Harvesting Now: Broccoli
About five years ago, I discovered roasted broccoli and it forever changed my approach to this vegetable.
So when Josh and I were engaged, I was really excited to hear that he was growing broccoli.
Well, let me tell you that my first experience with fresh grown broccoli was a little different than buying it at the grocery store. Apparently, worms LOVE broccoli, and the broccoli worms look a LOT like the little green stems. Some people don’t mind worms, but I really don’t like them—especially when they are in my food.
I should also note that we were having friends over for dinner that I was just getting to know (I had recently moved from out of state after dating Josh long-distance), and I was also rushed trying to help get dinner ready. As I was hurriedly prepping dinner, I suddenly saw little worms inching themselves across my cutting board. I really don’t like when there are uninvited guests that join me at the table (especially when it comes to my food!). I did my best to thoroughly clean the broccoli and then I just prayed that I didn’t miss any other worms (and if I did, I prayed our guests nor I would get them!).
Here are a few things we have learned growing broccoli over the last few years:
Broccoli Variety Types
We have had good success with the Belstar F1 Broccoli, but this variety wasn’t available this year so we grew Batavia F1 Broccoli (and we really like how it turned out!).
Start Early
Start the broccoli early. Broccoli grows best cooler weather so once the heat hits us in our zone (5b), the broccoli will bolt. Planting in late summer for a fall crop is also an option in our zone. We haven’t traditionally done this, but with the little one enjoying broccoli, we plan to give it a try this year. Josh just started the new seedlings this week. Stay tuned on our progress…
Companion Plants
Plant dill and thyme nearby as this can help ward off the cabbage worms (see my story above if you want to try and dissuade uninvited guests). For more on companion planting, check out this blog post.
Watch the Color
Keep an eye on the color, if it looks like the broccoli is turning from a bright green to a yellow (about to flower, aka bolting), you will want to harvest immediately.
Soak the Broccoli
Once you harvest your broccoli, soak it in cold salt water for 30 minutes. We used the grate from the bottom of our sink to submerge the broccoli fully under the water.
Cleaning Tips: When you cut your broccoli into small florets, inspect and rinse (I have found that the worms can be nestled into the stems and do not necessary float to the top when submerged. They look so similar that they are easy to miss).
Watch out for runaways! If you compost and don’t want to find cabbage worms in your kitchen, I recommend dumping the cabbage worms immediately. We did not do this this year, and I found a wandering cabbage worm a few days later across the kitchen.