Cauliflower Care
Brassica oleracea var. botrytis
A cool-season vegetable grown for its white, compact flower head (curd). It is the fussiest of the cabbage family; the head stays small if water or nutrients are lacking.
Monthly care calendar
Timings are for a temperate Northern Hemisphere climate. In warmer areas tasks start earlier, in colder areas later; in the Southern Hemisphere shift them by six months.
- Watering: In the cool season, rainfall is often enough; during a long dry spell, water every 10-15 days just enough to keep the soil moist.
- General care: Harvest: Cut the head with a few leaves while it is tight, white and smooth, before the curds begin to separate.
- Frost risk: Heads are damaged by frosts below -4 °C; cover the plants with a light fleece cover.
- General care: Sow the seeds 1 cm deep in seed trays; keep the seedlings in partial shade and moist.
- General care: Sow the seeds 1 cm deep in seed trays; keep the seedlings in partial shade and moist.
- Watering: Water deeply at the base 2-3 times a week, in the early morning; do not water again until the soil surface has dried 2-3 cm down.
- Plant protection: If symptoms spread and treatment is needed, consult a licensed plant-protection supplier or an agronomist. Plant protection products are regulated; follow local rules.
- General care: Plant seedlings with 5-6 leaves 60-70 cm between rows and 50 cm within the row.
- Pests & diseases: Check once a week for yellow egg clusters and green caterpillars (cabbage white butterfly) on the undersides of the leaves and pick them off by hand; a fine fleece cover prevents the butterfly from laying eggs.
- Watering: If there is no rain, water 1-2 times a week; the soil should not stay constantly wet.
- Fertilizing: Mix plenty of compost into the planting site; apply nitrogen fertilizer as head formation begins.
- Plant protection: If symptoms spread and treatment is needed, consult a licensed plant-protection supplier or an agronomist. Plant protection products are regulated; follow local rules.
- Pests & diseases: Check once a week for yellow egg clusters and green caterpillars (cabbage white butterfly) on the undersides of the leaves and pick them off by hand; a fine fleece cover prevents the butterfly from laying eggs.
- Watering: If there is no rain, water 1-2 times a week; the soil should not stay constantly wet.
- Plant protection: If symptoms spread and treatment is needed, consult a licensed plant-protection supplier or an agronomist. Plant protection products are regulated; follow local rules.
- General care: When the head reaches the size of a fist, fold the outer leaves over the head and tie them; a head exposed to sun turns yellow.
- Pests & diseases: Check once a week for yellow egg clusters and green caterpillars (cabbage white butterfly) on the undersides of the leaves and pick them off by hand; a fine fleece cover prevents the butterfly from laying eggs.
- Watering: In the cool season, rainfall is often enough; during a long dry spell, water every 10-15 days just enough to keep the soil moist.
- General care: When the head reaches the size of a fist, fold the outer leaves over the head and tie them; a head exposed to sun turns yellow.
- General care: Harvest: Cut the head with a few leaves while it is tight, white and smooth, before the curds begin to separate.
- Watering: In the cool season, rainfall is often enough; during a long dry spell, water every 10-15 days just enough to keep the soil moist.
- General care: Harvest: Cut the head with a few leaves while it is tight, white and smooth, before the curds begin to separate.
- Frost risk: Heads are damaged by frosts below -4 °C; cover the plants with a light fleece cover.
The care advice on this page is general and for information only; it is not professional advice. Plant age, soil and your garden’s microclimate can change the outcome. Plant protection products are mentioned only as general information; they are regulated, and the choice, dose and timing must be decided by a qualified professional under local rules. Consult a landscape architect or agronomist before applying.
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