Other Years

Ball Cabbage

2010
July 6: I bought 9 plants of the Copenhagen variety for 50 cents at Rona. Copenhagen is an heirloom early ball type cabbage.
August 6: I sprayed with BT against caterpillars. I hope BT keeps from year to year because this was last year's bottle.
 
2009
July 8: I bought 2 packs of cabbage seedlings from Sobey's, 50 cents a pack, and got 5 Golden Acre green cabbage seedlings and 5 red cabbage seedlings.
9: I set them out in the spaces in the garden.
August 3: Doing fine.
25: Sprayed with BT against the cabbage white caterpillar.
September 16: The BT was quite effective, and they are still growing.
November 3: I harvested about 5 heads. The other plants had not formed heads yet.
 

Taiwanese Cabbage

Young Taiwanese Cabbage, 2007

2008
April 24: I planted 9 seeds in 9 cells.
28: 1 sprout.
May 2: I set 6 plants out with cutworm collars.
3: Frost last night. They look ok this morning but were clearly not well in the afternoon.
5: They were goners. I plants 2 new seeds in each of their collars.
15: 1 sprout.
24: 3 sprouts, still with only their cotyledons.
June 16: Three still growing.
October 8: They looked good 3 weeks ago but lately they have begun stretching upwards.
 
2007
May 13: I sowed a row of Taiwanese cabbage in the garden. When I was at T&T seeds a few weeks ago, an oriental customer recommended them. He said they don't have any of the bitterness of regular cabbage, so I thought I'd try them.
26: There were a couple of sprouts yesterday and more today.
December 31: I harvested some medium size cabbages at the end of the season.
 

Ornamental Cabbage

Ornamental Cabbage, 2003

2003
May 3: I started 12 seeds in a 6-pak, 5 mm deep.
8: 1 sprout.
May 22:  Sprouts in the vermiculite.   As there appeared to be only 1 sprout in the cells, a few days ago I started all the rest of my seeds in vermiculite.   Then 3 more seeds sprouted in the cells, and now the ones in the vermiculite have sprouted too.
June 18:  I set out 10 small plants, in an area where they are surrounded by a mulch of lawn clippings.
July 29:  They are doing fine, but are crowding against each other now.   They attract cabbage white butterflies, but there don't seem to be too many holes.
August 14:  Alley discovered flea beetles on them today, so I dusted them with rose dust.   I had been intending to do that anyway against cabbage white caterpillars.
August 26:  The flea beetles killed most of the leaves but the inner leaves seem to be developing again.
October 16:  They are attractive medium-sized plants now.
 
2001
May 6: I sowed 18 seeds of MacKenzie ornamental cabbage seeds into a 9-pak.
May 18: 4 sprouts. They were in the basement until about 4 days ago, when I brought them up.
May 27: I set my 6 plants outside. I hope the tent caterpillars don't get them!
June 6: None left.
June 18: I set out my last plant.
July 20: It is coming along.
December 31: It was surrounded and hidden by other plants. When I cleared them away, I found that the leaves had all been eaten, leaving only a stalk. It tried. I guess it needed insecticide.
 
1999
May 29: I sowed 10 seeds of Osaka White ornamental cabbage seeds, from 1994. I put them on the soil surface then covered them with 1 cm of vermiculite.
June 4: 3 sprouts, but the roots of 2 of them are too exposed.
11: 5 sprouts. I bought a package of McKenzie ornamental cabbage seeds, and planted 13 seeds, favouring the reddish seeds.
14: Sprouts.
19: I set them out.
June 30: Coming along.
July 4: I applied cygon to the leaves, which are rather badly eaten.
27: Although the cygon worked, the problems is actually slugs. I spread slug pellets (metaldehyde) around the garden in the evening, especially among the cabbages.
August 2: Rose dust against caterpillars. Most of the plants are a fair size, and the slow ones are coming along now too.
31: The same.
November 21: They still look fine in the garden, but perhaps a little yellow. There was a live caterpillar on one of them!
 
1995
~April 4: Started some seeds.
June 1: Six seedlings were damaged by drying and wind outdoors, resulting in 3 plants into the garden. 2 alive today.
July 29: All dead, except 1 at 503.
 
1994
April 18: I planted 30 Osaka white cabbage seeds.
23: Only 7 sprouts. Moved onto electric blanket. No success. Moved outdoors later--cool bright days, inside at night. Excellent germination!
June 21: 12 plants, mostly along fence, doing well.
July 4: Doing well, some with holes. Dusted with rose dust.
September 4: Doing well. Too lacy from caterpillars. Wasps seemed to limit the caterpillars' effects, but there was still too much damage.
 
1993
September 2—4: Moved them from the main garden to outside the fence, between the marigolds. Although some grew well in their milk cartons, many didn't.
September 30: A killing frost, the first hard one.   Plants still going.