• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Heavy Petal

Gardening for everyone

  • About
  • Journal
  • Small-Space Vegetable Gardens
You are here: Home / Small-Space Vegetable Gardens / Growing Kale: The Virtuous Vegetable

Growing Kale: The Virtuous Vegetable

April 8, 2021 by Andrea Bellamy 2 Comments

Curly kale close up
Curly kale is ideal for stirring into soups and stews, where other ingredients can cling to its ruffled edges.

I had a run-in with vegetarianism that started during tenth grade and ended, abruptly, with fried chicken devoured in front of an Athens food stall. (It was carnival. There had been bouzouki. And retsina.) Months later, back at university, I promised myself I’d once again foreswear meat. And this time, I’d do it right: I’d break my dependance on peanut butter and banana, mac and cheese. I’d actually eat—gasp!—vegetables.

I remember cooking a meal for a group of friends. Most of them were likely either vegetarian or sympathetic—it was, after all, Victoria, the 90s, and we were a group of earnest Liberal Arts majors. I’d prepared what I thought were the most impressively unusual ingredients available. I’m pretty sure I served quinoa or some other soon-to-be-widely-popular ancient grain. I most definitely served kale.

Despite horrifying results (the undercooked stems were tough and inedible; the leaves were desperately in need of seasoning), kale made a few more appearances on my plate during those years. What it lacked in palatability, it made up for with the misguided sense of self-righteousness it provided. When I eventually embraced an omnivorous diet, I abandoned kale—and other foods I’d previously choked down solely for the sake of virtue—with relief. But when, a few years ago, kale literally began making headlines for its incredible nutrient-rich properties (it scored a perfect 1,000 out of 1,000 on the Aggregate Nutrient Density Index scoring system) and the local-food movement went mainstream, I gave kale another—somewhat wary—look.

A zinc pot full of colourful nasturtiums surrounded by golden marjoram and kale
Blue-green Lacinato (Tuscan, or dinosaur) kale makes a lovely addition to any garden. Here it contrasts with golden marjoram.

Turns out I just needed a bit of practice. I’m a kale convert, serving it up at least a couple of times every week during the cold months. And I’m not eating it for the lutein: I actually like the stuff. I’m not alone. “Kale’s time has come,” says Sharon Hanna, Vancouver-based author of the national bestselling The Book of Kale. The once-neglected cruciferous vegetable, used only as a fishmonger’s garnish, is now prized by chefs, beloved by local-food aficionados, and exalted by nutritionists. Everyone, it seems, wants a piece of kale. Despite its superstar, superfood status, the best reason to love kale, says Sharon, is because it’s easy to grow. “I was working on a book about the top six no-fail edibles, but I felt like I was lying to people. Everything requires a bit of work—even kale—but when it came down to it, kale was the only one I felt good about calling foolproof. So I wrote a book on it.”

Kale can be planted as early as March for harvest in summer (sooner for baby greens), but it does best grown for the winter garden. “Cold unmasks the sweetness in kale,” explains Sharon. “Kale harvested after a frost is just that much better.” That might help explain why the kale I used to make, likely imported from California, never blew my mind. For frost-sweetened kale, plant sometime between May and July (varieties like Lacinato and Winterbor take longer to mature, so plant them in early May; Red Russian and Redbor can be planted as late as early July) for harvest all through fall, winter, and next spring. If, like me, you find your garden space at a premium during summer, take Sharon’s advice and sow in pots. Then, when your zucchini or tomatoes vacate the premises, transplant your kale starts into the garden. (Or, keep them in containers; they’ll do well there, too, given regular doses of organic fertilizer.)

This year, I plan to plant more kale than ever. And I’ll definitely serve it to friends.

A garden checklist for spring

  • When flower buds appear on your overwintered kale plants, harvest the buds for salads and snacking. The taste is divine.
  • Continue to direct-sow arugula, beets, carrots, collards, kale (try Rainbow Lacinato this year), lettuce, scallions, parsnips, peas, and radishes.
  • Toward the end of May, shop nurseries or the farmers’ market for tomato starts. Resist planting outdoors until nighttime temperatures remain reliably above 10°C.

Related posts:

Default ThumbnailHow to grow kale and make a kale smoothie yellow kale flowerKale blossoms are just about the greatest thing Default ThumbnailThe Growing Challenge: expanding my vegetable-growing horizons Default ThumbnailNow Harvesting: late November

Filed Under: Small-Space Vegetable Gardens, Veggies & Edibles Tagged With: kale

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. shipra says

    October 13, 2013 at 11:08 am

    HI, I really like your blog.
    I am a new gardener and a new blogger myself. Please check my page and blog.
    Your suggestions would be appreciative :)

    http://seedgerminator.wordpress.com/

    https://www.facebook.com/pages/Crazy-Gardner/224618887697315

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

My latest book

The bright, illustrated cover of Small-Space Vegetable Gardens
Small-Space Vegetable Gardens by Andrea Bellamy

newsletter

Subscribe to receive occasional email updates (I promise never to spam you!)

Reader Favourites

Round, cookie-dough-like balls of clay and seed

How to make seed balls

Colourful quinoa plants in bloom

Would you grow your own grains?

This proves it. Chickens are hot.

Categories

  • Annuals
  • Blogging
  • Bulbs and Tubers
  • Composting
  • Critters and wildlife
  • Events
  • Garden Design
  • Garden Tours
  • Gardens to Visit
  • Green Gardening & Living
  • Holiday
  • How To
  • Indoors
  • Inspiration
  • Miscellaneous
  • My garden
  • Outdoor Living
  • Pacific Northwest
  • Perennials
  • Ponds & Water Gardening
  • Raving and Whining
  • Resistance is fertile
  • Resources
  • Retail Therapy
  • Shrubs & Trees
  • Small-Space Vegetable Gardens
  • Sugar Snaps and Strawberries
  • Uncategorized
  • Veggies & Edibles
  • WTF?
  • Home
  • About

Copyright © 2023 · Infinity Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in