Brussels Sprouts and Questions

[AlittleSalt]

I bought a package of seed today at Wally World. Ferry ~ Morse Brussel Spouts Catskill (What the package reads instead of Brussels Sprouts, and yes, the spellcheck here caught it.)

We grew Brussels sprouts from seed in the spring garden of 2013 and they grew really large plants. It was actually fun watering them at dusk. I put the sprayer head of my hand held water wand just over the top of the plants and the water would rush down in a spiral - it was really cool looking.

They had just starting to bud out when it got too hot for them and they quit growing/producing. It was easy to see why, but I sure wish we could have tried them out. With the purchased seeds today, I'm hoping these do much better in my first fall garden.

Quick Facts:

100-110 days to maturity
cold/cool growing conditions
40-75 F growing temps preferred
Suitability - Tolerates light frost, Tolerates hard frost, Needs summer shade
Hardiness Zones 4-7

I live in zone 8A, but zone 7B is in the northern half of the county I live in. Our average daily high temperature right now is 96F in the DFW area (Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas) but the week ahead is showing highs around 101F. The average first freeze is on November 22. If I planted them tomorrow, November 26, would be 100 days (If I counted right.)

Questions:

My main question is about the, "Suitability" part. If Brussels Sprouts can tolerate light-to-hard frosts, should I wait to plant them? When I asked about growing Brussels in 2013 here where I live - I was told that nobody grows them here.

My other question comes from my personal experience growing tomatoes here in my neck of the woods. When it got really hot (95F+) the spring tomatoes quit producing and basically died. It didn't help that I pulled them out of ground
Anyway, the fall crop of tomatoes are looking fine and are waiting for those cooler days coming ahead. So that makes me wonder if the Brussels can take this kind of heat while they are just coming up? I am going to supply shade for them while it is hot.

Any ideas, thoughts, and even questions would be great.

[Tracydr]

I think in Phoenix you are supposed to plant the transplants around Sept 1. Which means starting seeds sometime in July.
I was never successful but I know that some people do it, even in an area with warmer springs than Waco.

[shelleybean]

I'm going to try Brussels sprouts for the first time next year because it's already too late for me this year. I plan to grow Catskill, as well. My timeframe is to start them indoors in June and move them outside in late July. Hopefully they'll be ready around Thanksgiving or Christmas. I'll be interested to see how yours do. Good luck!

[AlittleSalt]

First, thanks for the replies, and yes, that is an idea I had not thought about. I'll go ahead and plant them this morning and if they come up - I'll revive this thread each month thereafter on the 20th to let you guys know what's going on with them. Trying to grow them is an experiment after all.

[beeman]

Can I make an observation? If you want to grow brassicas for fall, beware the small white cabbage butterfly.
I didn't pay attention when I put my fall brasicas out to harden them off. The butterflies got into them and almost ruined the whole batch, laying eggs in the center of them.
This caused a terrible problem, no growing center. I did manage to save some, but had to resow some to get what I needed.
The caterpillars are tiny, green and difficult to see, if you miss one it's game over for that plant.

[shelleybean]

Yes, the cabbage moths can do a LOT of damage. I always buy a few cans of Dipel dust at the beginning of fall and reapply after it rains. I have collards, broccoli, kale, etc., so I need a lot of it.

[Tracydr]

Originally Posted by beeman

Can I make an observation? If you want to grow brassicas for fall, beware the small white cabbage butterfly.
I didn't pay attention when I put my fall brasicas out to harden them off. The butterflies got into them and almost ruined the whole batch, laying eggs in the center of them.
This caused a terrible problem, no growing center. I did manage to save some, but had to resow some to get what I needed.
The caterpillars are tiny, green and difficult to see, if you miss one it's game over for that plant.

That's a good point. I also had the worst aphid infestation I have ever seen one year when I overwintered kale and collards and didn't catch them in time. I will be trying a lot more brassicas myself, now that I've moved from Phoenix.
I do believe that Brussels sprouts can be done in Waco but I think it may take a few seasons practicing to get it right.
I would start them in the house if possible because germination can go way down when it's too hot. Transplant out around Sept, after hardening them off well.
I also would expect them to take longer and possibly be sort of dormant when the shorter days of Dec and Jan come around. I bet that 100 day estimate is for very best growing conditions ( think far Northern states in long days of summer). Growing in fall, winter and maybe early spring may take longer but the taste of brassicas grown through cold months will be better.
Once the plants get started, they are very cold hardy. A low tunnel in December might be a good idea if they haven't grown much in the fall but I wouldn't bother. Your zone, they should be just fine through the winter.
In the meantime, try sowing some bok Choy, Pak Choy, kale and collards. They will be ready to eat much sooner and give you that same sort of flavor. You can even roast the Pak Choy, sort of like roasted BS.

[b54red]

I am a little south of you in Alabama in zone 8b right on the border of zone 9. I grow them every year and have been starting my seeds in August in order to have any luck at all. July might be better but I just never have started them that early.

I start them in my tiny greenhouse which has an air conditioner in it. Until I put in the air conditioner my luck with germination was terrible so the idea of starting them in the house is a good one. They will grow much slower than other brassicas once they germinate. I start mine in UltraSorb and pot them up into individual cups as soon as they have true leaves with a potting soil mix. There is no point in setting them out in the garden until the nights cool down and the blistering hot days are over. I usually set mine out between September and November depending on the weather and the size of the plants. The plants tolerate cold well but I find a tunnel helps during the really cold spells and speeds up the growth. You need big plants by the time spring begins which around here can be either February or March when the plants will start producing.

They are tremendously heavy feeders and need constant fertilizing. I can't stress this enough because if they don't get enough fertilizer the plants will be too small as spring approaches to produce well. Last year was a good year for sprouts down here because of the late spring but the cold winter slowed the plants growth some so it worked out well. Some years spring is almost non existent going almost directly from winter to summer and those are the years when I get few if any good sprouts.

Bill

[AlittleSalt]

We always have a lot of moths and butterflies. Thank you for alerting me to the cabbage moths. I will look them up so I'll know what they look like. As for aphids, wow, in autumn of 2011 and again in autumn 2012 we planted black eyed peas for the purpose of turning them in to the soil as a cover crop and source of nitrogen for the soil. The aphids attacked so heavily that plants became visibly polka dotted to the point where I took the plants out and burned them. In 2013, I found aphids on okra but nowhere near as bad, and this year, I have found even less. Funny how it changes from year-to-year.

Bill, I have a section of an open face barn that can be turned into a hot house. We have the materials. I just need to ask my adult children to help take the old roof off and replace it with the greenhouse panels. We have both green and white panels. Anyway, if we can get it built, I have been wondering if using an evaporative water-cooler would work?

You guys give me so much to think about. Thank You

[Tracydr]

Originally Posted by b54red

I am a little south of you in Alabama in zone 8b right on the border of zone 9. I grow them every year and have been starting my seeds in August in order to have any luck at all. July might be better but I just never have started them that early.

I start them in my tiny greenhouse which has an air conditioner in it. Until I put in the air conditioner my luck with germination was terrible so the idea of starting them in the house is a good one. They will grow much slower than other brassicas once they germinate. I start mine in UltraSorb and pot them up into individual cups as soon as they have true leaves with a potting soil mix. There is no point in setting them out in the garden until the nights cool down and the blistering hot days are over. I usually set mine out between September and November depending on the weather and the size of the plants. The plants tolerate cold well but I find a tunnel helps during the really cold spells and speeds up the growth. You need big plants by the time spring begins which around here can be either February or March when the plants will start producing.

They are tremendously heavy feeders and need constant fertilizing. I can't stress this enough because if they don't get enough fertilizer the plants will be too small as spring approaches to produce well. Last year was a good year for sprouts down here because of the late spring but the cold winter slowed the plants growth some so it worked out well. Some years spring is almost non existent going almost directly from winter to summer and those are the years when I get few if any good sprouts.

Bill

Thanks,Bill. I'm just getting used to my new climate. I'll try to start BS today as I'm going to be planting seeds indoors later.

[b54red]

Originally Posted by AlittleSalt

Bill, I have a section of an open face barn that can be turned into a hot house. We have the materials. I just need to ask my adult children to help take the old roof off and replace it with the greenhouse panels. We have both green and white panels. Anyway, if we can get it built, I have been wondering if using an evaporative water-cooler would work?

You guys give me so much to think about. Thank You

I really don't know. I do know you have much less humidity than I do so it might be feasible. I just use one of those 5 to 6 thousand btu window units. They cost very little to run and are very quiet. On really hot sunny days they make it bearable inside the greenhouse and on more moderate days along with mornings and evenings it is rather comfortable. I have found that it is better to just run it all the time in the summer as it takes too long to cool if you shut it off and allow everything inside to heat up.

Bill

[AlittleSalt]

There's the matter of cost too. A small window unit AC cost around $100 and evaporative coolers can cost a lot more.

[Irv Wiseguy]

Salt,

You've inspired me to try them as a Fall crop in an Earthbox. I just finished harvesting corn from a box and was wondering what to plant next in it. Brussels sprouts and a couple heads of lettuce will be perfect.

As a kid I remember only having Brussels sprouts only once a year, with Thanksgiving dinner so I consider them a special treat. Maybe that's why I like them so much. Even now I don't eat them very often, but that's probably more because the price for them has skyrocketed here. I remember paying 69¢ a pound for sprouts, but the last time I wanted some I think they were about $2.99 a pound. I couldn't bring myself to pay that much so I just went without.

Irv

[b54red]

Originally Posted by Irv Wiseguy

Salt,

You've inspired me to try them as a Fall crop in an Earthbox. I just finished harvesting corn from a box and was wondering what to plant next in it. Brussels sprouts and a couple heads of lettuce will be perfect.

As a kid I remember only having Brussels sprouts only once a year, with Thanksgiving dinner so I consider them a special treat. Maybe that's why I like them so much. Even now I don't eat them very often, but that's probably more because the price for them has skyrocketed here. I remember paying 69¢ a pound for sprouts, but the last time I wanted some I think they were about $2.99 a pound. I couldn't bring myself to pay that much so I just went without.

Irv

Once you grow them yourself you will probably find yourself unable to eat the ones from the store anymore. I found the ones in the store to taste awful after eating them fresh off the plants so now I only eat them when they are in season. I find myself pigging out on them so that I get tired of them until the next season when I am craving them again.

Bill

[Tracydr]

Originally Posted by AlittleSalt

We always have a lot of moths and butterflies. Thank you for alerting me to the cabbage moths. I will look them up so I'll know what they look like. As for aphids, wow, in autumn of 2011 and again in autumn 2012 we planted black eyed peas for the purpose of turning them in to the soil as a cover crop and source of nitrogen for the soil. The aphids attacked so heavily that plants became visibly polka dotted to the point where I took the plants out and burned them. In 2013, I found aphids on okra but nowhere near as bad, and this year, I have found even less. Funny how it changes from year-to-year.

Bill, I have a section of an open face barn that can be turned into a hot house. We have the materials. I just need to ask my adult children to help take the old roof off and replace it with the greenhouse panels. We have both green and white panels. Anyway, if we can get it built, I have been wondering if using an evaporative water-cooler would work?

You guys give me so much to think about. Thank You

Cowpeas are a huge aphid attractor but they tend to tolerate it. I've never seen so many beneficial insects as when I had a lot of cowpeas and long beans.