When is the best time to plant broccoli
If you want to know the best time to plant broccoli and the planting methods and seasonal information about green plants and flowers, the following article will introduce them to you.
Broccoli is a biennial plant of the brassica oleracea var. acephala group, a variety of brassica rapa, and is a vegetable. It is a variant of the same brassica oleracea family as the heading cabbage. Broccoli is also known as green cauliflower, purple cauliflower, tender stem cauliflower, Italian rapini, and stem cauliflower. It is an autumn and winter vegetable that prefers warm and humid climates, is widely adaptable, easy to cultivate, and of high value. How to plant broccoli?
I. Best Time to Plant Broccoli
In the southern regions, broccoli can be planted all year round, but it is mostly cultivated in autumn and winter. In warm regions, autumn cauliflower is sown from mid-June to mid-July, in temperate regions from early June to early July, and in cool regions from mid-May to early June for autumn cauliflower. For winter cauliflower, in warm regions, it is sown from mid-August to early September, in temperate regions from mid-July to mid-August, and in cool regions from late June to mid-July.
II. Broccoli Planting Methods
1. Variety Selection: Broccoli is adaptable and can be planted all year round, but different varieties should be chosen for different seasons. For spring cultivation, varieties like Black Green, Six-Year Green, and Baoquan are suitable; for summer cultivation, varieties like Zhenglan Shuizhong, Xiaolu, Green King, and Green Fragrance are suitable; for autumn cultivation, varieties like Green Ridge, Qingnong 50 Days, and Wenxing Broccoli are suitable; for overwintering cultivation, mid-late maturing varieties are preferred.
2. Seedling Raising: Choose a fertile, loose, well-drained, and cool and ventilated plot for the seedbed. Before sowing, deeply turn the bed soil, apply decomposed manure and a small amount of compound fertilizer, mix it evenly with the bed soil, and sprinkle a thick layer of livestock manure water. After 2-3 days, loosen the soil, water the bed, and sow about 10 grams per square meter. After sowing, cover with about 1 centimeter of fine soil, cover with a sunshade net, water again, and then water as needed to keep the soil moist. After 3-4 days, most of the seeds germinate, and half-shade cover is applied to prevent direct sunlight and rain冲击. As the seedlings grow, gradually uncover the sunshade net.
3. Seedling Management: Timely thinning and transplanting are crucial for growing strong seedlings. When the seedlings emerge about 10 days after sowing, thin them to reduce density, and then thin them again when they are a bit larger, maintaining a spacing of 3-5 centimeters between plants. When the seedlings are about 20 days old, the original nutrient area is limited, so they need to be transplanted. The requirements for the transplanting bed are the same as for the sowing bed, with a spacing of 7-10 centimeters. Cover with a sunshade net for shading, and water while transplanting. Keep the bed soil moist after transplanting to ensure the survival of the seedlings. Broccoli requires little fertilizer during the seedling stage, and watering is sufficient to prevent drought. In the middle and late stages of seedling growth, if there is a lack of fertilizer, you can apply decomposed livestock manure water or a 0.2% urea or compound fertilizer solution 1-2 times to promote healthy growth of the broccoli seedlings.
4. Land Preparation and Fertilization: Choose a fertile, loose plot, deeply plow and level it, and create narrow high ridges 1 meter wide or wide high ridges 2 meters wide. Plant 2 or 4 rows per ridge with a hill spacing of 40-45 centimeters and apply 3000 kilograms of decomposed manure and 20 kilograms of compound fertilizer per mu.
5. Transplanting: About 30 days after sowing, when the seedlings have 5-6 true leaves, the stem is 0.5 centimeters thick, and the plant height is 12-15 centimeters, it can be transplanted to the field. If the seedlings are too old, the roots may be damaged during transplanting, and if the seedlings are too small, they will be weak after transplanting. Therefore, in addition to paying attention to growing strong seedlings and mastering the seedling age standards, it is also necessary to choose overcast days or before and after rain for transplanting. Water the seedbed thoroughly before transplanting, and wait about an hour before pulling the seedlings to ensure they bring more soil and less root damage.
6. Field Management:
Broccoli prefers moisture and requires a lot of fertilizer and water to produce high-yield, high-quality flower heads. To ensure a strong leaf cluster, it is necessary to apply 1-2 times of clear manure water after the seedlings have taken root, especially after entering the rosette stage when the plant grows vigorously. You can add 50-100 grams of urea and compound fertilizer to each load of livestock manure water and apply it 3 times. Broccoli likes water but is afraid of flooding, so it is necessary to drain after rain and water during dry weather. Apply a heavy dose of fertilizer during the budding stage to promote the development of the flower bud heads and increase yield.
Bundling the leaves is an important measure to ensure the quality of broccoli. When the flower heads first appear, gather the large leaves on the outside of the flower heads inward to wrap the flower heads and tie them with straw.
7. Harvesting: The green, flat spherical flower bud clusters produced at the top of the main stem of broccoli are firm at first and then gradually become loose, but at this time the flower buds have not yet opened. Harvesting at this time ensures quality. Harvesting too late not only reduces the quality of the flower heads but also affects the emergence of side flower heads. After harvesting the main flower head, the axillary buds on the main stem will grow into side branches, and the top of the side branches will produce flower bud clusters. Harvest them when they grow to 20-25 centimeters, and this can be done 2-3 times. After each harvest, apply a thin layer of fertilizer to promote the germination and growth of side flower heads.
The above sharing on when to plant broccoli and the planting methods and seasonal information related to broccoli is hoping to bring a little help to your life!