Took a walk through the brassica last weekend and the bulbs are getting pretty big. This is very close to where some of the deer winter at our place, Should be some great winter food and a good place to find sheds next spring.
bulb-with-hat.jpg
Awesome. Todder’s are looking great too. Maybe slightly overseeded but very good at any rate. The deer were mowing down the tops last weekend.
I will be planting brassica’s for sure next year Those look great.
DT
That will make for some great feed!
My brassica never produces any bulbs. I thought last year it was due to over seeding. Went really thin this year and it isn’t any different. Grows decent tops but never any bulbs. Not sure what my soil is missing as it tests out ok and other stuff like clover grows like crazy.
My brassica never produces any bulbs. I thought last year it was due to over seeding. Went really thin this year and it isn’t any different. Grows decent tops but never any bulbs. Not sure what my soil is missing as it tests out ok and other stuff like clover grows like crazy.
What kind of brassica are you planting? Does it contain turnips? Rape and kale I don’t believe will grow bulbs.
<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>John Schultz wrote:</div>
My brassica never produces any bulbs. I thought last year it was due to over seeding. Went really thin this year and it isn’t any different. Grows decent tops but never any bulbs. Not sure what my soil is missing as it tests out ok and other stuff like clover grows like crazy.What kind of brassica are you planting? Does it contain turnips? Rape and kale I don’t believe will grow bulbs.
Exactly. There are a lot of species that are lumped in under the family of brassica. Turnips and radish are the brassica that I know produce bulbs, rape, kale, do not.
There’s a lot of plot mixes that throw out the term brassica as if it were a single plant and then when you read the label, they’re heavy on the rape seed.
Also, is buckwheat a brassica?
Grouse
What kind of brassica are you planting? Does it contain turnips? Rape and kale I don’t believe will grow bulbs.
Evolved Harvest shot plot, rape and turnip
<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>sticker wrote:</div>
What kind of brassica are you planting? Does it contain turnips? Rape and kale I don’t believe will grow bulbs.Evolved Harvest shot plot, rape and turnip
Wow, that is exactly what I plant and is what is in the picture. I have always had great luck with it. When did you plant it? Did you fertilize? Brassica loves nitrogen just like corn so if you are low on nitrogen in the soil you will get plants but maybe not bulbs. Just like corn, if it doesn’t have enough N it will grow stocks but won’t grow cobs or grows very small cobs.
<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>sticker wrote:</div>
<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>John Schultz wrote:</div>
My brassica never produces any bulbs. I thought last year it was due to over seeding. Went really thin this year and it isn’t any different. Grows decent tops but never any bulbs. Not sure what my soil is missing as it tests out ok and other stuff like clover grows like crazy.What kind of brassica are you planting? Does it contain turnips? Rape and kale I don’t believe will grow bulbs.
Exactly. There are a lot of species that are lumped in under the family of brassica. Turnips and radish are the brassica that I know produce bulbs, rape, kale, do not.
There’s a lot of plot mixes that throw out the term brassica as if it were a single plant and then when you read the label, they’re heavy on the rape seed.
Also, is buckwheat a brassica?
Grouse
I think buckwheat is a grain not a brassica. It is mixed in with some brassica mixes because of it’s short grow time though. Not a great fall planting because of it’s sensitivity to cold, but it does establish very quickly and grows fast. First frost will knock it down in a hurry though.
Wow, that is exactly what I plant and is what is in the picture. I have always had great luck with it. When did you plant it? Did you fertilize?
Planted the last week of July. It was hit with fertilizer and lime before planting.
Last year I planted Frigid Forage Big n Beasty and had the same result. Lots of tops, no bulbs.
Weird, what kind of fertilizer(what numbers) Urea is 46-0-0 which is all nitrogen and fillers. That is what I use on my brassica. Did you do a soil test?
Sounds like a little half acre plot I got. I finally gave up and went clover/alfalfa.
I dont remember the numbers on the fertilizer. I will have to check. I did a soil test a few years back and it was all pretty middle of the road. It is in the middle of my woods and the dirt is as black as night. It grows anything else just fine. It used to be a clover plot and the clover grew great. Matter of fact, the clover still keeps coming back even after spraying it every July a few weeks before planting. I have a soil testing kit so will test it again and see what changed.
If it’s been clover in the past I am really lost. Clover builds N, which should make the brassica go nuts. Not sure what to tell you, seems like the perfect sensrio. Is the area really shaded? Brassica needs sun, not all day, but 4-5 hours minimum. Do you have a pic of the plot? Maybe it is overseeeded. I am reaching here, but I am out of answers.
This one is about a week ago. Not a great picture but the best I have. It is surrounded by trees, but gets at least 5 hours of sun every day.
IMAG0494.jpg
It looks really wet. Is it always that way or is the picture just after a heavy rain. Clover does quite well in wet heavy soil because of the short roots. Brassica on the other hand has long root that may be getting drown.
I planted my brassica July 12th so it does have a good 2 weeks of extra growing time than yours. Give it time, maybe the cool summer, lots of rain has it running a little behind schedule this year. Other than that I am clueless as to what the problem might be.
If you’ve tried other mixes with similar results than it isn’t the seed. It has to be soil or environment.
Plot looks very wet, but that could be coincidence.
Grouse
It had just rained. It isn’t normally that wet. What I planted last year was a different brand. Came in better but no bulbs. This year it came in poor and stayed that way.
I wish I could help John, I really do, but I am lost for an answer.
Where is Bob when we need him? He is the expert on this.
I expect that I will be going back to clover next year. I’ll test the soil again and see if something got way out of whack. Might just not be a good fit for brassicas. Just wanted to give the deer something other than clover. They have access to corn, beans, and alfalfa already.
Might be worth considering some forage oats, rye, or the like?
I’m going to try a second plot next year with a strip of forage oats down the middle and clover along the outside edges. I’ve heard the deer really hammer oats when everything else starts to brown out in the fall.
Just a thought.
Grouse
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