How to Grow Broccoli

This page will focus on providing written and visual instructions on how to grow Broccoli.

The variety we will be growing in our Fall garden is the Marathon.

According to our Lunar Planting page we should plant the broccoli between the 5th and 11th of September.

According to the Companion Growing page, broccoli can be planted with any of the vegetables we are growing for the fall garden.

9-21-09

I planted my seeds according to schedule in how to grow broccoli. However, I did make a mistake. I only planted one see for each plant. These did not come up so I had to replant. This time I planted three to four to make sure something came up.

As we learn how to grow broccoli we have to be flexible and adjust to whatever problems arise.

I did not want to waste seed or spend time thinning but I guess there is no way around having to thin. Even if I had started them in starter pots, I still would have needed to plant more than one.

Broccoli, Cauliflower, Cabbage and Radish plants look a lot alike when first emerging from the ground.

CULTURE: Growing Broccoli is closely related to cabbage, cauliflower, and Brussels sprouts and, like these other members of the Brassica genus, requires a fertile soil with good moisture-holding capacity or irrigation.

While more heat-tolerant varieties such as Windsor are being developed, broccoli does not generally do well in hot weather, the best success being with spring and fall crops.

HARVEST: Before flower buds open, cut center head. Hydrocool or ice as soon as possible. Harvest secondary side shoots regularly to encourage continued production. Irrigate regularly.

STORAGE: Store at 32°F (0°C) 10-14 days.

DAYS TO MATURITY: From date of transplanting 68; add about 20 days if direct seeding.

Broccoli is a heavy feeder and does best under fertile conditions with adequate soil moisture throughout the growing period.

EARLY CROPS: Use early and midseason varieties. Sow 3-4 seeds/in. in flats, cold frame, outdoor seed bed or in 1-1 1/2" plug trays 4-6 weeks before transplanting out. If possible keep soil temperature over 75°F (24°C) until germination, then reduce air temperature to about 60°F (16°C). Transplant outdoors 12-18" apart in rows 18-34" apart.

FALL CROP: Use mid-season and storage varieties. Start seedlings as above in May and transplant to the garden in June-July. To ensure mature heads, seed the crop early in areas where heavy freezes occur early in the fall.

DIRECT SEEDING: Sow 3-4 seeds 12" apart, 1/2" deep, rows 24-36" apart, thinning to one plant in each group.

DISEASES: When growing broccoli adhere strictly to a preventive program including: (1) long crop rotations with non-cruciferous crops, (2) clean starting mixes and outdoor seedbeds, and (3) strict sanitation practices. Black rot, black leg, and alternaria can be seed-borne. We stock lab-tested lots when available and hot water treat (to eliminate black rot) questionable lots.

NOTE: A disease-free test result does not guarantee a seedlot to be disease-free, only that in the sample tested, the pathogen targeted was not found. However, no method of seed treatment can positively ensure freedom from disease.

09-09-09 The video below shows how to plant the broccoli seeds in a raised bed.

INSECT PESTS: Treat flea beetles on young seedlings with rotenone, pyrethrin, or by covering with floating row cover from day of planting. Broccoli worms and loopers: Dipel. Root maggots: cover seedlings with floating row covers. Cutworm prevention: Prepare soil 2 weeks before planting to cultivate-in cover crops and destroy weeds.

For seeds, OG means "organically grown" and signifies seeds harvested from plants grown organically, without synthetic fertilizers or pesticides and according to National Organic Program standards.

For supplies, OG signifies products that are approved for use in growing certified organic crops; supplies are listed by OMRI (Organic Materials Review Institute) when noted in the product description. In the picture below is the broccoli seeds emerging. When they are about two inches tall, I will have to thin them out as we learn more about how to grow broccoli.

In the picture below our Marathon Broccoli is growing very well as a plant. However, it is not producing the vegetable yet. In theory, these plants should have been harvested by now but we have had a lot of cloudy days over the past two months. We have even had some freezing temps. But my plants are in a modified Greenhouse so they are fairly protected. They have no diseases. They were attacked by some green worms, however I was able to pick these off with my hands and use them to fertilizer the soil.

I may need to thin these out due to the lack of sunshine. I will give them a few more days to see if they improve any. Learning how to grow broccoli can be a rewarding experience.

2-04-2010

The pictures below are of the Fall Marathon Broccoli. The leaves wilted when we had some temps down into the teens. I had a heater in the greenhouse. I thought they were finished but they came back with some minor leaf damage.

The harvested broccoli tasted great. We ate some fresh and some we froze. How to grow broccoli has been an exciting experience.

02-08-2010

In the pictures below are broccoli heads that I allowed to keep growing. After awhile they will turn to flowers.

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