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Brassica oleracea botrytis

Common name:	Cauliflower	Family:	Cruciferae
Author:	DC.	Botanical references:	200
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	A cultivated form of B. oleracea.
Habitat:	Not known in the wild.
Edibility Rating (1-5):	3	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	0

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	B. oleracea var. botrytis[G,H,P]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Broccoli [H,P], Cauliflower [H],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	oleracea = vegetable like
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Capparales. Renamed to Brassicaceae -- Mustard family

Physical Characteristics

Biennial growing to 0.75m. It is not frost tender. It is in flower from May to August, and the seeds ripen from July to September. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Bees. The plant is self-fertile. We rate it 3/5 for edibility and 0/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils, requires well-drained soil and can grow in heavy clay soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist soil. The plant can tolerate maritime exposure.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Cultivated Beds.

Edible Uses

Flowers Leaves.

Immature flowering head - raw or cooked[1, 16, 37, 46]. A mild cabbage-like flavour, they make an excellent cooked vegetable and are also very acceptable in salads[K]. By careful selection of cultivars, it is possible to produce flowering heads all year round[K].
Leaves - cooked[37]. A mild cabbage flavour, they make a good cooked vegetable[K]. Do not over-harvest them, however, since this would adversely affect the production of the flowering head[K].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

None known

Other Uses

Fungicide.

An extract of the seeds inactivates the bacteria that causes black rot[20, 201].

Cultivation details

Succeeds in full sun in a well-drained moisture-retentive fertile soil with plenty of lime[37, 200, 264]. Cauliflowers, especially the winter and spring maturing types, should not be given a soil that is too rich in nitrogen since this can encourage soft, sappy growth that is more susceptible to winter cold damage[264]. Prefers a heavy soil[16]. Requires a warm sunny position[16]. Prefers a pH in the range 6 to 7[200], though it tolerates a pH in the range 4.3 to 8.3. Succeeds in maritime gardens[200]. Lack of moisture in the growing season can cause the plant to produce small or deformed curds[264].
Summer varieties are not very cold hardy and will be damaged by light frosts, winter cauliflower plants are more hardy and will tolerate temperatures down to about -6° c, though the curds are more sensitive and can suffer damage at about -2° c[200]. This damage can often be prevented by bending over the leaves so that they cover the curd.
Cauliflowers are widely grown for their edible immature flower heads (or curd). There are many named varieties and, by careful selection, it is possible to provide a year round supply. The summer and autumn maturing cultivars are annuals, they need to produce a certain number of leaves before curd development will be initiated. The optimum temperature for this is around 17° c, but at temperatures above 20° c the curds will either be of poor quality or not be produced at all[200]. Winter and spring maturing forms are biennial and need exposure to temperatures below 10° c before they will produce curds and once again, this will not happen unless the plant has reached a certain size[200].
Grows well with celery and other aromatic plants since these seem to deter insect predations[18, 20, 201]. Grows badly with beet, tomatoes, onions and strawberries[20, 201].

Propagation

Seed - sow in a seedbed outdoors in April to June depending on the cultivar. Plant out into their permanent position when the plants are 5 - 10cm tall. Seed of some cultivars can be sown in late winter in a greenhouse in order to obtain a harvest in early summer. Do not let the seedlings get overcrowded or they will soon become leggy and will not make such good plants. If your seedlings do get leggy, it is possible to plant them rather deeper into the soil - the buried stems will soon form roots and the plant will be better supported.

Cultivars

'': There are many named varieties of this annual vegetable, with new forms being developed each year. At present there is not time to enter these in the database and it is recommended that you consult the book 'The Fruit and Vegetable Finder' which is updated regularly and can be obtained from libraries.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

References for Brassica oleracea var. botrytis (a possible synonym).

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[16] Simons. New Vegetable Growers Handbook. Penguin 1977 ISBN 0-14-046-050-0
A good guide to growing vegetables in temperate areas, not entirely organic.

[18] Philbrick H. and Gregg R. B. Companion Plants. Watkins 1979
Details of beneficial and antagonistic relationships between neighbouring plants.

[20] Riotte. L. Companion Planting for Successful Gardening. Garden Way, Vermont, USA. 1978 ISBN 0-88266-064-0
Fairly good.

[37] Thompson. B. The Gardener's Assistant. Blackie and Son. 1878
Excellent general but extensive guide to gardening practices in the 19th century. A very good section on fruits and vegetables with many little known species.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[201] Allardice.P. A - Z of Companion Planting. Cassell Publishers Ltd. 1993 ISBN 0-304-34324-2
A well produced and very readable book.

[264] Phillips. R. & Rix. M. Vegetables Macmillan Reference Books, London. 1995 ISBN 0 333 62640 0
Excellent and easily read book with good information and an excellent collection of photos of vegetables from around the world, including many unusual species.

Readers Comments

Brassica oleracea botrytis

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Brassica oleracea botrytis

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
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