growing big delicious kohlrabis is not only easy but also very rewarding in
today's episode we have five growing tips for you to grow your best kohlrabis ever
let's jump into tip number one you won't get high quality vegetables unless you're using high
quality seeds I'll leave some links to the seeds I've used so do check it out here for example
we are growing two varieties terek and kosak which are great kohlrabi varieties to grow kohlrabis
grow better started from seeds rather than direct sowing so starting them four to six weeks before
transplanting is a good idea make sure you use sterile seed starting mix to start your seeds
once you've sowed the seeds keep them moist by bottom watering as you see here
and keep it in a humid environment for the seeds to germinate here we are using
a greenhouse dome cover to create humidity for faster germination five days since sowing
you can see that the seedlings have emerged but do not transplant them at this time
they need to develop a little more so give them a few more days and they will be ready soon
at 20 days since planting you can start transplanting the seedlings
we will show you how to transplant these seedlings in both raised beds and in containers
first we will plant them in raised beds
our raised bed contains a great mix of organic matter and worm castings
this creates a perfect combination of nutrients for these plants to grow and thrive
tip number two space plants about four inches apart
you must separate each seedling and plant it separately
do not crowd them and do not plant multiple plants together
they grow best when they are spaced apart like these
container planting kohlrabis or german cabbage also grow very well in containers
you can space them in a similar way as you would space them in a raised bed
here we are planting them along the edge of a fruity container we have
always be on the lookout to maximize growing space in your garden once again our soil
is a good mix containing organic matter worm castings and added perlite for better drainage
which brings us to tip number three amend your soil with organic matter and worm castings
kohlrabi loves a good mix of micronutrients in the soil for producing good sized bulbs
and once again you can see that the spacing of the plants is done as per our earlier tip
now i have direct sowed kohlrabi plants before but i found that there are several problems
with direct sowing problems like seedlings drying out or being cut by cut worms so it's
always a good idea to grow from transplants some gardening stores also sell transplants
so if you want to save time grow from transplants this will buy you about four to six weeks of time
and that brings us to tip number four avoid using high nitrogen fertilizers kohlrabis will
grow with high nitrogen fertilizers or all-purpose fertilizers but the high nitrogen content in them
encourages the growth of leaves more than the bulb and this results in kohlrabis that are very tiny
in size and have large leaves so be careful and do not add any additional fertilizers for kohlrabi
in your soil if you already have rich organic matter the only exception is if you are using
sterile soil which does not have any nutrients add very little fertilizer preferably a vegetable
fertilizer with high phosphorus content which is the middle number to encourage the growth
of bulbs i still do not recommend adding all-purpose fertilizer for growing kohlrabi
also make sure that you water your plants well after transplanting
so let's look at the harvest now first from the containers just look at the large bulb
this is how your kohlrabi or german cabbage should look like
nice big sized bulbs i usually remove the bottom leaves before storing them
you can see the kohlrabi here it's beautiful
let's go ahead and harvest the rest as well as you can see since these were grown in
the summer season they have a lot of insect damage from butterflies laying eggs on them
which in turn become caterpillars to control insects you can spray with neem oil or bt
which are both organic insect control methods however since i don't use the leaves much
i did not use any pest control on these plants even with the plant leaves don't look very good
i can be assured that this is a very clean and organically grown vegetable full of flavor and
this is our first harvest which looks great slugs will also damage kohlrabi plants i don't think the
damage is significant enough so a few blemishes here and there do not matter much to me however if
you're concerned just come out in the late evening hours and you can see the snails on your plants
and if you do just toss them out and that's it you'll be harvesting totally flawless kohlrabis
and we have tip number five kohlrabis grow best in the cooler months of fall and spring
in areas like southern California you can grow them year round
but they do grow best in the cooler months
and have some problems as you saw with insect damage in the summer months
and that's a lot less in the cooler months and finally here is the harvest from our raised bed
once again the leaves have a bit of damage but just look at the bulbs they are amazing
great size bulbs with a lot of flavor kohlrabis tastes like a mild version of turnip they have
a very unique taste and are actually called by a lot of different names around the world
so there we have it folks those were our five tips for growing great quality kohlrabi in your
home garden if you like this video do hit that like button if you have any questions or comments
post them in the comments box below we'll see you again soon happy gardening