredible", but could only find "Amazing"! Do you remember your seed source for Incredible? Is it OP or hybrid, which would give some clues as to where to look. If it was a Burpee seed (who are suspect for renaming their old inventory as the new latest and greatest), it will be a bear to find. - Lisa

December 7, 2018	#23
GoDawgs Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2018 Location: Augusta area, Georgia, 8a/7b Posts: 1,685	I would so love to be able to grow cauliflower but it just doesn't work here. Tiny heads and if a few should get bigger, a pink discoloration. After many failures with both spring and fall plantings I finally did some deep reading and discovered it's our temp swings here that are the problem. Apparently cauliflower needs steady cool and here we get alternating warm and cold stretches both fall/winter and spring. The same temp swings can get my onions bolting too.

December 7, 2018	#27
b54red Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Alabama Posts: 7,068	I have been growing cauliflower here successfully for over 30 years. I had some hits and misses and still do due to our frequent and huge temperature swings. I usually set out my plants in the fall as soon as the temperatures get cool and again in January and February. I usually have to have a hoop and plastic ready to cover them as they will get damaged by the cold or even killed if it gets really cold. If a head has started forming and it gets too cold the resulting head will have dark rotten spots in it when it gets mature so make sure it doesn't experience temps below about 28 or 29 without and adequate cover. BT is a must. Keep the plants dusted or sprayed to prevent the worms from doing too much damage. They are heavy feeders so keep them will fertilized and side dress them regularly to improve the size of the plants and thus the heads. Make sure the heads when they start forming are protected from the sun so they will remain white. I take a few of the outer leaves and pull them over and clip them together with a clothes pin or two. This keeps the heads covered and allows them to remain white. It is better to cut them too soon than too late. If you wait too long to harvest them they will get a bit grainy in texture and taste stronger. My favorite and most dependable varieties are Snow Crown and Bishop. Snow crown is faster to head and makes a good size head which is a real plus in the spring when sudden heat can really mess them up down here. Bishop is slower to head but makes huge heads so I always try to plant both. I still try out a few different varieties but haven't found any others as dependable. Bill

December 7, 2018	#28
Tormato Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: MA Posts: 4,971	When y'all get done harvesting your normal cauliflower, I've got the impossible for you (Romanesco seed).

December 8, 2018	#30
Tormato Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: MA Posts: 4,971	My success with broccoli and cauliflower is about 50%, romanesco... 0.0%. I have 100% success with kohlrabi (almost no place for bugs to hide within it), but the taste is not inspiring. I hope you can put your cauliflower in a sunnier location. Five hours of sunlight, along with using row covers, doesn't sound like the best combination.