Cabbage is a vegetable that, although it does not look as elegant as lettuce, it is a very easy to grow herb that it has interesting medicinal properties which can be useful to us at any given time.
Furthermore, it can be had both in the garden and in large potsSo if you don't have land, you don't have to worry since you too can taste the cabbage without going to buy it.
Cabbage characteristics
Cabbage, whose scientific name is Brassica oleracea var. viridis, It is a herbaceous plant with a biennial cycle grown as an annual belonging to the Brassicaceae family and native to central and southern Europe. It is cultivated in many parts of the world, such as Portugal, Brazil, the Balkans and in Spain, and its dark leaves make it a plant with a high ornamental value, in addition to having an exquisite flavor.
It grows to a height of about 2m, with a stem that becomes woody as it develops. Its leaves are large, up to 35cm in length, the "oldest" green-blackish, and the newer green. The flowers unfold in bouquets, and are yellow or white. The fruit is elongated, with a pointed end.
How is it grown?
If you want to have an excellent harvest of collard greens, follow our advice:
- Siembra: in spring, either in seedbeds or directly in the garden.
- Distance between floors: it is important to leave about 30cm between them so that they can develop well.
- Soil or substrateIt should have good drainage, but also plenty of organic matter. If you're growing it in a pot, you can mix equal parts universal growing medium with perlite, and add 10% organic fertilizer. Alternatively, if you want to grow it in a vegetable garden, add a 5cm thick layer of organic fertilizer, such as worm castings or manure, to the soil. For more information on growing varieties like purple cauliflower, check out our resources.
- Irrigation: frequent, avoiding letting the soil dry out.
- Harvest: late fall / early winter.
- Plagues and diseases: it is very resistant, but during the rainy months you have to keep a check on the mollusks -snails and slugs-.
For what do you use it?
Cabbage It is widely used especially in the kitchenIn Portugal, for example, a soup known as caldo verde is made; in Spain, it's used to make stews and various broths, such as caldo gallego. For those interested in growing collard greens and other types of cabbage, there are a variety of options to explore.
But in addition, it has several medicinal properties. Formerly, the juice of its leaves was drunk five days after giving birth to stimulate lactation, and today it is known to help with constipation, relieve symptoms of colds, and have healing and antidiabetic powers.
It's interesting, isn't it?
