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Vegetable (Cool Season) - Cabbage Family
Brassica oleracea var. acephala (Kale)
Brassicaceae Family
The tender young leaves from these fast-growing plants can be eaten
raw, or cooked for soup or stir fries. Very cold hardy, harvest can
continue right through snow. Many colored varieties are a fine addition
to ornamental plantings as well as spectacular garnishes.
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Site Characteristics
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Sunlight:
Prefers full sun in spring and fall, but can benefit from light shade during hot weather.
Soil conditions:
- requires well-drained soil
Prefers well-drained, fertile soil high in organic matter, pH 6.0 to
7.5. Can tolerate slightly alkaline soil. Prefers plentiful, consistent
moisture. Can tolerate drought, but quality and flavor of leaves
suffer.
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Plant Traits
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Lifecycle:
annual
Biennial grown as an annual.
Ease-of-care:
easy
Height:
1.5 to 3 feet
Spread:
1 to 3 feet
Foliage color:
- light green
- medium green
- dark green
- red
- purple
Depends on variety.
Foliage texture:
Depends
on variety. Those with savoyed leaves tend toward the fine end of the
spectrum. Older plants with smooth leaves can be coarse.
Shape:
- cushion, mound or clump
- upright
As
plants mature and lower leaves are harvested, plants begin to look less
like a clump and start to resemble small palm trees with a cluster of
leaves at the top of a long stem.
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Special Considerations
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Tolerates:
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frost - Flavor improved when plants are “kissed” by frost.
Special characteristics:
- not native to North America
- Not known in the wild. Descended from wild Mediterranean kale.
Special uses:
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Growing Information
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How to plant:
Propagate by
seed
Germination temperature: 45 F to 85 F
- Will germinate at soil temperatures as low as 40 F.
Days to emergence: 4 to 7
Seed can be saved 4 years.
Maintenance and care:
Direct seed about three months before expected fall frost. Plant seeds
¼ to ½ inch deep, 1 inch apart in rows 18 to 30 inches apart. Thin to
12- to 18-inch spacings. Eat or transplant thinnings.Similar
to cabbage and other cole crops, you can also set out transplants in
spring 4 to 6 weeks before average last frost, 12 inches apart, rows 18
to 24 inches apart. Doesn't seem to be as troubled by pests as
most other cole crops. Use floating row covers to help protect from
early insect infestations. To help reduce disease, do not plant kale or other cole crops in the same location more than once every three or four years.
Pests:
Cutworm
Cabbage loopers
Cabbageworms
Flea beetles
Cabbage root maggots
Cabbage aphids
Slugs and snails
NematodesUsually not as susceptible to pest damage as other cole crops.
Diseases:
Clubroot
Black rot
Black leg
AlternariaTo help reduce disease, do not plant kale or other cole crops in the same location more than once every three or four years.
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Varieties
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Browse kale varieties at our Vegetable Varieties for Gardeners website.Look
for different colors, days to harvest. Some varieties have curly or
savoyed leaves resembling parsley. Colorful ornamental varieties tend
to be less flavorful. Red Russian kale is a different species, Brassica napus var. pabularia, but cultivated similarly. Some varieties recommended for New York include: Dwarf Green Curled
Vates Blue Curled
Winterbor
Red Russian
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