Growing Broccoli

Brassica sp. : Brassicaceae / the mustard or cabbage family

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

(Best months for growing Broccoli 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 4-6 weeks. Sow seed at a depth approximately three times the diameter of the seed. Best planted at soil temperatures between 45°F and 86°F. (Show °C/cm)
  • Space plants: 14 - 20 inches apart
  • Harvest in 10-16 weeks. Cut flowerhead off with a knife..
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Dwarf (bush) beans, beets, celery, cucumber, onions, marigold, nasturtium, rhubarb, aromatic herbs (sage, dill, chamomile, oregano)
  • Avoid growing close to: Climbing (pole) beans, tomato, peppers (chilli, capsicum), eggplant (aubergine), strawberry, mustard

Your comments and tips

12 Aug 19, Roland (USA - Zone 9b climate)
Patricia, I experienced the same last year in zone 9b. Not a single head or side shoots. After six months I pulled the plants and put them in the compost. Nothing goes to waste in my garden.
11 Oct 19, Patty Kipps (USA - Zone 7a climate)
Does it get cold enough for long enough where you are? Broccoli needs cool weather.
26 Nov 19, anon (USA - Zone 9b climate)
- It sounds as though you have over fertilised them with far too much NITROGEN. N produces growth - leaves. Also grow them into the cooler winter months. DO NOT grow them into the hot summer months.
24 Jul 20, colleen (USA - Zone 10b climate)
This has happened to me a couple of times in the South too, with various cole crops. Have you grown this variety of broccoli in this location and at the same time of year before, with success? The reason I ask is, some brassicas require vernalization (a sufficient number of cold temperatures before they flower/head) and some types may be photoperiod sensitive (waiting for days to get short enough/long enough to trigger flowering/heading). Did you have an especially warm winter? Definitely make sure you're growing a variety that's best suited to your latitude, and are growing it at the suggested time of year. I hope you at least got to eat your plants! The leaves are a delicious consolation prize. Also! Important tip: always leave broccoli roots in the ground when you harvest the plants. Decaying broccoli roots are toxic to verticillium dahliae, a stubborn soilborne fungus. Broccoli is worth growing for that reason alone!
12 Jun 20, April (USA - Zone 5b climate)
Could I plant broccoli from seed now for a fall crop?
05 Jan 21, Mark (USA - Zone 9b climate)
What is a good varietall of broccoli for zone 9b?
06 Jan 21, (USA - Zone 4b climate)
Go to a seed selling website and look at different broccoli. Most broccoli will grow in a variety of climates. Each climate will have a preferred planting time.
18 May 21, (USA - Zone 10a climate)
I live in zone 10. It is now May and my broccoli has, of course, stopped producing. If I leave them in their pots thru the sumner, will they produce again in the fall?
28 Jul 23, dz (USA - Zone 10a climate)
I also have broccoli in containers that never produced well - they bolt - and stopped flowering when it got too warm, but are still alive, and one has recently started some new green leaf growth, so I will keep tending them and see if they produce any edible heads this winter.
26 Jul 22, Fourester (USA - Zone 8a climate)
I tried seeding broccoli in mini pots for a fall crop, and apparently too much sun scorched the seedlings even though they were well watered. How much daily sun exposure should they get during 90 degree F temperatures? I am at home most days, so I can move them around.
Showing 11 - 20 of 23 comments

My broccoli have gone from juvenile heads to spreading out and flowering in a week. What have I done wrong?

- josie

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This planting guide is a general reference intended for home gardeners. We recommend that you take into account your local conditions in making planting decisions. Gardenate is not a farming or commercial advisory service. For specific advice, please contact your local plant suppliers, gardening groups, or agricultural department. The information on this site is presented in good faith, but we take no responsibility as to the accuracy of the information provided.
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