In addition to white and red cabbage, savoy cabbage should not be missing in the vegetable garden. Don't worry, it's easy and simple to grow.
Savoy cabbage is a vegetable and differs from white and red cabbage in its wavy leaves. These can appear yellow-green to dark green and form round to pointed rosettes. Due to its comparatively delicate leaves, savoy can be used in many ways. Whether as a crunchy lettuce, as a nutritious vegetable variant or as part of the cabbage roulade - savoy cabbage is not only tasty, but also he althy. Finally, cabbage is high in vitamins, fiber, iron, copper and calcium.
If you want to plant it yourself in the garden, you shouldn't have any problems. Savoy is quite undemanding and can be grown almost all year round. Reason enough to take a closer look at planting cabbage.
Find the right location
The choice of location is the basis of successful cultivation. Cabbage generally prefers a sunny location. It also tolerates partial shade. In any case, the plants should be bright and protected. If you use mixed cultures, savoy feels very comfortable in the vicinity of cucumbers, tomatoes, leeks, celery or peas.
Important:
Since savoy is a heavy feeder, you should not cultivate it continuously in the same location. After harvesting, the soil should be given sufficient time to regenerate. At least three years should pass before you start growing savoy at the old location again. Don't follow the crop rotation and keep the location, you risk the emergence of diseases and pests.
Selecting the ideal substrate
The soil should be able to store the water well and not be too loose. After all, cabbages that are ready to be harvested bring a lot of weight with them and lie flat on the ground. The substrate should be able to withstand that. A substrate rich in humus and lime is generally advantageous for he althy growth.
If you are unsure whether the soil conditions are suitable for the plant, you should check the pH of the soildetermine. Corresponding tests are available for about five euros in every garden and hardware store. Savoy cabbage finds optimal conditions when the pH value is between 6.5 and 7.5. Reading tip: Correctly testing the PH value in the soil - video instructions.
When is the best time to plant?
Savoy cabbage can be planted almost all year round. It is important to distinguish between early savoy, summer savoy, autumn savoy and winter savoy. Early savoy cabbage and summer savoy cabbage ripen earlier than white cabbage and red cabbage. Below is a brief overview of the Savoy cabbage varieties and when they are best planted.
| Savoy cabbage variety | Cultivation | Planting | Harvest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Savoy cabbage | from February | from April | from July |
| savoy cabbage | from April | from May | from August to November |
| late varieties | not applicable | Sowing outdoors until August | from October to April |
How to prepare the substrate?
An appropriately prepared substrate is particularly important for good crop yields. For the cultivation of early savoy cabbage, you should make provisions in autumn and prepare the soil for planting. To do this, prick the ground and rake deeply. Since savoy loves calcareous soil, you can also work algae lime or rock flour into the soil. Incorporating compost is also beneficial and makes for a valuable organic fertilizer.
The heavy feeder also prefers a nutrient-rich soil. You can achieve this by adding components from harvested vegetables. The stalks of carrots or the leeks of onions can remain in the bed as a biological mass and contribute to the fertility of the soil.
Tip:
The selected location should not have been planted with other types of cabbage or mustard in the last three years. Because mustard plants transmit a dreaded disease to savoy cabbage plants with clubroot.
Planting early and late varieties correctly
It's easy to surround yourself with savoy cabbage all year round. The cultivation time for late savoy, for example, is up to 40 weeks, while for early varieties it is only about half that, around 15 to 25 weeks.
Early savoy cabbage should be preferred indoors and planted outdoors from mid-May. The plants should then have reached a size of about ten centimeters. Early kale grows less luxuriantly and a planting distance of 35 centimeters is sufficient.
You should prefer winter savoy in August. If several pairs of leaves have formed, you can put the Savoy cabbage outdoors. Since the late varieties reach a larger diameter, a planting distance of half a meter is appropriate. The savoy cabbage can then overwinter in the vegetable patch, as it can withstand temperatures down to -10 degrees there.
An overview of different cultivation options
If you want to harvest savoy cabbage all year round, you can use various cultivation methods, which are now explained in detail.
Cultivation on the windowsill:
❶ If you would like to grow savoy cabbage indoors and then plant it directly outdoors in May, you will need a seed pot. First fill this with seed soil.
❷ Then scatter the seeds in it and cover them thinly with soil.
❸ Germination should then take place in a bright location. But avoid full sun exposure. The seedlings also do not tolerate dry heating air. Therefore, you should prefer the window sill in the unheated bedroom to the extension in the living room.
To accelerate germination, you can cover the seed pot with a foil or glass cover. At temperatures around 15 degrees, the seeds germinate after seven to ten days. However, the substrate must not dry out during this time, but it must not be soaked either. It is therefore a good idea to spray the seed tray regularly instead of watering it with a watering can.
❹ After germination, you should remove the cover from the seed pot, prick out the seedlings and plant them directly in the bed from a growth height of ten centimetres.
Cultivation in the cold frame:
❶ You can also sow savoy cabbage directly in the cold frame. All you have to do is prepare the soil accordingly. Spread a mixture of sand, peat, compost and lime on a manure base.
❷ Then loosen the soil and lightly press it together. You can use a board for this.
❸ Now sow the seeds loosely and cover them with soil about a centimeter thick. Then moisten the savoy cabbage seeds with a fine jet of water. The substrate must not dry out.
❹ To prevent mold from forming, you should not forget to air the cold frame occasionally on frost-free days.
Direct sowing:
❶ Direct sowing outdoors is also possible in summer. To do this, you must first loosen the soil and treat it with compost and lime.
❷ When bringing in the seeds, you should then click on aPay attention to sufficient distance, because then you can save yourself the pricking in the further course. In addition, the plants are already in place.
With an average temperature of 18 degrees, the seeds should start to germinate in just over a week.
Tip:
A vegetable net not only keeps pests away from the young plants, but also the neighbour's cat.
Planting savoy cabbage in a bucket - is that possible?
There is nothing wrong with cultivating savoy cabbage in a bucket. However, you need a sufficiently large planter for this. A bright and warm location is also important for the container plant. You also have to water the plants regularly and supply them with a fertilizer that has a high lime content. In winter, protective measures are also required to ensure that the planter does not freeze completely and the roots are attacked. A reading tip: Overwintering potted plants - That's how it's done!