Companion Planting Series: Part 2 – The Cabbage Family

 Today we’re going to move on from the Carrot Family to the Cabbage family which is scientifically known as Brassicaceae but in older publications you will find the family listed as the Cruciferae. The older name Cruciferae has quite a history, it stems from the Latin word ‘Crucifer’ which means cross-bearing. This has to specifically do with an old world species of Mustard which had its four flower petals arranged in a cross like shape. The new name Brassicaceae was proposed in the 1830’s and the slow shift to using the new name tool until the early 20^th century so 1901 to perhaps 1930. Older gardening books from the 1960’s or 1980’s may still refer to the family as the Crucifers or Cruciferae. It is also not uncommon to see members of the family called Cruciferous Vegetables or Cole crops. The term ‘Cole’ derives from the Latin word Caulis, which means ‘stem’ or ‘stalk’, which fits when you’re looking at Marrow stem Kale, or Brussels Sprouts and a few other cultivated varieties. Beyond this, the Cabbage family is very diverse; there are over three-hundred and fifty genera in the family meaning that you could have encountered one and not have known it.  Additionally, the family is so wide-spread that you can find a member of the family on almost every continent. The sole noted exception is of course Antarctica and certain areas of the tropics such as parts of Brazil, the Congo Basin and parts of Pacific Asia. Otherwise if you garden eventually you’re eventually going to grow a member of this very diverse family. It is generally held that most if not all members of the cabbage family are helped by proximity to herbs such as Hyssop, Thyme, Wormwood, Chamomile, Dill, Sage and, Rosemary. Also as noted with the last to postings they benefit from being near Celery, Onions and Potatoes. Most members of the cabbage family are heavy feeders so they will need compost or fertilizer added to the soil every year. Cabbage due to  its nature as a heavy feeder for example can deplete a soil of Nitrogen potassium and phosphorous in as little as 70 to 100 days. The depletion can be devastating if you grow this crop in the same spot year after year but don’t do anything for the soil. Typically this is where compost or large amounts of composted animal manure comes in. Natural mineral based fertilizers can help with this problem also while artificial (ew!) fertilizers that are water soluble can act as stopgaps during an active growing season.

 

Mature Arugula looks a bit different then store bought and tastes way better than store bought.

Arugula (Eruca sativa) – In addition to what is noted above, Arugula is specifically noted to do best in growing in the light shade of another plant. In the south east this means also that it cannot handle summer heat for long before bolting.

Until the flowers emerge Broccoli looks like Collards or any number of other similar Cabbage Family members, thankfully the leaves are tender and need no frost to 'sweeten'.

 

Broccoli (Brassica olceracea. variety italica) – Broccoli is essentially a Cabbage bred to produce a large flower head instead of leaves. Companions for Broccoli are the aromatic Herbs such as Rosemary, Camomile, Thyme, Sage or Dill. Garlic or any other member of the Onion family is a good companion and may help fend of pests. Annual Flowers such as Marigolds or Nasturtiums and short season crops like Lettuce, Carrots, Swiss Chard, Beets, Spinach and Radishes are good too.

 

Brussels Sprouts (B.o. var. gemmifera) – Since Brussels Sprouts are essentially just cabbage that has been selected to focus on large side buds. (See broccoli companions)

 

Cabbage (B.o. var. capitata) – Cabbage comes in a few forms such as the usual round Green, Red, crinkly Savoy, the Asian types and the pointed types such as Apex. Cabbage is a heavy feeder that can deplete the soil if crop rotation is not used and it is quite vulnerable to foliar disease and Cabbage Moth Larva.  (See broccoli companions)

 

Cauliflower (B.o. var. botrytis) – Cauliflower operates the same way as Broccoli, albeit Cauliflower has somehow obtained a college education.

I typically grow collards in lieu of traditional cabbage because they do not deplete the soil a badly.

 

Collards (B.o. var. viridis) – Collards are very interesting; they used to be called Colewort because they were a cabbage crop that did not form a head. In a nutshell a collard is a super-loose leaf cabbage, and you can really see it in the Cabbage-Collard cross. Thankfully Collards don’t rapidly deplete the soil like Cabbage does and it can easily survive defoliation by Cabbage Moth larva. Collards much like Kale are ancient primitive forms of Cabbage. Collards follow the same companion planting rules as with Broccoli, but I’ve found that they don’t mind Chicory being grown under and in between them.

 

Cress, Garden (Lepidium sativum) – Garden Cress is an annual that is fast growing and pairs well with the Onion Family and other leafy greens. It is considered a cool-season annual so plant in spring and fall.

 

Cress, Upland (Barbarea verna) – Upland Cress is also known as ‘Creasy Greens’, it’s typically used as a trap crop at the end of plantings of other Cabbage family plants to act as a trap crop for pests. It is perfectly edible on its own and makes for a respectable microgreen.

 

Cress, Water (Nasturtium officinale) – Water Cress is often confused with the flowering annual also called Nasturtiums but they are not related. This member of the cabbage family as its name suggests loves being near water or being moist. It pairs well with Lettuce, Parsley and Celery but is said to match up with Mint. It is considered invasive in most of the USA except for North Dakota, so keep it in a pot.

 

Horseradish (Armoracia rusticana) – Horseradish is known to repel Blister beetles and this makes it an excellent match for White Potatoes. There is some disagreement on if it repels Potato Beetles or not but it is clearly noted that it should be planted at the corners of the Potato plot and be dug yearly so the Horseradish does not spread and take over.

This type of Kale has a dozen common names but I prefer Dinosaur Kale, the specific variety is 'Black Magic'.

 

Kale (B.o. var. sabellica) – Kale is a generally a cool season annual crop despite being a biennial. It will survive our winters, maybe. (See broccoli companions)

 

Kohlrabi (B.o. Gongylodes Group) – Kohlrabi is basically a cabbage that makes moderate sized leaves but is valued for its swollen stem that can be as large as a softball. (See broccoli companions)

 

Moringa Tree (Moringa oleifera) – Moringa, is noted to be a top-tier companion plant because it has a deep taproot and has the ability to fix nitrogen in the soil. All parts of this plant are useful for food and medicinal/Herbal purposes so it’s one of the best things you can grow. It is not hardy in the ground in our zone but if it is grown a large pot and brought in for the winter you can have one. It pairs well with herbs, marigolds, smaller leaf greens and sweet potatoes.

The Mustard is in the upper right and on the upper left. (Upper left) Japanese Red Giant Mustard, (Upper right) Purple 'Miz America' Mizuna Mustard.

 

Mustard, Greens (Brassica juncea) – Mustard Greens are typically found at the supermarket in the form of bright green somewhat crinkly leaves. Mustard Greens pair well with carrots, Radishes and the same plants that Broccoli does. They are less susceptible to Cabbage Moths if any other member of the Cabbage family is present.

 

Mustard, Seed (Brassica nigra) – Mustard seed as a companion plant follows the same rules as a lot of the rest of the Cabbage family, but also does well next to the herb Yarrow. It also gains benefit from the shade cast by rows of corn.

 

Radish (Raphanus sativus) – Radish are one of the fastest crop plants possible; some varieties are mature and ready to harvest. Cherry Belle is so fast that it is ready in about 20 growing days from seed.  Radishes benefit from proximity to Mustard Greens and Nasturtiums and also seem to grow well around Red Root Pigweed (Amaranthus retroflexus) which is edible. Radishes are said to repel Striped Cucumber Beetle so it is a good companion for Cucumbers Squash and melons.

 

Rapeseed/Canola (Brassica napus) – Rapeseed is a strange name; it has nothing to do with ‘S.A.’ however. In this case the name comes from the Latin word Rapa, which means Turnip so Rapeseed is just Turnip Seed. This seed crop plant needs ground covers such as clover, vetch or buckwheat to suppress weeds and feed the soil so it can grow to maturity. Its primary pest is the Pollen Beetle, though Flea beetles, Cabbage Seed Weevils, Brassica Pod Midge and Aphids are problems.  If you are determined to grow this one, you might have to use organic pesticides.

 

Rutabagas (Brassica napus Napobrassica Group) –

Silver Dollar Plant (Lunnaria annua) – Silver Dollar plant is a common sight in seed racks at garden centers this time of year. It is a biennial with edible leaves that produces foliage the first year then pretty purple flowers the second year followed by large silvery seed capsules that are flat and the size of a Silver Dollar. This biennial doesn’t have much in the way of information for companion plants, and most of that are just plants that grow in the same conditions such as Foxglove, Ferns and Lady’s Mantle.

 

Turnips (Brassica rapa subspecies rapa) – As a general rule, you for the most part should not plant cabbage family members near legumes. Turnips are the exception to the rule as they benefit from that and the presence of the aromatic herbs such as Rosemary, Garlic, Thyme and Sage.

 

Wasabi (Eurema japonicum) – Wasabi is one of those plants where the companion matchups aren’t about plants providing mutual aid and are about other plants that share it’s growing preferences. The three most common suggestions are Hostas, Ginger and Ferns.

In regards to the cabbage family it would be a terrible oversight not to talk in more detail about the pests that can wreck your crops. Due to our climate and long growing season, there are at least five species of Butterfly/Moth whose caterpillars can make your crop unsaleable. The first species is just called a Cabbage Moth (Mamestra brassicae). But also there is the Large White Cabbage Butterfly (Pieris brassicae) which  closely related to the Small White Cabbage Butterfly (Pieris rapae), also The Cabbage Looper (Trichoplusia ni) and last the one I haven’t seen the Cross-Striped Cabbage worm (Evergestis rimosalis). There are three ways to deal with these critters; the first is hand picking once you start seeing the adults fluttering about because the adults home in on the chemical compounds exhaled by your crop when they exchange gasses. Companion planting can help mask this but inevitably as Steve Goldblum’s character said in Jurassic Park ‘Nature..uh, finds a way.’ Adults flying about mean that there are probably eggs and as such, hungry caterpillars will follow soon after. Handpicking the caterpillars is easy when you have a few plants but fifty foot rows of crinkly kale makes that kind of difficult. So that’s where the organic pesticides come in, you could make one out of tobacco or a few other plants or use Neem Oil. The catch is that all of these are contact based and wash off in the rain. So you have to coat every possible surface to ensure that the batch of wrigglers is knocked down and kept in check. Alternately, and I do not prefer this method you can treat your crop with a 30-60 day systemic pesticide, but you need to be careful of which one you use, it’s residual action and be careful that there are no unintended effects. Lastly and this is my least favorite option; conventional Insecticide. Of the insecticides out there, I prefer pyrethrum-based insecticidal soap because it’s effective, has no real residual action and is inexpensive. However there are others that get stronger and have longer action but, those too have problems because they may be restricted to purchase, require personal protective gear and some damage native and honey bee populations (ie Malathion). Either way, I’d rather be with good options than without so plan carefully and see you next time for the Onion Family.

First day of fall 2021

 Welcome back to another episode of Lost In the Farmers Market, where finally Autumn has arrived and the season begins with cooler temperatures and discussions of a winter garden. Despite what some might tell you here in Zone 8a gardening is a year-round affair. The warm season crops go in in April around Easter, and the Cool –season stuff goes in roughly around September. Some stuff like Collards takes a little longer and thus, we start them in early-mid August if from seed but at the start of September if using plants. Every crop has its nuances that you need to keep an eye on. For instance, if you started seed indoors you need to start sowing things as early as mid-July to August to get the best results for the slower growing cool season crops.

 

Fortunately we have a great opportunity to get things rolling while the humidity is low and night time temperatures are cool. It is less physically exerting to garden when the weather is cooperative and also the bugs are less aggravating. You should not wait to get those crops in the ground though because the longer you wait the less likely they will have established and the higher chance a frost might wreck everything. Additionally, procrastinating will delay your effective harvest, and that could mess up your culinary plans for Thanksgiving, Christmas or the New Year. A lot of people ask in general if it’s too late or too soon and the simple answer is that it is somewhat complicated.  Gardening thankfully is not an exact science with a catch-all answer to all problems or quandaries. Generally speaking, you put warm-season crops like tomatoes and peppers in after Easter in spring, and start planting out the fall crops in late August or September. I personally can say that I have planted out things as late as the end of October and gotten good but delayed results. As long as you don’t wait too long you can still have that cool season low-maintenance veggie garden you have had a craving for.

 

With all that said, there are a few things you should consider starting from seed versus buying as plants. I typically start Cilantro/Coriander, Radishes, Carrots, and Snow Peas from seed in the garden because it’s so much cheaper and effective to do so. These plants do not benefit from being transplanted and their roots tend to grow quite fast and you really don’t want to disturb that. Generally you don’t want to disturb any plant’s roots if you can help it but with some they seem to experience no real loss in productivity if you do. As a general rule you never want to disturb the roots of anything producing tubers (radishes) or that has a taproot (carrots, fennel). Peas are in this group because they produce a lot of  roots fast and can rapidly out grow their containers if the container they were sprouted in is not big enough so it’s better to give them root space right off and let them do their thing. What you start by seed hinges on your spare time that you can apply to maintenance and your gardening skill level. For those of you out there who are wondering; the easiest things to start right now are Snow peas, Carrots, Cilantro and, Radishes. The latter three can have their seed tossed on any patch of dirt that’s been slightly scuffed and is moist. The former needs to be covered in about ¼” of dirt but that’s pretty easy and the seed is large and easy to handle.

Peas are a great way to get young kids involved since they are very noticeable when they germinate and emerge. More difficult and or finicky seeds like Swiss Chard, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Celery, Broccoli, Cauliflower and so on should be started indoors over a heat mat to maintain soil temperatures. Some of these seeds like the celery need to be soaked overnight just to germinate properly.

The key to getting your sown seed to come up uniformly is to gently moisten the soil where you sowed them on a daily basis (assuming no rain) for about two weeks and then as needed once the seedlings are visible. The easiest way to do this is to use something like a rain shower wand attached to a hose or a watering can so the water doesn’t wash out the seed or beat up the seedlings. You should avoid using any sort of fertilizer for about two weeks after the seedlings emerge to avoid burning but, initially use a water-soluble fertilizer at half-strength weekly for three more weeks to really get things going. After that assuming there are no freezing temperatures or rainy weather you can switch to a two-week rotation on fertilizer at normal strength. I would also advise using mulch, but not that wood mulch you can buy at the bLowes or Home Despot, what you want is quality Pine Straw because it does not float, it barely changes color and it discourages digging animals. Also it does not acidify the soil as much as some think and there’s the bonus value of it not attracting termites. Now, with all that said here are some garden photographs.

The first step to preparing the warm-season garden for cool season growing is to harvest what you can, which in this case is the carrots, basil, perilla and whatever peppers and cotton are ready.

After the bed is weeded and the soil gently moved around a bit with the hard steel rake, the collards are planted with about a foot of distance between them. I add a bit of granulated tobacco fertilizer at this point just to give them a constant boost as they grow.

The final step is to apply a decent layer of pine straw to keep the weeds down and the critters from messing with the seedlings. I watered it all with the rain wand attachment on my garden hose right after and maintained a once-a-day watering schedule for two weeks with adjustments for rain.

Bigelowia nutallii - Nutall’s Rayless Goldenrod

Nutall's Rayless Goldenrod is called that because it's flowers dont have petals or 'rays' as they tend to be called on members of the Aster family. Make no mistake this goldenrod is a member of the aster family, it's just a bit anti-social.

 

 

Acanthus ‘Summer Beauty’ – Bears Breeches

The best part of this Acanthus is that no one knows where the heck the name Bear's Breeches came from. Maybe it's tied into that old joke about a bear crapping in the woods or maybe some ancestor of this plant was used by bears as toilet paper...

 

 

 

Ruscus aculeatus ‘Wheeler’s Variety’ – Butcher’s Broom

This is a plant I've long sought, and managed to buy a few years back and boy it was not cheap. However Butcher's Brooms prefer shady areas and are like Sky Pencil Hollies minus being a holly or having any of the problems.

 

Abelmoschus manihot ‘Chief Kubo’s Prize’ – South Sea Salad Tree

 

 Ok, folks I have just found out the best information ever on this tropical cousin of Okra. Yes the leaves and stems and immature seed pods are edible and so are the flowers, but  it is apparently perennial in zone 8A. Sopme sources say 8B, but the USDA states 8A and really who are you going to believe, some random website or these folks!

https://pfaf.org/User/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Abelmoschus+manihot

https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/abelmoschus-manihot/

 

Hibiscus coccineus ‘Texas Star’ -  Scarlet Rose Mallow

 Yup, this is the plant that had a neighbor calling the police on me because she was absolutely certain it was marijuana, and the leaves do look that way, until it flowers.

 

Ricinus communis ‘Zanzibar’ – Castor Bean

 It keeps getting bigger, it's literally just a little bit shorter than the dogwood behind it and all this growth in a single growing year. Let's hope it can survive the winter.

 

 

Rosa ‘oregold’ – Oregold Rose

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I am not a fan of roses in general, and only three specimens are allowed int he test gardens because of their exceptional health and vigor. The golden yellow of this one is remarkable.

 

Hosta sp. - Hosta

This is one of the more colorful hostas that was recovered from the crescent bed earlier in the year, it has tripled in size and for the first time it's going to bloom. Not long after taking this picture it was repotted to a much larger 15 gallon pot. Oh and don't mind the feisty kitten photobomb.

 

 

So, while the temperatures and humidity have been low I decided to dig out all the Daylilies that aren’t really doing good. I replaced them with the Texas Star Hibiscus, Mekong Giant Banana, Bear’s Breeches and the South Sea Salad Tree. The lilies have been moved to the large strawberry pot after the strawberries were removed. Like the lilies the Strawberries have been progressively under performing for a while.

 

 

Would you look at that, the hot sauce made from my Fayetteville Inferno Peppers is right there on the Board at Fowler's BBQ!

 

 

Here are the latest YouTube videos for your garden entertainment:

 

Salad Tree? Not in here buddy! (100^th LITFM!)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SP1r_yoXN2c

 

I’d make a meat pun here but it’d get butchered.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jyYjbtziznM

 

Go for the Gold-enrod!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rus8Tz5sRlg

 

So many breeches I can’t bear it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61ubssXhFms

 

Spring will be here in a lily bit

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eS_h8sMMYb4

 

 

With all that garden goodness covered this is the part of the blog where I have to advertise for the Fayetteville City Market. Now I know you readers probably don’t much like advertisements, but by booth at the City Market helps to cover the costs of running the test garden and literally maintains the Research & Development budget that is used to bring you the information that has made up the backbone of this blog. Also, as of the start of 2019, my booth can now process credit or debit cards thanks to the acquisition of s a Square reader so your payment options have doubled. With that said, if you want to get some GMO-free, Organic fruit, herbs, flowers and perennials, come on down to the Fayetteville City Market on 325 Maxwell Street in downtown Fayetteville between the Hours of 9:00 am and 1:00 pm on Saturdays. Even in bad weather the market goes on though you might have to look for me under the ‘arches’ of the Transportation Museum’s front entryway.

 

 

Fresh Produce:

Fresh Garlic: $1.00 (Available now!)

Soup Kits: $6.00 (Available in October)

 

Vegetables: ($3.00 each)

Arugula, Astro

Broccoli, Green Magic

Cauliflower, Snow Crown

Collards, Green Glaze

Endive, Benefine

Kale, Dinosaur

Kale, Red Russian

Kale, Redbor

Kale, Dwarf Blue Curled

Spinach, Green Beret

 

Herbs: ($3.00 each)

Cat Mint

Parsley

Oregano

 

Fruiting Plants:

Muscadine Grapes, Green ($4.00)

 

Ornamental Stuff: ($3.00 each)

Coneflower, Artisan Soft Orange ($3.00)

 

Coming Soon:

TBA

 

How to stay in Contact with Us!

 

Our group’s online presence has migrated to Nextdoor.com. All you need to keep up with all our activities is to have a Nextdoor account and to look for the ‘Sustainable Neighbors of Fayetteville’ group and ask to join! You don’t have to live in Fayetteville to join us! Feel free to ask all your garden questions of our knowledgeable membership and post your cool garden pictures.

 

https://nextdoor.com/g/ybvdm226x/?is=nav_bar

 

 

Meetings are back on track folks! We now meet at LeClairs General Store on the First and third Thursday of every month. Our next meeting is on October 7^th  between 5:30pm and 7:00pm. We are in the back room so come on in and join us for a fun garden chat.

 

 

If the two above methods do not work you can always contact me through this blog, PM me through Nextdoor.com and or visit the Fayetteville City Market. This brings to a close the eighteenth LITFM post of 2021; stay tuned the next episode which should be posted at some point in October. There will be more garden updates and other cool stuff.