Kohlrabi

Hi kids, each year I feel like I grow the same vegetables over and over again, although they may be new variations of them, they are still the same thing. I wanted to mix it up this year and try something a little bit different, Kohlrobi. Now back when I lived on the farm we grew Kohlrobi and it was beautiful. So I wanted to give it a try this year. I found some kohlrabi starts at the local nursery so I picked them up and started to plant them, planting two different crops so that I could stagger out when I would harvest my plants. And boy did they do well. The whole plant is edible from the leaves to the bulbous stem. 

So let's take a look on how to grow them. If you ever grown cabbage, broccoli, or cauliflower then you'll be a pro at with Kohlrobi. It's in the same family as the other brassicas so it enjoys the same type of climate. Start them off early in the years they can get a better start growing and I'm little bit cooler environment. Amend the soil with organic matter and watch them grow. Now with my Kohlrobi that was really all I had to do, but My second crop might have been a little bit harder since I started to get cabbage moth caterpillars on my plants. They only affected the leaves and not the bulbous stem. The chickens loved them though!

If you are seeing wholes in your leaves bug you don't know who is doing the damage, look under the leaves and this is the little buggie that you will find. Now you can spray the plant to kill the bugs, but I just find it easier to pick them off. And the thing is, it's so much easier to just pick them off and do the 'real' organic pest control form.

Now the bed that I have them in now is very good soil with lots of rich humus. Plant them them in the spring about the beginning of May. Now every two weeks plant some succession crops so as to continue your harvest. Now I harvested my first pair in the second week of June and am still harvesting here in the second week of July. 

Harvesting:

So when do you harvest this alien looking veggie? When the bulbous stem gets to be around 4 inches in diameter is about when you should harvest. It will still be young and tender. The danger with harvesting later is that you may risk the kohlrabi becoming fibrous inside. Although I many times pick them 5-6 inches wide and they are still delicious!
When it does come time to harvest there are a couple ways. The correct way that I first started doing but then got tired so I switched to the lazy. 

Correct Way:

As indicated here in the picture, the proper way so as not to disturb the soil would be to find the base of the plant and snip it with a pair of snippers.












Incorrect Way:

   To pull the whole plant out of the ground, roots and all (like an onion), and lop off the root-ball of dirt.

Both ways are correct and both ways give you a good result.

Later I will post a recipe for a kohlrabi fitter!

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Well my midterms are over!!! This is not a completely true statement, I actually have 5 midterms, 3 finals, an essay, and many, many, more quizzes. But on the bright side, my first 2 midterms are done and over with, so I can take a few seconds to breath and release the stress of school by looking into my garden of 2010!

I have been constanly thinking about my new garden for 2010. i am so excited, as I am sure you are. More excited about it. currently, than my new chickens. No I don't have the chickens yet but I know they are still mine!

I don't have the chickens yet, but I do have my memories of all the goodies that I grew last Spring, and boy are they tantalizing! Most of them I will be growing this year, some I won't. Not because I don't like them, but simply because I don't have any room! I expanded the garden more this year (I will post about that in the near future). It added a substantial amount of space, but definitely not enough! With gardening, enough just isn't enough! One of the veggies that will not be making an appearance this year, is Kohlrabi. While I really enjoy this vegetable, I know I will be able to always buy it at the Farmers' Markets. I sure, however, that next year it will be walking down the red carpet!

Last year, the Radishes that were grown at the house, did not turn out due to the ants eating them... I have no idea why our ants like them so, but if you have any suggestions, by all means post them below~ Though the ones at the farm, were beautiful, those radishes are the ones in the picture!

And will you look at the lettuce that we grew at the farm.... WOW, eye popping wow. Its was so green, tender, and crisp! mmmmmm

The Broccoli was really nice, and hardly any worms in it. I think it was because we got it planted so early, that the butterflies weren't out that soon.

I don't know about you, but here soon I will be starting my seeds... I am very excited about this. Last year, I started them in my room, but this year I will be starting them in the green house at the farm! They should turn out very nice, due to all the sunlight!

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