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market-farming - Re: [Market-farming] Broccoli raab

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  • From: E C GRANATA <elainegranata AT msn.com>
  • To: Market Farming <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Broccoli raab
  • Date: Mon, 15 Feb 2010 12:50:03 -0700

I've been doing spring and fall rapini for years.  Seeds of Italy says that rapini has a very short/quick harvest window-- when it's ready, it's ready and two days later it's gone to flower, so I'm careful to succession plant and harvest when the heads are at the right stage.
 
Have learned to grow non-heading rapini varieties and longer maturity rapini-- up to 60+ days.  I think I've put them in as early as late March and they were ready in May; last year I planted on May 5th and 18th and harvested from June 9-29th (to match my CSA season).  It grows back with shoots if you leave a couple of inch stem and I harvested those till July 6th. 
 
In '08 I fall planted on Aug 11th and harvested from Sept 17th till Nov 19th-- again two different maturity dates, Quarantino and Sessantino.
 
Elaine
Denver, Zone 4b-5 

Date: Mon, 15 Feb 2010 10:54:10 -0800
From: chriscreid AT yahoo.com
To: market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org
Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Broccoli raab

Bob said:
 
Raab is best grown as you would grow mustard greens. Don't grow it as broccoli. In NJ farmers seed it in late October into early November and over wintered to harvest ASAP. usually before April. A day or two over 70 degrees will cause Raab to bolt. Its a plant that definately wants cool weather start to finish... Bob.

I reply:
 
thanks, Bob.  That's a good clear parameter to watch out for.
 
Last late July I used 30% shade cloth to start fall snap peas in a hot garden and it worked out well.
 
I am wondering if shading the raab on unseasonably warm days would help, or if the temp is so far out of whack when it's 70 that shade cloth will not do enough .
 
Just thought I'd ask -- this is a problem I see over and over again but have yet to solve.  I don't know how many customers will balk at raab with yellow flowers on it.  Unlike other plants that bolt and taste bad, it seems to taste okay to me with the yellow flowers on it.

Scheepers I think sells a raab called Marzatica that they say you should plant in fall and overwinter.  (maybe translated out of Market-ese, it just means it is very sensitive to bolting?)  I have some Marzatica in cold frames planted in late fall and will be watching to see how they do.  Other years probably planted too late by Bob's reckoning, they have bolted before they amounted to anything.
 
Chris Reid
Stamford, CT




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