Get into gardening

You won't ever taste a cauliflower or broccoli as satisfying as one you have nurtured and grown yourself. Not only is it fun, but it's easy and cheap too.

When to plant?

April – May (Different varieties grow best at different times of the year, so check the seed packet).

When to harvest?

July – September

Where to plant?

Large soil bed in a sunny and sheltered position.

What to do:

Your seeds should be planted outside in rows that are about 1cm deep and roughly 5cm apart. The best way to make the straight rows is to position two pegs in the ground and stretch a length of string between them.

Once they have grown into small plants, the young seedlings need to be roughly 7cm apart. Pull out any that are too close together by hand.

When the plants are large enough to handle (after about 5 weeks), use a hand trowel to move them into a larger soil bed in a sunny spot. You need to allow 6cm between each plant.

Then plant the cauliflower and broccoli firmly and water until the ground is damp. After about 18 weeks when the heads are large and solid, your veg will be ready to pick. Continue to pick from the side shoots for around 6 weeks.