Crop lessons · Brassicas (cabbage family)
Growing Cabbage in Florida
Brassica oleracea var. capitata · Brassicaceae (cabbage family)
Cabbage is a frost-tolerant, vitamin C-rich crop with a long fall and winter planting season in Florida, in green, red and savoy forms. It needs plenty of water and fertilizer. The two problems UF/IFAS stresses are black rot, which arrives on infected transplants, and caterpillars.1, 2
Planting1, 2
| How to start | transplant (easily transplanted) |
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| Seed depth (inches) | ¼ to ½ |
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| Spacing in the row (inches) | 9 to 16 |
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| Between rows (inches) | 24 |
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| Days to harvest | 85 to 110 from seed; 70 to 90 from transplant |
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SP 103 planting dates: north Sept to Feb, central Sept to Feb, south Sept to Jan. The Gardening Solutions cabbage table gives north Aug to Feb. Buy clean, healthy transplants.
Varieties UF/IFAS lists for Florida1
- Rio Verde
- Flat Dutch
- Round Dutch
- Wakefield types
- Copenhagen Market
- Savoy
- Red Acre
Growing1, 2
| Sun | Plenty of sun (Gardening Solutions). Full sun. SP 103 advises a garden spot with at least six hours of direct sun a day (general advice, not specific to this crop). |
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| Soil pH | 5.8 to 6.3 (SP 103's general target for vegetable gardens on sandy soil; no change is needed anywhere from 5.5 to 7.0). No crop-specific figure was found. |
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| Water | Needs ample moisture. Water early in the morning so leaves dry in the sun, which helps prevent common fungal diseases. |
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| Fertilizer | Needs ample fertilizer (SP 103). General SP 103 advice: broadcast fertilizer at the label or soil-test rate just before planting, then make 2 or 3 light applications during the season just beyond the outer leaves. |
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Cold will not kill cabbage, but frost can damage the leaves; frost cloth helps when temperatures drop.
Pests and diseases in Florida1, 2
- Black rot: A bacterial disease brought in on infected plants, so buy clean transplants. Early signs are stunting, yellowing leaves and blackened veins, sometimes with a yellow wedge-shaped area at the leaf edge.
- Caterpillars, including the cabbage white butterfly's larvae: Scout often; they can eat the heads before you do.
Harvest1, 3
Heads are ready about 85 to 110 days from seed or 70 to 90 days from transplants. Whole cabbage keeps up to about two weeks in the refrigerator (FY1548).
In an aquaponics system4, 5
suited with care
The FAO manual recommends media beds, since heads get too big and heavy for rafts or pipes, and warns that cabbage is nutrient-demanding and unsuitable for systems less than four months old. Ideal growing temperature is 15 to 20 °C; harvest before daytime temperatures reach 23 to 25 °C and shade the plants (20 percent shade net) above 25 °C to delay bolting. pH 6 to 7.2. Watch for cabbage worms, aphids, root maggots and loopers. SRAC 454 notes winter crops such as cabbage tolerate somewhat cooler water.
What this lesson doesn't cover yet
- No UF/IFAS home-garden guidance on how to judge when a cabbage head is ready was found; only days to harvest are given.
- Gardening Solutions lists 'Savoy Red Acre' as one variety where SP 103 lists 'Savoy' and 'Red Acre' separately; the SP 103 list was used.
- The Gardening Solutions broccoli page spells cabbage's variety name 'capita'; FY1548's 'capitata' was used.
Your county extension office and its Master Gardener volunteers can fill these in for your garden.