Brassica Space

[MarkHackwell]

I am currently planning the allotment. The amount of space I will be taking up with Brassicas to keep a continue crop looks to be about 25ft does anyone else have the same problem with Brassicas taking up so much space and it is worth it?

[Jay-ell]

Yep, they're big plants alright. Beechgrove Garden did a trial on growing cabbages at tighter spacing and concluded that growing them closer end up with smaller cabbages that would fit into a pan.

My sprouts this year were planted 12 inches apart in all directions and they've cropped nicely.
My cauliflowers were the same spacing but weren't too big, however you can eat the leaves as well.

Remember that other brassicas such as radish and turnips give edible greens with a familiar cabbagy flavour and grow quicker than cabbages.

There's cut and come again/constant cropped brassica such as collards or oriental brassicas which can crop over a long time.

As to if it's worth it - that's very subjective. How much do you like brassicas, are you going by price to buy vs productivity psm, does bragging rights have a value.

[Thelma Sanders]

My brassicas take up a third of my plot, but I do get a crop of early peas before the winter cabbages get planted out (sown and grown on in modules)

[Jay-ell]

I'm currently trying to figure out where to put some Jersey Kale. If you thinks sprouts are a space hogger try working out a nine foot cabbage


OK the leaves may not be too palatable but I may get a walking stick or two out of it in a few years time.

[Alison]

I don't grow much in the way of summer brassicas as I find they're not needed and can bolt when you blink. However I do still have a large area for them. My plot is primarily split into 4 rotation beds, each with 3 no 10' x 4' beds and 1 No 6' x 4' one (although I do have other bits and pieces) and that enables me to grow what I need to see me through from autumn to spring. I find them invaluable at this time of year and wouldn't be without them but when I had less space at home I didn't grow many as the space was more valuable for other stuff.

[muddled]

I started growing cabbage trees last year (from Realseeds).
They last a couple of years and you take leaves as and when you want them, all year round. I am finding that they take very little space compared to 'proper' cabbages.
Along with a couple of kales it's enough for us.

The only thing that takes a lot of space is the purple sprouting broc (which is definitely worth it...my absolute favourite veg). I grow lots of that but keep it in pots for a large part of the year, only planting out as space becomes available towards autumn. Of course, it's gone before the plot fills up in early summer.

My caulis always fail anyway

[Kristen]

does anyone else have the same problem with Brassicas taking up so much space and it is worth it?

Yes! I have a 4 year rotation, equal sized beds, but I have a second set of beds for a separate rotation (Spuds, Cut flowers, Sweetcorn) and I have one of those beds for Brassicas too - so in effect my Brassicas have 2x as much space as other beds in my regular rotation, excluding Spuds and Sweetcorn.

I'm not convinced that Sprouts are worth it. We don't get many (given the area planted) and the family don't like that all that much - after the XMas meal they don't get a lot of attention We do use a lot of Purple Sprouting Broccoli though, and planning to replace most (maybe all?) of the Brussels with Kale this year.

If you don't have a lot of space I would give the wide-spacing long-season Brassicas a miss, there are crops with a higher "return on investment" value.

[bario1]

I have exactly the same problem, I love all 'greens', but my plot is very small and I can't afford to have them taking up space from May to April! I don't grow any sort of 'heading' brassicas such as caulis or traditional cabbages, they are just too big. Last year I grew collards at the start of the season (great), then put kale and PSB in (too late, both rubbish). Tried summer sprouting broccoli too, waste of time, bolted overnight! I've got a few very late-started spring greens over-wintering in the polytunnel which I'm hoping will soon bulk up too.