by Growing a rich harvest of cabbage is only half the battle. It is equally important to preserve it. And here the timing of harvesting the fruits is of great importance. If you harvest too early, the heads of cabbage will be unripe and will not store well. Overripe fruits also have a worse shelf life.
How to correctly determine that it is time to harvest cabbage? We will tell you about this below.
When to harvest white cabbage
Of all the types of cabbage, white cabbage is undoubtedly the most popular, so we’ll start with it.
The easiest way to determine the optimal time for harvesting cabbage is to count the time that has passed since the emergence of seedlings and look at the table on the seed packaging, which indicates how many days it takes for a particular variety of cabbage to ripen:
- Plants of early maturing varieties and hybrids ripen 55-90 days after emergence. In the middle zone, their heads of cabbage are removed from the garden bed in late June – July;
- mid-season cabbage is ready for harvesting in 80-110 days. In the middle zone, this time comes in August;
- mid-late varieties and hybrids require 110-135 days to fully ripen, so their harvesting begins in September;
- Late cabbage ripens in October-November, 140-180 days after emergence.
However, in reality, everything turns out to be much more complicated. Someone lost the packaging, someone forgot the time of emergence of seedlings, and someone prefers not to grow at all, but to buy ready-made seedlings at the market. And the weather makes its own adjustments: the ripening time of vegetables of the same variety will differ in different years. So it turns out that it is extremely difficult to calculate even approximate dates. And it is very important to harvest at the optimal time: heads of cabbage cut too early will not be stored well, and missed harvesting dates will lead to cracking and rotting of overripe heads of cabbage.
How can you tell in this case that the cabbage is ripe? There is only one way out – to focus on the appearance of the heads of cabbage. Let us dwell on the signs of ripening of white cabbage in more detail.
- The head of cabbage stops growing and in most cases (but not always) corresponds to the characteristics of the variety.
- The fork is dense, strong, and elastic to the touch. When squeezed, it produces a characteristic crunch.
- The outer leaves turn bluish instead of green, and the inner ones, especially at the top, take on an ivory hue.
- The lower leaves begin to turn yellow and dry out.
It is especially important to harvest mid-late and late varieties of cabbage at the right time, because this is what is left for long-term storage. It is recommended to start cutting these heads of cabbage after the air temperature drops to 7-9°C. A short-term drop in night temperature to -4°C will not harm late varieties of cabbage; on the contrary, according to many summer residents, it will only have a positive effect on its taste.
The harvesting time for red cabbage is no different from that for white cabbage and varies depending on the variety and region.
When to Harvest Cauliflower
As with white cabbage, the timing of harvesting cauliflower depends on its variety:
- early varieties of cabbage ripen 60-100 days after emergence and are ready for harvesting as early as June;
- heads of mid-season varieties are cut after 100-130 days;
- Harvesting of late cabbage begins at the end of August – beginning of September, when approximately 150 days have passed since the emergence of seedlings.
However, here too it is important to pay attention to the appearance of the cabbage. Signs of cauliflower ripening:
- the head diameter is 12-15 cm;
- The heads should be firm and definitely white: loose and yellowed inflorescences indicate that the cabbage is overripe.
Cauliflower, unlike white cabbage, is very afraid of negative temperatures, so it must be removed from the garden before frost sets in.
During harvesting, the cauliflower heads are cut off along with several covering leaves and immediately placed in the shade.
When to harvest broccoli
Like cauliflower, broccoli needs to be removed from the beds before the first frosts. Depending on the variety, this time comes 75-110 days after the emergence of shoots and in the middle zone falls in July-August.
The appearance of the cabbage will indicate the harvesting time more accurately. Broccoli is ready for harvesting if:
- the head diameter reached 15-25 cm;
- the head is dark green in color;
- the inflorescences have not yet had time to open: opened inflorescences signal that you have missed the harvesting deadline and the cabbage is overripe.
If the weather is favorable and the plant receives enough moisture, broccoli may begin a second wave of fruiting: small heads will begin to appear in the leaf axils. To do this, cut only the inflorescences during harvesting, without touching the root.
When to harvest kohlrabi
The timing of harvesting kohlrabi, like other types of cabbage, depends on the variety. Thus, early varieties of kohlrabi are harvested in mid-summer. It is designed for quick consumption, so it is not suitable for storage. But the stems of late varieties have good keeping quality and can be stored for more than six months, and it has been noted that purple fruits are stored better than white ones. They are harvested almost at the same time as late-ripening white cabbage, when the daytime temperature drops to about 5 ° C.
However, if the larger the head of white cabbage, the better, then with kohlrabi you need to be very careful not to let the fruits grow too big. The optimal size of kohlrabi stems is 120-200 g. Larger fruits may please the eye, but are unlikely to be to anyone’s taste due to the tough fibers.
When ready for harvesting, kohlrabi is dug up along with the root, after which it is dried and the root and leaves are cut off.
When to Harvest Brussels Sprouts
Brussels sprouts are the most cold-resistant of all cabbage varieties. They can withstand frosts down to -10°C, so there is no need to rush to harvest them.
The first fruits on the plant ripen already three months after planting the seedlings in a permanent place. They are removed gradually, starting from the lower part of the stem. However, the harvesting of the main crop intended for storage begins in late autumn, when the temperature drops to -6…-10°C. Light frost only benefits the vegetable, improving its taste.
3-3,5 weeks before harvesting, the top of the Brussels sprouts is shortened and the leaves are removed. Thanks to this procedure, in the last weeks of growth, the plant directs all nutrients to the maturation of the heads.
And if you can’t decide which cabbage is best to grow in your garden, take a look at our previous article.
