Topic: Purple sprouting broccoli

[Lottie103]

Hi all - my first proper `Help'!

I was proud to plant some purple sprouting broccoli (shop bought plants) just after we got out plot last Sept (OH loves the song by the Bonzos  ::)). Well, now we have the stuff (spears have only just started to show in the last week or two) - what to do?

I know we need to remove the first psb to get it to produce more, but at what stage? Should I take off what I have now, or leave a bit longer? How long does it take for the spears to go to flower once they've emerged? I don't want to leave it too long & lose them all, but the spears seem a bit puny at the mo.

But then another plottie told me yesterday that the plants should be around a metre tall & pretty much finished now & we should just take what we can & scrap them in a week or two (they're 2 foot at best). I thought it was only calabrese that grew so tall? I just assumed I'd bought a `late' variety (no idea what it is tho)  ???

Pic's here http://www.allotments4all.co.uk/smf/gallery/8089_12_04_09_7_17_56.jpg (or in my profile if that doesn't work)

Thanks  :)

[tonybloke]

take the top 3 or 4 inches of the centre sprout off, eat these!!, then water and feed and you should be picking for about 2 or 3 weeks. Leave it until the spears are about 4 inches long or more. you'll see when they about to open into flower, just pick them before this happens.
rgds, Tony (nice piccy btw) ;)

[Lottie103]

Thanks Tonybloke :) Will do as you say & keep picking - good to know all is not lost  ;D!

[nilly71]

I picked my first psb the other day, they ranged from approx 15mm - 45mm accross. and the plants are about 60cm high.
Mine have plain stalks, i wonder why yours are a different colour ::).

I gave my sister-in-law a couple of plug plants when i got mine and her's grew to about 30cm and had quite a few heads but she left them as she thought the heads should be bigger and now they have gone to seed.

Neil

[Deb P]

My PSB has been a bit slow and small this year, I only picked my first lot yesterday which I steamed and were delicious!

Perhaps it is down to the weather, but I have three plants about 2' tall, last year the same variety were at least a foot bigger and I was picking by the carrier bag full by now! :-\

[tim]

This is a typical plant - what's left after picking last night. Claret - one of the row I showed recently - given up for lost after the snow.

Interesting, Lottie's red stems, but there are so many varieties these days - including the huge, coarse one the farmers grow.

To my mind, it's not so much the head that's the joy - it's more the tender stem.  I'm not so keen on the fuzzy bits! If the stem doesn't snap cleanly, I peel, as you would do for Calabrese.

And yes - steam! 3-4 mins when fresh.

[shirlton]

Stripped ours day before yesterday and it's sitting in the freezer. Will probably get some more off it. My rabbits love the little leaves.

[Borlotti]

Do you freeze it uncooked.  We have been eating it nearly every day and am a bit fed up with it.  I netted mine but the pigeons still landed on the top and I thought they had destroyed it and pulled some up.  The plants that I left seem to have recovered and have been picking enough for us.  I just threw net over the plants but next year will put up a cage to lift the netting away from the top of the plants as didn't realise the pigeons would land on top of the plants if it was netted.  That is obviously why people make fruit/plant cages.

[tim]

Don't get fed up!  PSB with Lemon Pasta, Sesame PSB.......etc?

As to feezing - the books all say blanch but, for short term storage, it seems to work raw.

I think it's best to open freeze so that it wastes no time thawing.

[Lottie103]

I've no idea about the red stems I have  ??? I have 9 plants bought from Wyevale as plug plants in early Sept last year (pics in my profile of them newly planted back then) & up til a month or so ago they were all green. Then the strongest of the plants turned that lovely red colour. That was exciting - we reckoned things must be about to happen. I think the strongest 4 plants are that colour now & the others are still green but still producing puny purple spears.

I'm growing some from seed for next year - `Red Arrow' which are sposed to be higher yield so hopefully carrier bag fulls & enough for the freezer then. They do seem to have green stems from the pic on the front of the packet :)

I'm aiming for cages for my brassicas for next year too - so much to do, so little time  ;D. Pigeons & other pests have left us alone this year - but more through good luck than anything else as we just had them loosely netted.

[thifasmom]

My PSB has been a bit slow and small this year, I only picked my first lot yesterday which I steamed and were delicious!

Perhaps it is down to the weather, but I have three plants about 2' tall, last year the same variety were at least a foot bigger and I was picking by the carrier bag full by now! :-\

yes i have found this too, in 2007 i bought six plug plants on eBay and they did well all reaching 3ft+ in height and giving us 2 to 3 carrier bags full a week my neighbours loved me and my OH had enough of it to the point of saying not to grow it again.

last year i grew from seed but the plants once they went into the ground didnot grow as well as the year before with all four plants only one got to about 3ft and the other 3 grew to the height of 2ft+, we are getting about 2 meals a week from them so its a much more manageable but my OH after the first meal has deemed it the devil's food and now refuses to eat it. we had some last night dipped in batter and deep fried yum more for us his loss ;).

i have had mine netted most of last year the net was removed during the autumn to let the blue and great tits get at any pests that may have gotten through and i re-netted in Jan to protect the crop against the pigeons.

[Robert_Brenchley]

That could be down to the awful weather last year. Don't give up on it!

[shirlton]

Do you freeze it uncooked?????
No. I always blanche cos I like to keep it. I like it for a change during the year and it has a very short harvesting time. I freeze it in meal sized bags and cooks very quickly.

[SMP1704]

This year I have found a 'new' way to store my PSB.  I'm the only one in the house that likes it (the fools)

I prep the stems, rinse then pack in one of those cheap plastic boxes and store in the salad box in the fridge - lasts and lasts and comes out crisp and fresh ready for the steamer ;D

[thifasmom]

I'm the only one in the house that likes it (the fools)

;D ;D gotta agree.

[loopyloulou]

picked our 1st lot 2day, am looking forward to munching it 2morrow nite hmmm psb! my thai friend said she stir frys it with oyster sauce and was dribbling at just the thought! she had helped me dig some weeds so we were justified to share it :) me n my dd and oh love broccolie but the ds wont have any of it, used 2 eat it when he was little, dont know where we went wrong, but dd will eat anything freshhfrom the lotty so deffo got to make the effort n get some seeds planted asap!
glad to know it should regrow after we demolishe it , hope so!

[powerspade]

I picked my first crop of this year for last Sundays lunch. I pick when the sprouts are about 3 inches. Its such a joy to eat especially as I`m entering the hungry gap. Keep youreye on them and pick regularly, never let them grow too long, for once they flower that's it

[tim]

Don't forget to leave a bit of crunch in the stems.

Nothing worse than a bit of flop!

[lushy86]

My lovely lottie neighbour Eric has been giving us PSB every tiem he sees us - it is so fabulous, Oh had never eaten it before and is addicted.  Can't wait to grow my own next year - he also gave us spinach, chives and lemon balm today and the other side gave us a lovely winter collie - what lovely people - and it spurs me on to think that we will be eating our produce soon and to keep digging that couch!  :)

Lushy x

[saddad]

I gave away twenty four spears today... 12 purple and twelve white to a plot neighbour and have just cut 18 for tea...  ;D