Growing Cabbage

Brassica sp. : Brassicaceae / the mustard or cabbage family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec
    S     S S S        
      T     T T T      
      P     P P P      

(Best months for growing Cabbage in USA - Zone 5a regions)

  • S = Plant undercover in seed trays
  • T = Plant out (transplant) seedlings
  • P = Sow seed
  • Easy to grow. Grow in seed trays, and plant out in 4 weeks. Sow seed at a depth approximately three times the diameter of the seed. Best planted at soil temperatures between 41°F and 64°F. (Show °C/cm)
  • Space plants: 20 - 30 inches apart
  • Harvest in 11-15 weeks.
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Dwarf (bush) beans, beets, celery, cucumber, onions, marigold, nasturtium, rhubarb, aromatic herbs (sage, dill, chamomile, thyme)
  • Avoid growing close to: Climbing (pole) beans, tomato, peppers (chili, capsicum), eggplant (aubergine), strawberry, mustard, parsnip

Your comments and tips

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08 Aug 09, Neil (Australia - temperate climate)
Regards the eggshells. One of the sexes of the cabbage white butterfly (I presume males) lays on the ground with its wings outstreached to attract a mate. The females intendig to lay eggs have already mated and appear repulsed at the thought of more sex and often fly off. So, expect the best results if you arrange the egg shells to look like the butterflys laying on the ground with their wings outstreached.
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08 Aug 09, stan (Australia - temperate climate)
have bugs in heart of cabbage,any tips to get rid of them
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31 Jul 09, David (Australia - temperate climate)
Meryl, the trick is to not get caterpillars to begin with. Pick off those you have then netting or large pieces of egg shell (white side up works better) on and around the leaves. When to pick depends on the type. If it is a hearting variety then when you have a firm/solid centre. Some of the "spring" varieties these days look like big leafy lettuce.
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30 Jul 09, Meryl Travers (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
How do I know when to pick my cabbages please? I have little holes in the leaves, and I guess they are caterpillars of some kind. What is a good organic spray I can get rid of these little creatures with? Thank you. Meryl
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04 Jul 09, Karina (Australia - temperate climate)
A little tip for the snails/slugs. They absolutely LOVE beer! Place some of the fine ale in a few shallow receptacles and position these in different areas on the ground throughout your vege patch. They crawl into the beer and die a happy death. Replace the beer every few days.
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31 May 09, David (Australia - temperate climate)
Dawn: It is Slug / Snail hatching time (at least in Sydney). Have you tried looking at about 8pm? Millions of the little critters here munching happily through EVERYTHING I have planted.
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30 May 09, Louisa (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
i have planted chinese cabbage from seedlings. it seems that one by one they are dying off. i think there is a pest, a webby sort of stuff over the dying plants. if i rip out the effected plant the pest seems to move on to the next one. i haven't seen any actual organism, so unsure what it is. any ideas? i am just leaving the affected cabbages there now, as it doesn't seem to spread to the others if i do this.
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04 May 09, Dawn (Australia - temperate climate)
I was so excited to use the egg shells and get rid of the green catapillar. Now, welcome the grey aphid! After much research I have found that native Aust. ladybirds and lacewings do the trick. After even MORE research I've found where to buy them: (I cannot post a web link) bugs for bugs (dot com, dot au)
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19 Apr 09, Dette (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
To Sandra. You can prevent white cabbage fly and others by planting Thyme and other herbs amongst your cabbages. The bugs hate it and the cabbages love it.
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19 Apr 09, Dawn (Australia - temperate climate)
I just planted my first ever vege patch with cabbage, colli and broccoli. As I pondered over the "lovely white butterflies" in my garden I had NO IDEA they were cabbage moths! I have since used large pieces of broken egg shell around the plants as they think they are other moths and my plants are now coming back from the sticks they were turned into by the catapillars.
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Showing 131 - 140 of 153 comments
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Are you direct sowing (into the garden), or are you sowing indoors in trays? I'll give you the germination temperatures. Germination temperatures vary from plant to plant (even among say tomatoes - the various varieties have different germination temperatures). These are OPTIMAL germination temperatures-- so higher or lower can work, but germination will not be as consistent or Good in non-optimal temps. The germination temperature must be sustained (over several days or more) -- this is the plant's indicator (sustained warm temperature), that spring/summer is here -- and it is time to wake up and get growing. If the germination temperatures are not met, the seeds will remain dormant (most of them), waiting for their ideal growing conditions to occur. Remember - varieties make a difference so I'm giving you GENERAL temperatures. PEPPERS: Soil temperature needs to be at least 75-85 degrees F (24-27 c) for good germination. Peppers won’t germinate in cold soil– with the higher end temps germination may be in 5 days, or may take up to 20 days in the lower temps. Don’t overwater seeds or they may rot. peppers don't like to be overly wet. Your max germination temp is 95F (35c) for peppers. TOMATO : optimum germination temps are : 65-85F (24-30c) days to germinate varies a lot by variety ... so maybe 1- 2 weeks ? Max temp is 95f (35c). Tomato seeds have been know to germinate at temp as low as 40f (4c) -- but expect germination to take a month or more and your germination rate (% of seeds that germinate) will probably be very low. GREENS: way to varied to give an answer -- example: KALE has an optimum germination temp of 65F (18c) and range of 45°F - 85°F (7-30c), while SWISS CHARD's optimum germination is 80°F (27c) with a range of 40°F - 95°F (4-32c). Days to germination vary based on variety and temp. I generally recommend starting peppers and tomatoes indoors -- and with greens it depends on the green -- kale and chard are both tough, and both have a very wide temp range for germination so outdoors is fine. You also have to consider insects... larger plants have a better chance (in general) of survival if you experience pest problems. OF course a lot depends on how long your growing season is-- in a really long and hot growing season, starting tomato seeds outdoors is no problem, in a shorter cooler growing season the optimum germination temps may never be met (sustained) so starting indoors is pretty much a given.

- Celeste Archer

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