Garden Hacks--5

About five weeks ago I planted my ‘Graffiti’ cauliflower seeds and now my seedlings are ready for transplant. Along with ‘Graffiti’ I planted a white self-blanching cauliflower, Romanesco cauliflower and ‘Premium Crop’ broccoli seeds.

I’m especially fond of the purple (magenta) cauliflower so I’ve worked hard to protect the seedlings. I’ve dealt with flea beetles, cabbage worms and temperatures in the upper 80’s.

This post shares some of my garden hacks to overcome these assaults and bring my seedlings along for transplant to the garden.

Here are my cauliflower and broccoli plants seven days after planting. I prefer to start my seedlings outside in cool shade, watering from the bottom in the six-packs.

When the weather went to the 80’s as I waited for them to germinate, I moved them to the garage which was cooler. I generally plant two seeds in each cell, selecting the best one. When the first true leaves appear I begin fertilizing with a dilute seaweed-fish emulsion fertilizer.

At this vulnerable stage I protect the seedlings from the cabbage moths which lay their eggs on the leaves and the ravenous worms inflict considerable damage quite quickly. This is a scrap of very old row cover that is wispy and lets in light and dew. Here, it covers the Black Magic Kale seeds I’m trialing this year.

I’ve found my seedlings grow better if I move them to four inch pots. Flea beetles showed up soon after, likely from my compost. Researching various University of California websites led me to spread diatomaceous earth on the soil surface. I used Neem Oil on a few of the seedlings with significant damage. Vigilance is needed during these vulnerable transitions.

The transition to 4 inch pots came at the time of a heat wave. The seedlings are protected from the blistering sun by knitted 40% shade cloth. This kind by Gardeningwill drapes easily. Check your local nursery or Amazon for this useful product.

Four stakes topped with an old tennis ball hold it above the seedlings. Clipped to the sides of the raised beds it excludes cabbage moths but lets smaller beneficials in. The dew settles through the mesh shade cloth and I’ve misted the plants through it when needed.

The cauliflower and broccoli seedlings survived and thrived the past eight days of excessive heat under the knitted shade cloth. Today, as the weather cooled, I transplanted 18 cauliflower plants to their winter home and moved the shade cloth to cover the bed as they settle in.

And there is chatter in weather circles that we will get our First Rain of the season this weekend.