Novantina

Season Overview

Description

Cima or Cime di rapa (Brassica rapa var. cymosa) is called stem cabbage in German. It is a variety of cabbage from the Brassicaceae family that is particularly popular in Italy, Spain and Portugal. For some years now, however, this vegetable, which resembles broccoli (Brassica oleracea var. italica), has also been increasingly cultivated in the USA and Germany.Cima di rapa grows as an annual plant to a height of 50 to 80 cm in a short time. The grass-green, sturdy stems are covered with leaves and numerous small inflorescences reminiscent of broccoli. The stem cabbage flowers around 40 to 80 days after sowing and then opens its bright yellow, four-petaled flowers.

Growing tips

Stem cabbage grows quickly and is ready to harvest after just five to eight weeks, depending on the variety. Between sowing and harvesting, removing unwanted weeds is one of the most important maintenance measures. The soil can be loosened with a hoe and the weeds removed once or twice during the growing season. Depending on the weather, stem cabbage requires additional watering despite its Mediterranean origin. This is because soil moisture accelerates growth, promotes flowering and reduces premature lignification of the shoots.

Details

Seeding distance

30 cm

Row spacing

40 cm

Seeding depth

2 cm