Sprouting Seeds

I finally got my hands in soil today! It has been a long time since I got my fingers dirty transplanting seedlings so I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Last week I did a video that talked about the need to get your garden seeds and sprouting them. The reason I sprout seeds is because it helps with germination success and makes transplanting the seeds easier as well. If you worry about older seeds being viable sprouting is a great way to know that before placing them in soil. Here is the link to that video  https://youtu.be/Tj7bCHFJLXE

Transplanting Brassicas

I started my cooler weather seeds planning on transplanting the brassicas first since I know they will be able to be put out in mid-February to early March. These seeds have sprouted, been put into the seedling trays until they got to leggy which is what happened to my broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage. I transplanted these into the pots they will stay in until they are put into the grow bags for outside in the garden.  This video I talk about my wild and leggy brassicas. https://youtu.be/W1388X6XVNQ

Appreciating Brassicas

It took a long time for me to appreciate the qualities of brassicas. Like most kids, broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage wasn’t on the top of my menu choices. And as most adults and gardeners I have come to appreciate these cool weather crops for what they represent to me and that is the first bite of outdoors. I love being able to go out and harvest them from my garden and bring them in and prepare them for my family.

Dinner with Brassicas

Some easy and nutritious menu ideas using broccoli are just roasting it with some garlic and Parmesan. A beef and broccoli stir fry, and a broccoli cheddar soup. With cauliflower you can make it into a mash that tastes like mashed potatoes, make a pizza crust out of it, and even have cauliflower steaks. The thing I do the most with cabbage is to make coleslaw, I pickle it for kimchi, I also love cabbage rolls.  I believe the more we vary using these ingredients we can find ways that people of all ages enjoy the brassica family.

Comment below with your favorite brassica recipe.

Until next time,

Shawn