Continue reading »]]> The Brassica family of vegetables is one that contains many different members – like broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, and brussels sprouts. There is one member of the family I recently discovered called Romanesco. I first heard of it on the Food Network show, Chopped. I bought some for the first time at my local farmer’s market, which might be the only place a lot of people will find it.

Is it broccoli or is it cauliflower? I think it has more in common with cauliflower, but unique enough to be it’s own separate veggie. It grows a big head like cauliflower and has buds that are dormant like cauliflower. Yet it is green like broccoli. Some like to call it Broccoflower, but the name is usually more often associated with green colored cauliflower.

Romanseco is easy to spot by it’s spiky apperance. Kind of looks like something from another world. We can go back to the 1600s to find records of romanseco being grown in Italy, which is why you might also hear it called Roman cauliflower.

What Does It Taste Like?
The best way to describe it is that it tastes like cauliflower but it more tender like broccoli, making it an good option for raw eating. It tends not to have the hint of bitterness you can find in broccoli and cauliflower. It also has a pleasant nuttiness to it.

How Do You Cook Romanseco?
You can cook it anyway you would broccoli or cauliflower. Roasting it can be a good option. I like to steam or boil mine until tender, and then drain any water. Then pull out a frying pan, melt some butter, and add some chopped garlic. I cook that until soften and then mix in the Romanseco. However you decide to cook it, don’t overcook, or that pleasing texture and flavor will be history.

What Time of Year Is Romanseco Available?
Romanseco like to finish growing in cold weather. So it’s peak season is in October. If you live in a warm climate, it makes for a good winter crop.

Where I Can Get Romanseco Seeds So I Can Grow My Own?
Many seed companies sell roamnseco seeds. Here some links to a few:

Johnny’s Seeds
Burpee
Seed Savers

Continue reading »]]> Last week, I got my first taste of homegrown broccoli this year. Five of my Packman broccoli plants were ready for harvest. I let them grow as long as I could. At the point I cut them off the florets were beginning to spread apart. If you see this happening this is when you need to harvest, don’t wait a moment longer, or you plant may end up flowering.

How to Harvest Broccoli
Use a sharp knife to cut off the stem below the head. You can cut it between the florets and the bottom leaves.

How Long Does It Take for Side Shoots to Grow
The harvest is not over with just the central head. A series of side shoots will grow giving you even more broccoli to enjoy. If you look closer at the picture on the right, you can see tiny little florets beginning to grow in the joints of the plant. From past experience it should take about 2-3 weeks for the side shoots to mature enough to cut off. You can keep this process going until the quality begins to decline, depending on the weather.

Are you growing Packman broccoli this year? I would love to hear your experience. Leave a comment below.

To read all my posts on Packman broccoli, click here.

Continue reading »]]> When you are growing broccoli it is easy to look at the plant and wonder how does broccoli come from this? This is why it is exciting to watch the head forming. I recently saw the first heads forming on some of my Packman broccoli plants (click on the picture to enlarge to see the head better). This means that I am probably 2-3 weeks from harvesting my first broccoli of the season.

How to Know then the Broccoli is Ready to Harvest?
This can be a tricky question to answer. You can harvest it at any time there is a head, but your goal should be to get the biggest head possible. The only trouble comes is if you wait too long the head will start to flower and you will end up with some bitter broccoli. So you need to know what to watch for. If at any point you notice any parts of the florets beginning to grow higher than any parts, then you need to cut off the head immediately, it won’t grow any bigger at this point.

Are you growing Packman broccoli this year? I would love to hear your experience. Leave a comment below.

To read all my posts on Packman broccoli, click here.

Continue reading »]]> One of the biggest challenges to growing vegetables can be pests. They show up unexpected and unwanted. After transplanting my Packman broccoli I noticed a few holes in my leaves, clearly caused by some kind of bug. It could be a lot of things, but I haven’t been able to determine the guilty party. However I am not too concerned at this point. A few nibbles on a leaf by a bug isn’t going to stop this broccoli plant from producing. Bugs took bites out of my broccoli plants all last year and they were never bad enough to really harm the plant.

If you are seeing more holes than me, than you might want to take action before it’s too late. One common solution that I have seen work is sprinkling cayenne pepper on the leaves. This usually deters any bugs from chopping down. The only problem is that you will have to re-apply the cayenne every time it rains. But you may find that the bugs are only a problem for a short time.

Are you growing Packman broccoli this year? I would love to hear your experience. Leave a comment below.

To read all my posts on Packman broccoli, click here.

Continue reading »]]> Introduction
Some things work so well they are worth repeating. That is the case with the Packman variety of broccoli. I grew it last year and was very impressive with the results. Last summer was one of the hottest ones in years. Broccoli can bolt or go to seed in hot temperatures. It likes to grow in cool weather. Packman broccoli turned out to be pretty heat resistant. I took special care to keep it watered and the plants I planted in April made it all the way through the season.

Does It Produce Side Shoots, After Central Head is Harvest?
Once the central head is gone, Packman produces a great number of side shoots. It keep doing so all the way to Halloween. Although I do think the last shoots I harvested weren’t as good as the earlier ones.

When to Plant
Broccoli can be planted when the soil is workable in the spring and any really hard frosts are over.

Starting Seeds/Transplanting Plants Outdoors
You can directly seed broccoli or transplant plants you buy or start indoors. I couldn’t find an Packman broccoli seed packets in time this year, so I just bought the first plants I could find. I planted 6 plants in my community garden plot and another 3 at home. Unfortnately, the next day we had heavy downpours and strong winds and two of the plants at home didn’t make it. So I planted some Green Golaith broccoli in their place to try out.

Expected Harvest
It should take about 55 days from transplanting until the central head will be available to harvest. I should see my first harvest right around the end of June.

Continue reading »]]> Introduction
Broccoli is a crop that is available in the grocery store year around. But it doesn’t have the flavor and tenderness of home grown broccoli. This is why it’s one of the crops I look to grow each year. Last year, I had excellent results growing the Packman variety. I am also growing it again this year. However due to some rough winds and rain, a couple of my Packman broccoli plants bit the dust. Shortly afterward I was at the Ann Arbor Farmer’s Market, and I found some Green Goliath Broccoli for sale. So I decided to give this variety a try to, so I could do an comparison throughout the year. I liked the Packman broccoli because it was very heat resistent. It grew all summer long, producing many side shoots after the main head was harvested. And last summer was a really hot summer, making it even more impressive. So I am curious to see how Green Goliath does in hot weather.

Does It Produce Side Shoots, After Central Head is Harvest?
One of the first things I want to know when purchasing a variety of broccoli is does it produce side shoots, once the main head is harvested. Not all varieites do. I like to keep the harvest going, so this is a requirement for me. So Green Golaith broccoli does produce side shoots after the main head is harvested.

When to Plant
Broccoli can be planted when the soil is workable in the spring and any really hard frosts are over.

Starting Seeds/Transplanting Plants Outdoors
I tried starting broccoli from seed last year and I didn’t like my results. None of my plants survived. So this year, I decided to just buy the plants grow by someone who is better at starting seeds. You can also sow the seeds directly in the ground. I might have done that but like I said I purchased Green Goliath to replace some fallen plants and I didn’t want to wait for the seeds to grow as we are in May now.

Expected Harvest
I find when you transplant broccoli it starts out growing slow for the first couple weeks. But then it takes off. Green Goliath is a fast growing variety, being ready to harvest in 55 days. So I should be enjoying this broccoli before my fourth of July cookout.

Continue reading »]]> Question: When to Plant Broccoli for the Fall?

Answer: RIGHT NOW! If you wish to grow broccoli for a fall crop, you need to be planting those seeds in the ground in the month of August at the latest. I planted my broccoli this month and I live in Michigan. Broccoli grows well in the fall, because it likes to grow in cooler temperature. It’s also easier to do because a lot of your problems with starting it in the spring are gone. In the spring, the soil isn’t warm, so germination takes longer. Also bugs are a greater problem in the spring/summer than the fall. Broccoli can withstand frost to a certain point. I plant to cover my fall broccoli whenever there is going to be a significant frost (under 30 degrees) and see how long I can keep it going.

If you haven’t planted your broccoli yet and live in an area where the first frost is coming in early to mid October, I would look for a variety that you can harvest in the least amount of days. Just check the back of your package of seeds. Also the good thing about buying seeds now, if you can find a place still selling them they should be on clearance.

Click here to read about my experience growing the Packman variety of broccoli this year (I started it in the spring).

Continue reading »]]>

Click here to read all my posts on Packman Broccoli.

Yesterday, I harvested some side shoots from several of my broccoli plants. The determining factor into when to harvest them was I saw signs of a couple of them getting ready to flower. I could tell this because I saw a tiny bit of yellow and the buds were starting to get big. I cut them off before they became bitter. I also harvested some shoots just to make sure I had enough for a meal. I still have plenty of side shoots growing and I will watch to see if I get anymore from the plants I just cut.

Since we are in the dog days of summer and temperatures have been quite hot I have been making sure to water my broccoli regularly to keep the soil as cool as possible. By doing this and cutting the broccoli whenever it shows any sign of flowering, I have been able to keep my plants going through a hot period of time.

Continue reading »]]>

Click here to read all my posts on Packman Broccoli.

I have 4 broccoli plants growing in my raised bed and at this point all the central heads have been harvested. Now the side shoots are starting to grow. The side shoots will not get as big as the central head. Just keep on eye on them as they grow to make sure they do not flower, just as you would with the central head. I typically find that 4 side shoots begin to grow around where the central head was cut off. This takes place within about a week and it can take the shoots 1-2 weeks to mature, depending on the weather.

Continue reading »]]> Nine weeks after I planted my packman broccoli, it was ready for harvest. The tricky thing with growing broccoli during the summer is that it can quickly bolt or flower with hot temperatures. I decided that even though the head on this particularly plant could possibly grow bigger I should cut it off now as the days following when this picture was taken was forecast to be in the 90s for highs. I say you are better off cutting it early, than waiting too long and ending up with bitter broccoli. Keep in mind that once you cut the center head of the packman variety it will grow side shoots, so there is more broccoli to come.

My estimated first harvest was sometime between Sunday, June 27th to Wednesday, July 7th. I harvested on July 3rd, so right in the middle of where I expected to be.

Click here to read all my posts on Packman Broccoli.