25-03-2005, 03:09 PM
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In article ,
writes
Hello,
I planted some broccoli seeds (purple sprouting) last year and now
have plants a couple of feet tall. They have purple sprouts forming.
In one plant, these have opened into yellow flowers. So when we eat
broccoli, are we really eating unopened flowers? I never knew that!
Yes :-)
Cauliflower also is unopened flowers.
So, of course, is globe artichoke.
And asparagus is unopened leaf buds.
I presume that now is the time to harvest, before any more open into
flowers.
They're not so good once they've opened, but they're still edible. But
best to keep picking while they're still in bud, and freeze anything you
can't eat.
I did a quick google search and it says that you should snap
off the stem and that the plant will grow side shoots over the next
couple of weeks, which can be harvested later. Is this right?
Yes.
Does it make any difference if I snap, rather than cut?
No.
Will the
plants really produce a second harvest? It seems to me that they will
have to do a lot of growing to do that.
It won't be as full a harvest, but they'll continue to produce further
flower shoots from the side buds, in the same way that a sunflower fill
produce smaller flowers from the side buds if you take the main flower
off before it develops into seeds.
--
Kay
"Do not insult the crocodile until you have crossed the river"
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