Flowering Broccoli, Catch Crops, and Early Spring

Spring is a very fun time in our Growing Dome greenhouses. Usually all the winter crops that we have been harvesting and eating over the winter are starting to go to seed. Do not despair! A lot of these vegetables have edible flowers. For example, arugula, tatsoi, mizuna, and a lot of edible greens also have edible flowers which add punch and beauty to your salad.

All the members of the cabbage family also have edible flowers. Broccoli should be left in place once you have cut the original broccoli head, as for one month afterward, it continues to produce miniature broccoli which you can add to your salad. The same applies to cauliflower.

When lettuce goes to seed however, the leaves and flowers are too bitter to eat. Pull them out unless you would like to save a few for seeds. It’s amazing how many seeds one lettuce plant will produce.

As we mentioned in the previous article, this is the time to sow a quick catch crop of hardy winter vegetables to see you through the rest of the spring. Stay posted for further seasonal gardening hints and enjoy the days getting longer!

~Udgar Parsons