Broccoli is a popular vegetable to grow, providing you with a crop of nutritious and delicious heads that can be used in anything from salads to curries to your Sunday roast.
Depending on the variety, you can harvest broccoli throughout the year by sowing seeds at regular intervals.
How to Grow Broccoli from Seed
You can sow your broccoli seeds in modules from late winter in a greenhouse. If you don’t have a greenhouse, wait until the weather warms up. Sow two seeds per module, and thin them to the stronger of the two seedlings. Keep watering the plants until they have four to five leaves. Once they grow large enough, you can plant them out on the plot.
For a steady supply of broccoli, sow seeds every six to eight weeks throughout the growing season.
How to Plant Out Broccoli
Broccoli loves fertile soil and full sun. Add well-rotted compost or manure to the beds before planting out.
Plant the broccoli 25-30cm apart and 45cm between the rows. This will allow space for the side shoots to develop. Firm the plants in well and keep them well watered. Feed them with a high nitrogen fertilizer every two weeks.
Harvesting Broccoli
Broccoli is very easy to harvest. Simply cut the main central head off the plant first with a sharp knife. This will trigger the development of side shoots which can be cut off the plant over the next four to six weeks.
Types of Broccoli
There are two types of broccoli. The first produces green, fat heads which can be harvested from early summer through to autumn. These plants aren’t particularly hardy.
The second is sprouting broccoli, which is traditionally grown through winter and is a lot hardier. The spears usually come in purple, cream, or white, and they are more slender.
Pests and Diseases
Like most of the brassica family, broccoli is prone to many pests and diseases.
Birds can easily demolish an entire crop of broccoli, so it’s a good idea to cover them with a net.
Caterpillars of white butterflies can cause a lot of damage, eating the leaves. Covering them with an insect-proof net can help protect your crop.
Clubroot is a disease that affects the brassica family, causing swollen, distorted roots and stunting plant growth. Once it enters the soil, removing it becomes very difficult, and it can remain there for up to 20 years.
Varieties
Some of our favorite broccoli varieties include:
- Green Magic F1: Green Magic is an early-maturing calabrese broccoli that produces tightly-packed heads and lots of side shoots once the main head has been harvested. One of the easiest broccolis to grow, Green Magic is both high yielding and very reliable.
- Early Purple Sprouting: A UK heirloom favourite, plant this frost-hardy sprouting broccoli in fall and you’ll be amazed by a flavourful abundance of tender, colourful sprouts in the early spring.