Vegetables Gardening - Growing Organic Vegetables

Thanks for teaching a very different perspective than I've been using. I'm not sure what I'm going to do in 2010 with the cabbages. Here in our very mild climate the cabbage is a year around garden staple. That is, I plant once a year - first of Feb. in the greenhouse (this year's seed went in last weekend) - move the plants to the garden in mid March - then start harvesting all year long from one bed of plants. Since cabbage is bi-annual any that are left in the garden at the end of January are tossed out so they don't go to seed. But - all year long, any cabbage that is cut for the kitchen has the stump (~6 - 8") left in the ground. Then during the next month(s) these stumps produce many side heads - I pull off all but two or three and let them grow to maturity, and harvest again. I've never considered pulling the entire plant out and starting over - since the harvest is only cut once or twice a week - I get a continuous harvest all year long. In order to keep the plant from collecting slugs I pull the dying big outer leaves off - keeping the plant off the ground.
Is this simply the wrong way to garden, or an adaption to my climate that is OK? I've been doing it my way for 60 years - if I should change - I will.
David

David & Group:

There's nothing inherently wrong with continuing to grow from the same plant if you want to. Some folks do quite well with broccoli that way - picking from side shoots for months after the main stalk is harvested.

Let's just review a couple of the reasons for Dr. Mittleider's doing it his way, may we?

Leaving plants in the garden after maturity often gives the plant's various predators an advantage, as the plant has a giant wound and is weakened, making it easier for any of a large assortment of disease or bug problems to occur - depending on the particular plant variety.

Also, depending on how you cut and harvest the cabbage you can have greater or less success with re-growth, and I suspect different varieties also differ in their capacity to do that as well.

Our experience has been that the greatest yield, with the least chance of introducing or proliferating problems in your garden, is achieved by totally cleaning out the last crop and starting over. We're all about maximizing yield in limited space, and also recommend healthy seedlings be ready to go in the ground as soon as the old crop is taken out.

Of course if the plant residue is clean of bugs and diseases you are encouraged to till it into the soil, unless you are going to re-plant immediately, in which case it should be disposed of in another location.

For the family grower who has lots of sunny space, such as David apparently has, and who has NO problem with pests or diseases, leaving a crop in the ground after maturity may not pose a problem. I just have seen so much of the other that I can't recommend it.

Jim Kennard

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