Giant Purple Sprouting Broccoli!

[newgardener1]

Help. As fairly new to this gardening business we planted some purple sprouting broccoli in April which appears to be taking over the vegetable plot (must be at least 4ft high so far and almost as wide) but no sign of anything resembling broccoli yet. Have we planted at the wrong time of year....it just keeps growing! Thanks.

[rainbowgardener]

Yes,maybe the wrong season for it. Broccoli is a cold weather crop. I didn't know about the purple sprouting variety, but I looked it up. It is a variety that is especially cold hardy, that was bred for overwintering. Here's what the rareseeds.com catalog says about it:

"Start seeds for transplants 4-6 weeks prior to desired transplanting date. Set the plants in the garden about 4 weeks before last frost date in the spring, or about 4-6 weeks before first frost when fall-planting. An English heirloom variety, bred for overwintering. Produces lots of purple broccoli sprouts in the spring. Grows slowly through the winter; very frost hardy."

Growing them in the heat of summer, there's a good chance they will go straight to flower without ever setting a head.

You are in England right? Some of the UK folks that have written in here have talked about having an unusually hot summer. Is that what you are having? In the meantime if you are adding fertilizer, quit!

[nes]

If your broc. is going to flower don't despair, you can always save the seeds and re-plant when it's more appropriate .

[newgardener1]

Thanks for this. I do think we'v probably planted at the wrong time then. Weather is not too bad at the moment, though not unseasonally hot (we are in North West where it is cooler and wetter)...still hasn't flowered though!

[splat42069]

I'm thinking since they are so big you might have a nice harvest out of them. Just give them time man