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In 1990, President George H.W. Bush, known for his loathing of broccoli, ended a press conference on developments in Europe by declaring “at this very minute, truckloads of broccoli are descending on Washington…”
Presidential tastes have changed in the decades since H.W. America’s appetite for broccoli has improved, even without a presidential recommendation, and broccoli production in the Northeast has soared.
The U.S. produces more broccoli than any other place on Earth. In 2011, U.S. growers sold more than 2 billion pounds of broccoli, all of it grown on less than 130,000 acres.
There are three different types of broccoli: sprouting broccoli like “Italian” or “Calabrese,” broccoli rabe which doesn’t produce a head and “heading” broccoli, which isn’t broccoli at all – it’s considered a late season cauliflower.
British seed companies have introduced a new hybrid. Sprouting summer purple broccoli is easier to grow and tastes sweeter than green broccoli. It doesn’t need a period of cold to produce and is engineered to withstand summer’s heat. It holds up very well to Blair County’s weird weather patterns.
If, like many of us, you planned your garden for six tomato plants and planted 45, it’s not too late. After your tomato harvest bonanza, plan to sow summer purple as a second crop. Spring 2017 will have you savoring a very early, delectable “pick as you go” purple broccoli.
Broccoli harvesters rules: First, decapitate broccoli head. Second: check underneath the broccoli heads for worms. Third: Proceed at your own risk.
Whatever the season, you’ll need to start with nutrient-rich, well-drained soil and full sun. You’ ll probably want to do a soil test to make sure you’re on the righteous side of the 5.8 to 6.6 pH that grows the best broccoli.
Summer purple is a substantial plant, so it pays to sow seeds deep for stability and to use a left-over tomato cage for added support.
Broccoli doesn’t mind a few weedy visitors, as long as they are kept away until the preheading juncture. Although weeds in the summer purple aren’t aesthetically pleasing, broccoli can hold its own. After it forms a head, it’s strong enough to compete with most bullies.
A Penn State Fact Sheet developed for small-scale and part-time farmers recommends good crop rotation practices and the use of disease-resistant varieties of broccoli. None of the seed companies claim disease resistance in summer purple, which could be a problem. Blackleg, bacterial head rot, downy mildew and alternaria can cause crop loss.
Row covers help prevent marauding insects from using the broccoli as a salad bar. Left to their own devices, flea beetles, cabbage loopers, imported cabbageworms, diamondback moths, and aphids will schedule conventions on your broccoli.
Don’t you think it’s a little strange that we don’t know Donald, Hillary or Bernie’s position on broccoli? If H.W. didn’t like broccoli and production increased, just think what will happen if all three of them don’t like it. We could feed the world with broccoli!
Contact Teresa Futrick at esroyllek@hotmail.com