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Planting, Growing, and Harvesting Broccoli
Planting
Broccoli should be planted in a site that gets full sun (6 to 8 hours of sunlight per day). Lack of sunlight may produce thin, leggy plants and subpar heads.
Plant in a bed of moist, fertile soil that drains well. To increase fertility before you plant, in early spring, work in 2 to 4 inches of rich compost (humus) or a thin layer of manure. The soil pH should ideally be slightly acidic, between 6.0 and 7.0.
When to Plant Broccoli
- Broccoli is a cool-season crop, so it should be started in early- to mid-spring (depending on your climate) for an early summer crop or in mid- to late summer for a fall crop. High temperatures will affect the development of the broccoli head (the harvestable part), so the goal is to get broccoli to mature before or after high temperatures are expected.
- Broccoli seeds are capable of germinating in soil temperatures as low as 40掳F (4掳C), but warmer soil is preferred and will greatly speed up development.
- For spring plantings, broccoli may be started indoors or outdoors a few weeks ahead of your last spring frost date. Consult our Planting Calendar to see recommended dates for your area. Generally speaking:
- Start seeds indoors 6 to 8 weeks before your last frost date.
- Sow seeds outdoors 2 to 3 weeks before your last frost date, or as soon as the soil can be worked in the spring.
- For fall plantings (best in warm climates), sow seeds outdoors 85 to 100 days before the first fall frost, when soil and ambient temperatures are high.
How to Plant Broccoli
- If starting seeds outdoors, sow seeds 1/2-inch deep and 3 inches apart.
- Once seedlings reach a height of& 2 to 3 inches, thin them so that plants are 12 to 20 inches apart.
- If you started seeds indoors, plant transplants that are 4 to 6 weeks old (and have 4 or 5 leaves) outdoors, 12 to 20 inches apart, in holes slightly deeper than their container depth.
- Space rows of broccoli 3 feet apart. (Closer spacing yields smaller main heads but more secondary heads.)
- Water well at the time of planting.
Video Demo of Sowing Broccoli
For those who wish to start sowing in pots, watch Ben in this video show you how it鈥檚 done! See the whole process from sowing to transplanting to broccoli care and harvesting.
Growing
- Plants thrive in temperatures between 65掳 and 70掳F (18掳 and 21掳C).
- Fertilize broccoli three weeks after transplanting seedlings into the garden. Use a low-nitrogen fertilizer, such as a 5-10-10 formula.
- Thin when young plants reach 2 to 3 inches tall. Plants should be between 12 and 20 inches apart.
- Provide consistent soil moisture with regular watering, especially in drought conditions. Water at least 1 to 1 1/2 inches per week.
- Do not get developing broccoli heads wet when watering, as it can encourage rot.
- Roots are very shallow, so try not to disturb the plants鈥攕uffocate weeds with mulch instead of weeding.
- Mulching around plants will also help to keep soil temperatures down.
- Use row covers to minimize pests.
- To promote the growth of a second head after the first has been harvested, maintain an active feeding and watering schedule.
Harvesting
- Harvest broccoli in the morning, when the buds of the head are firm and tight, just before the heads flower.
- If you do see yellow petals, harvest immediately, as the quality will decrease rapidly.
- Cut heads from the plant, taking at least 6 inches of stem. Make a slanted cut on the stalk to allow water to slide away. (Water can pool and rot the center of a flat-cut stalk, ruining the secondary heads.)
- Most varieties have side-shoots that will continue to develop after the main head is harvested. You can harvest from one plant for many weeks, in some cases, from spring to fall, if your summer isn鈥檛 too hot.
- Learn more tips on harvesting broccoli.
How to Store Broccoli
- Store broccoli in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- If you wash before storing, make sure to dry it thoroughly.
- Broccoli can be blanched and frozen for up to one year. Learn how to freeze broccoli.
Cooking Notes
One ounce of broccoli has an equal amount of calcium as one ounce of milk. Learn more about the amazing health benefits of broccoli.
Catherine Boeckmann
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Hello! I planted a small garden in March ( i am in Austin Tx) with my kids and we planted broccoli seeds... they never formed crowns and the plants is beautiful.. about 2feet tall.. only leaves.. what do I do? do I need to start over. cut back the leaves or will it eventually do something?
Be sure that your broccoli is in full sunlight. Also, broccoli does best between temperatures of about 40 and 70 degrees F. Warmer temperatures may deter head formation; it might possibly pick up when the weather cools (although broccoli doesn't survive much below 25F). Otherwise, it could be that they got too much nitrogen, which deters flowering and head formation, but encourages leaf growth. As you wait to see if your broccoli perks up in cooler weather, you might also try a fall planting of broccoli. Some varieties that work nicely in Texas are 'Green Comet' and 'Bonanza.' Around Austin, it looks like for a spring planting, it might be best to plant transplants out in the garden in mid-February through early March, so that the plants don't mature during the heat of summer (which can make it bolt or have other troubles).
There is also a phenomenon called "blindness" which can occur with broccoli, in that it does not develop a terminal bud--there is just a nub in the center; this means that the plant will not form a head, just lots of leaves. It is thought that blindness may occur if the plant was exposed to cold temperatures when young (especially during shorter daylengths), the central bud was damaged by insects etc., or possibly the young plants experienced a drought.
Hello!
Please kindly tell me the Duration.
The duration from seeding to harvest of bellow vegetable:
1. Potato
2. Bell Pepper
3. broccoli
3. Carrot
4. Strawberry
5. small Cherry (Tomato)
Thanks!
Seng Mr.
I grew some baby broccoli for the first time in my green house in early spring in Montana. I have never done this before and do not know when it is ready to pick
Do you mean Broccolini, aka baby broccoli? If so, this might help:
http://agsyst.wsu.edu/Broccolini.html
Harvest when buds have matured but have not yet opened or developed color. Harvest the main head early to encourage side shoots. Keep a close eye on the buds, as the plant can bolt quickly.
Time to harvest
We planted our broccoli last december and until now no florets just really big leaves. Rainy season is about to start (we only have dry and rainy season) do we have to wait for buds/florets? Or we will just harvest the leaves and plant new crops?
Hi, Sweet: If your broccoli has not produced anything in 6 months, it is likely not going to, so you should harvest the leaves and get on with something else. Do a soil test to make sure that everything is in balance and that there is not an overabundance of nitrogen. Your fail could also have come from overheating. Good luck!
Planted broccoli and collard greens next to each other which is which? One is darker but definitely able to cook collards if lighter one is collards?
Is this a heading broccoli, broccoli raab, sprouting broccoli, or Chinese broccoli? What country/location are you in?
Sometimes too much nitrogen will promote leave growth at the expense of flowering/floret formation. Broccoli, a cool-season crop, also usually requires a period of cold to encourage bud formation; some cultivars are more heat tolerant.
On average, broccoli will mature between 60 and 120 days, depending on cultivar and conditions. It sounds like yours has gone beyond that point. However, if you are growing sprouting broccoli, some of those varieties may take as much as 220 days to mature. In this case, wait a little longer.
If you are growing regular heading broccoli, you might harvest the tender leaves and start over again, but first, just to be sure, you might ask someone from a local nursery what is normal for your area. If you live in the United States, you can also check your county's Cooperative Extension service:
http://www.almanac.com/content/cooperative-extension-services
My broccoli leaves were getting really big but I saw no florets developing. I had read somewhere that over fertilization can cause the leaves to grow to the detriment of the florets so I cut some of the larger leaves off to encourage floret development. Did I just mess up?
