vegetable · leafy green

Cavolo Nero

The dark crinkled Italian kale. Cavolo nero takes eight to ten weeks, stands through frost, and tastes better for having been through one.

Cavolo Nero seedling
Seedling
Mature Cavolo Nero
Ready to pick
Thrives
8–22°C
Water
Medium
Difficulty
Beginner
Ready in
56–70  days
Spacing
30cm apart
Containers
Yes

How to plant it

  • Plant 30cm apart. Add compost and lime to the soil first to keep club root away.
  • Rotate it with your other brassicas rather than replanting in the same spot.
  • Start picking the lower leaves from eight to ten weeks, working up the stem. The plant keeps growing from the top.
  • Frost improves it. Cold weather turns starch to sugar and the leaves come out sweeter, so leave it in when the weather turns.
  • It freezes well, so a glut is not a problem. Blanch and bag whatever you cannot get through.