GROWING TIPS
One of the trickier members of the brassica family, temperature and timing are important factors in mastering the art of growing a cauliflower.
Pull off one of the striking lime, violet or orange caulis generally seen only at fancy greengrocers, then you can officially call yourself a vegetable-growing pro.
Cauliflowers can be grown throughout Aotearoa but plants only form good-sized curds in low temperatures. Prepare the bed with compost, aged manure and a bit of lime before planting. Keep well watered during the growing season; but direct water toward the rootzone of the plant rather than overhead where the curds are developing.
Don’t overdo it with highnitrogen fertilisers as these can lead to leafy plants with small heads. Side dress with a liquid fertiliser every two to three weeks.
Harvest when heads are firm to touch. Don’t wait too long or curds separate and start flowering. If you harvest the main head but leave the stem and roots intact, a few smaller caulis will grow.
This column is adapted from the weekly e-zine, get growing, from New Zealand Gardener magazine. For gardening advice delivered to your inbox every Friday, sign up for Get Growing at: getgrowing.co.nz are plagued by whitefly and white cabbage butterfly caterpillars. Protect plants, including trays of seedlings, with a physical barrier such as an old net curtain or horticultural mesh. You can also inspect daily and pick off cabbage butterfly caterpillars by hand.
Remove whitefly by spraying plants with soapy water or blasting the undersides of the leaves with your hose regularly. This will discourage aphids too.
Avoid club root, the brassica fungal disease, by adding lime to your soil before planting and by rotating your crops every year.