Vegetable Planting

The benefits of growing cabbage have been well documented throughout history. The Romans championed its medicinal qualities, while the Greeks believed that it cured the effects of too much alcohol on the body.

A number of varieties of cabbage are available, and if you plant a range of them you can enjoy the vegetable from your own garden throughout the year.

Growing cabbage in an area that has previously been used for peas and beans is ideal, as those plants lock nitrogen in to the soil, which can be slowly enjoyed by the next occupant of the vegetable bed.

If you are growing cabbage in a brand new bed, make sure that the compost is full of organic matter. This is something that needs to be thought about in advance, as all brassicas (the family of which the cabbage is a member) require firm soil. Accordingly, you should dig in the compost a couple of months before planting the cabbage seedlings  to give the soil time to settle.

If you have tested your soil you will know the pH value of it. Be careful if your soil is too acidic – cabbage prefers an alkaline environment. In that case, you might get a better yield if you added some lime to your garden.

When it actually comes to planting the seeds, start them off in a small bed. This need not be in a greenhouse, although the seedlings will come on more quickly if you can provide them with one. There are no hard and fast rules on when the seedlings should be transplanted to their permanent beds. However, the sooner they are established their the better.

When transplanting the seedlings make sure that they are adequately spaced out and well watered in. Within a few days, the plants will look as though they’ve always been there.

Growing cabbages takes a few months from start to finish, but the delicious, nutritious results are well worth waiting for.