Topic: How hardy is Kohl Rabi?

[Mrs Ava]

Well, the title says it all.  I have 2 lovely cell trays with lovely strong kohl rabis growing away and I was wondering when would be okay for them to go out?  I will of course harden them off, but if they would be better out, then out they shall go.  Also, when they do go out, should I plant them all the way down to their seed leaves or at the same level as they are in the tray?  And, last but by no means least, are they at risk from cabbage fly?  Do I need to get lino protectors at the ready?

Thanks chaps and chappessessessssess

[Hugh_Jones]

Get them hardened off as soon as possible EJ - you should normally be sowing outdoors now anyway.  Never had mine attacked by cabbage root fly, and if you put collars round them they won`t know whether to swell up above or below the collar.

[Beer_Belly]

While we're on the subject of kohl rabi - where do they fir in the rotation scheme ? with the brassicas ?

-B_B-

[Mrs Ava]

Thanks Hugh, will get down there and get them out in the wind and rain for the day.  Should I plant them deep?

[cleo]

Yes BB

And on the general question of Kohl Rabi-they grow fairly quickly and are best eaten when young so sow in succession.

Stephan.

[The gardener]

Being a root crop they tend to resent 'transplanting' so when planting out try and not damage the root ball or you may put them in 'check' resulting in premature bolting (running to seed)

I prefer to sow them in there growing position for this reason.

[Hugh_Jones]

Nonsense.  Kohl Rabi is NOT a root crop. The so-called roots are not roots at all, but are in fact a swelling of the stem, and like all other types whose edible part is a stem swelling it can perfectly satisfactorily be transplanted. Provided the normal care is exercised in transplanting there should be no check on the plants.   However, they need to be grown quickly, and consequently adequate moisture is absolutely necessary. A far more likely cause of `bolting`is keeping the seedlings confined too long in trays before planting out, and insufficient moisture thereafter.

[cleo]

Can`t argue with that Hugh-I have not had any problems sowing them in modules.

Stephan.

[gavin]

And treat as swedes - in the sense of growing in the brassica bed, I guess?

I've never tried it - never even tasted it.  Go on, persuade me it's worth a go!

All best - Gavin

[Hugh_Jones]

Stephan, I just hope that his so garishly advertised web site is not disseminating too much misleading misinformation of this sort.

Gavin, yes, treat as brassicas from the rotation point of view and as swedes or turnips from pest control point of view - for cultivation I would suggest more as the summer turnip.  And yes, they are delicious and well worth growing.

[legless]

i've never tried kohl rabi? is it worth growing? as a food is it similar in treatment to turnips and swedes?

it does look very pretty...

[Mrs Ava]

Okay......so.....do I plant them deep, as in down to the seed leaves, or do I plant them as they are in the modules?

I will keep them nice and moist, promise.

One last question, mum has just asked, can/do you eat the leaves?   ;D

[Mrs Ava]

okay, have just read the planting deeply thread so I will plant the kohl rabi the same depth as they are in the modules.

Now...the leaves...edible?

[The gardener]

I stand corrected.............my thoughts & opinion were based on the principle of treating them like Turnips, hence my comments.

[cleo]

And taken as such,-there was no implied crititism.

[ruud]

Hi E.J,i looked it up im my bible of gardening.It says kohlrabi who is sowed under cold condicions are goiing quicker into flowers.Begining of may at his soonest in the open.When you want to sow it now you have to do it under glass.It needs a well drained soil and you have two types of kohlrabi green and blue-violet ones.The family is brassica deracea convar.acephala var.gongylodes,whats a name.A brassica so it is family of cabbages,kale,beets,turnip,etc,That means it can get the same diseases.I hope ,i have informed you enough about this subject.  

[john_miller]

  EJ- the leaves are edible but by the time the stem is swollen the leaves will be tough to eat. They are slightly spicy, as with other brassicas. Of course you could use the old British cooking method- boil them to mush?

[gavin]

John!

And there was me trying to get persuaded to grow the stuff. :)  I might just try it now, just to see whether it really smells like primary-school-lunch-time-over-boiled-cabbage corridors of *0 years ago!!!  Apologies for the long adjective - but even that doesn't do justice to the memory.

All best - Gavin

[Hugh_Jones]

Ruud, the chart you have posted indicates the earliest date for outdoor sowing as June, not May.  As it is in Dutch I assume that it is directed at growers in Holland, where it may be applicable, but it certainly doesn`t apply here.  I have several manuals and seed catalogues all indicating sowing outdoors from the end of March onwards, and I certainly made my own first sowings then - without them bolting, flowering or going tough.

[john_miller]

  Not the stem Gavin! I meant boil the leaves if they come off a harvested stem, although I would temper the mush part if you take the time to remove the petiole well into the leaf. I have seen others here mention cooking the stem but I have never eaten cooked Kohl-rabi as I always found it great raw as a salad vegetable or snack, when harvested small. Like others here I would encourage anyone to grow them. Now, though, I use the Gilfeather turnip (a misnomer as it is really a swede. It is Vermont's only locally developed vegetable) in the same way.