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KALE (Brassica oleracea)
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Part Shade
Requires two to six hours
of direct sun per day. |
KALE
 Kale, or borecole, is hardy and lives over winter in latitudes as far north as Pennsylvania. It is an all-year plant since it is also resistant to heat and may be grown in summer, but its real merit is as a cool-weather green.The Planting and Culture of KaleLike all brassicas, kale is a heavy feeder and likes fertile, fine-textured soil. The quality of the entire cabbage group is closely associated with quick growth. For this they need both rotted manure or compost at planting time, and a side-dressing of organic nitrogen—about 1/3 ounce to a foot of ground—at intervals of three weeks during the summer.
Lime is essential for all members of the Cabbage family.A liberal application of crushed calcium limestone or shell limestone should be applied to the area at the time of soil preparation to assure good growth and make the plant food supplied by the previously applied compost readily available.Kale develops best in deeply prepared, loamy soil.
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It will have neither good flavor nor texture if grown in either light, sandy or heavy, clayey soils. The best garden varieties of kale are low-growing, spreading plants with thick, crinkled, curly leaves. They may be sown in the central states from early spring on until a few weeks before the first hard frost. When sown in the fall, the seed may be broadcast like those of turnips. If sown in the spring, when weeds are especially active, plant the seed in rows 30 inches apart and later thin plants to 16 inches apart. One packet of seed will be enough for a family of four or five persons.Plant your Kale when the moon is in the right phaseKale is one crop that really seems to benefit from Moon Phase planting. When planted in the proper moon phase and zodiac sign Kale grows robustly.Kale is an above ground crop and should be planted when the moon is in the 2nd Quarter (i.e. waxing) and in one of the following Zodiac Signs: Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces
Preparing the seedbedIn preparing the seedbed, dig in small amounts of lime and liberal amounts of well-decomposed manure or other types of organic matter. Broadcast or plant the seeds, and cover them lightly by raking the soil over them. When the sprouts are two or more inches high, scatter humus lightly along the sides of the row, and around the individual plants, but do not allow it to go nearer than three inches from the stems of the plants.Side dressing your Kale plantsIt will bear repeating that, like all other members of this Cabbage family, one cannot expect to obtain top-quality kale if the growth of the plants is hindered by lack of organic fertilizers and providing the correct water requirements, and so is unable to make the rapid growth necessary for its highest development.Correcting slow growthIf this growth appears to be slow, side-dress the Kale plants with the following application: Dissolve two cups of stable manure in 12 quarts of water and let the solution stand for 24 hours. At the end of this time, make a narrow furrow three inches away from the plants, and pour into it one cup of the liquid for each foot of the row. Two weeks later, make a similar application, this time placing the solution six inches away from the Kale plants.Mulching KaleMulches are especially valuable in growing kale, for a large part of the root system develops near the surface and runs through the soil almost horizontally across the rows. For this reason cultivation should be shallow. A mulch will not only conserve moisture and keep the soil cool in the heat of summer, but will also make it possible for the kale roots to feed on the topmost two or three inches of soil. Place your mulch during the latter part of May or early in June.Harvesting KaleKale may be harvested either by cutting the entire plant, or by taking the larger leaves while they are still young. Old kale is stringy and tough and of little use in the diet. Harvesting from the first planting in the spring can usually begin the first week in June. A crop planted near the middle of August should be ready for cutting by the middle of October.Insect and Disease Control for KaleThe worst enemies of kale are the flea beetles, which eat holes in the leaves; aphids, which suck the juice of the plant on the undersides of the leaves and stems; and the Herculean beetle which, with its masses of eggs, is easily seen and picked off by hand.For control of flea beetles and aphids, try companion planting and/or organic insect control. Like all garden vegetables, kale is least vulnerable to pests when quality seed is used, when the soil is periodically enriched with organic matter and when careful mulching is employed.
Wintering KaleIn northern regions where it lives over winter, the last sowing should be about six weeks before frost so that the plants may become well established. It can follow any vegetable other than a cabbage or brassica crop. |
Nutrient Value of KaleKale is valuable for its vitamin C content and, though it is rather coarse, it can be combined with other greens in a salad or used as a garnish.Cooking and Kale varietiesIts best table use, however, will be to boil it as one would spinach. The cooking liquid when mixed with others makes a good soup stock and healthful drink.Popular varieties of KalePopular varieties include Blue Scotch or Dwarf Curled, Dwarf Blue Curled Vates, Dwarf Scotch, and Siberian. The latter is the most tender and of the most delicate flavor.See: Harvesting and Preservation - Harvest and preserve your bounty
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