Don't cauliflowers need loads of water, I was told years ago by an old gert that lived in our road that they and cabbage needed a lot of water to swell the heads.
I grow a.y.r cauli in raised beds. dig in lots of compost and manure.two weeks before planting i water the ground well with slug nematodes, repeat every 6 weeks. just before planting i add fish blood and bone allso slow release fertilizer. run soak hose of water butt cover with fine nett away they go. had ots of cauli.
It is my 1st time growing crops. I bought fleece in bulk online from a horticultural site and used this to cover my calabrese and cabbages using homemade cloches (metal). I also used it to get my seedlings to a good size before planting out. It not only saved the plants from total destruction by the wind, but also kept them nice and warm hence growing so well. Weeding was eradicated as newspaper was put down as a mat with compost (on offer) on top to weigh it down, which leached through to feed plants. Heads were all 6-8" plus across and now the side shoots are coming reaching 2-3" in size. NB Fleece did not completely get rid of caterpillars, but reduced them dramatically, so picking off was still needed. The exception was late september when I guess those caterpillers not caught had their young, by that time the plants were large enough to cope. Being mild (south Devon coast) the fleece was removed to let birds do their job. Within days all the caterpillars were gone! If weather breaks and wind/frost is due then easy to pull fleece back on as protection. However still had to resort to slug pellets, but as undercover could not be accessed by birds etc. My satisfaction is that I have had a bumper crop and still picking. Also I proved to dad that fleece has a positve worth in modern veg gardening!
Aaah, good to hear a bit of mutual agreement that we all have those things which we struggle with - certainly agree though, plenty of moisture is essential as is plenty of manure, and as for protection, it is a must where I live !!
I put some purple sprouting in last year and was much dismayed to get nothing. I left the plants in over winter, and sure enough they threw up lovely tender shoots (fantastic eaten raw)from around February until the middle of April. We had more than we could eat off half a dozen plants.
For two years now I have tried to grow cabbage. First year they bolted, found out in wrong part of garden. This year prepared ground different part of garden and grew them first in the green house. Planted out when I thought correct time and within three weeks these have bolted!! Help please what am I doing wrong, thought I was following all the correct guide lines!!
I bought some young vegetable plants and our local nursery in April. They seem to be doing well now that they have been planted out in fact the calabrese is doing so well that some of the plants already have heads and are starting to flower. I wasn't expecting them to crop until much later in the year so I have obviously done something wrong. I presume I should cut off these heads? Can anyone tell me what I have done wrong?
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before planting i water the ground well with slug nematodes, repeat every 6 weeks. just before planting i add fish blood and bone allso slow release fertilizer. run soak hose of water butt
cover with fine nett away they go. had ots of cauli.
http://www.vegetable-garden-guide.com/growing-broccoli.html