How to Plant & Grow Broccoli

Broccoli does well in cool weather.

Broccoli is a hardy vegetable that performs best in cooler weather although heat tolerant varieties such as green comet and green goliath will grow in all but the hottest months of the year. Broccoli is a member of the cabbage family and produces two crops per season that can be harvested in the spring and fall. Plant transplants for spring planting since the plant is already developed to the point where it can prosper in the summer heat. Direct seeding works well in the fall since the cooler weather is kinder to the plants.

Things You'll Need

• Broccoli transplants
• Garden spade
• Fertilizer, starter
• Water
• Insecticide

Instructions

1. Plant healthy growing transplants for the spring planting, available from the garden store, two weeks before the last freeze of the season.

2. Determine the fall planting date by counting backward from the first expected fall frost date to the number determined by adding 10 to the expected days to maturity, as listed on the seed packet, and plant the seeds on this date. For example, broccoli varieties that take 55 days to mature are planted 65 days prior to the first fall frost.

3. Use a spade to set transplants into the soil at a depth of 1 to 2 inches deeper than the depth at which they were grown in the pot.

4. Space the transplants 18 to 24 inches apart in the row and place the rows 36 inches apart.

5. Fertilize according to package directions with a water-soluble starter fertilizer such as 10-52-17, available from the garden center, after planting and continue with nitrogen fertilizer after the plants are half-grown.

6. Provide adequate water to the plants by moistening the ground to a depth of 6 inches once a week.

7. Inspect the plants regularly to detect aphid buildup on the undersides of the leaves. Moths and caterpillars are also a problem up until the first freeze. Treat the plants with the recommended insecticide for your geographical area.

Tips & Warnings

• Plants that develop small heads are a result of old or improperly stored seedlings.

• Harvest the broccoli when the central head develops individual florets and before flowers appear.

• Purchase disease-resistant cultivars and do not plant broccoli in the same garden plot two years in a row in order to avoid a fungus infection called club root that can invade the garden.

References

• University of Illinois Extension: Watch your Garden Grow