Vegetable Garden - Tips on How To Grow Broccoli From Seed

START INDOORS

• Sow Broccoli seeds ¼" deep in seed starting formula, in a warm, well-lighted area about 5-7 weeks before planting outside. Keep evenly moist.
• Seedlings will emerge in 3-5 days at 70º F.
• They do best covered lightly with soil.

TRANSPLANT

• Transplant your seedlings outside 3-4 weeks before your last frost date.
• Transplant the Broccoli seedlings at least once into larger flats, and set out young Broccoli plants 18-24 inches apart, in rows about 24 inches apart.
• Broccoli plants spaced 10-12 inches apart will also yield well, however will have smaller heads.
• They will grow best at 60º to 65º F (16º-18ºC).
• Do not let seedling become more than 5 weeks old because older seedlings do not mature well transplanted.
• Broccoli can withstand a frost down to about 25ºF(-4ºC.) Failure to produce heads can be caused by hot weather too soon, lack of water and low soil calcium.
• Set plants 18" apart in rows 24" apart. Transplant seedlings in late June through July for September through November head harvest.

Rotation and Companion Planting for Broccoli Seeds

• Good companions: Beet, bush bean, carrot, celery, chard, cucumber, dill, kale, lettuce, mint, nasturtium, onion family, oregano, potato, rosemary, sage, spinach and tomato.
• Bad companions: Pole, lima and snap beans, strawberry

GARDEN HINTS:

• Water deeply and thoroughly at least once a week in dry hot weather.
• Cultivate or mulch to control weeds.
• High fertility and an abundant supply of water throughout the growing season are very important.
• Broccoli is a hardy vegetable that develops best during cool seasons of the year.
• Two crops per year (spring and fall) are possible in most parts of the country, especially with continuous improvement in fast maturity and heat tolerance that extends the life of broccoli through all but the hottest parts of the season.
• Broccoli belongs to the cole crop family (Brassica oleracea), which includes cabbage, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, collards, kale, and kohlrabi.
• Broccoli needs cool weather, full sun, water, feed and rich soil.
• Plant your broccoli where it will get least 6 hours of sun daily and has fertile, well-drained, moist soil with plenty of organic matter.
• Mulching will help keep the ground cool and moist.
• The soil pH should be between 6.0 and 7.0 for best growth and to discourage any club root disease.

Water regularly, applying 1 to 1.5 inches of water per week if it does not rain. You can also measure the amount of water you receive with a rain gauge left in place in the garden, and checked weekly it there is not any chance that it will dry out. If your soil is not naturally rich in nitrogen from an abundant amount of earthworms or by you adding a regular addition of organic, nitrogen-rich compost, then fertilize the plants again with a liquid fertilizer such as fish emulsion or a Herb and Vegetable Food as they begin to develop new leaves and continue liquid feeding until the heads are nearly ready to harvest.

When you begin to see a flower head forming in the center of the plant, check its growth every day. Ideally, you will harvest broccoli while the tiny buds are tightly closed. If the buds begin to swell or show yellow (the flower petals), cut the head from the stem right away, no matter how small it is, because the opening buds have a mealy texture. After cutting the main head, leave the plant to grow bite-sized side shoots in the axils of the leaves. Do not be disappointed if your broccoli head is smaller that those in the grocery store; they are grown in a friendly climate and with lots of pampering. In areas where spring heats up fast, broccoli heads are often better in fall than in spring, so try again for a bigger head later. You can do this by planting in late summer.

Broccolis are temperature sensitive. If transplants sit exposed in cold weather, let’s say below 40 degrees for a week or two, the chilling injury will trigger heads to form too early. On the other end of the scale, if you plant too late and the weather gets hot, you will get the same early blooming, so plant your broccoli on time. The ideal temperature for broccoli is between 65 and 80 degrees.

USDA Hardiness Zone -First Frost Date- Last Frost Date

• Zone 1 -July 15th -June 15th
• Zone 2 -August 15th- May 15th
• Zone 3 -September 15th May 15th
• Zone 4 -September 15th May 15th
• Zone 5 -October 15th April 15th
• Zone 6 -October 15th April 15th
• Zone 7 -October 15th April 15th
• Zone 8 -November 15th March 15th
• Zone 9 -December 15th February 15th
• Zone 10 -December 15th January 31st (sometimes earlier)
• Zone 11 -No frost. No frost.