purple sprouting broccoli

If you've found the information on the seed packet to be sadly lacking, this is the place to find out more, or add your comments!

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Nature's Babe
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Does anyone know of a variety of purple sprouting broccoli that does not grow too tall, I planted some last year and it grew really very tall, so the cabbage white butterflies got under the enviromesh.
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John
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I don't know of a smallish variety but one way of getting smaller plants is simply to sow quite late. I don't start my broccoli off until late June/July time. They grow well from a late sowing but just don't get too big. The plants finish up about 2 ft tall. Although each smaller plant is less productive they can be grown at closer spacing so nothing much is lost in the end.

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Colin_M
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This is just a thought (and might be completely wrong) but would pinching out the growing points help?

This might also have the effect of giving you a bushier plant with more areas to produce sprouting heads from? I'm sure others can advise if this is hogwash.... :oops:
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glallotments
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We put insect mesh (a finer sort of net) over ours and it was plenty wide enough to cover them and it was the 'normal height'
Nature's Babe
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Thanks everyone will try all your suggestions and see what progress this year !
Sit down before a fact as a little child, be prepared to give up every preconcieved notion, follow humbly wherever and to whatever abyss nature leads, or you shall learn nothing.
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Johnboy
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Hi Colin,
Pinching out would be the wrong treatment because you pinch/take out the first flower head. (I generally take that first head and eat it raw which I rather enjoy especially with about twenty or so plants)
This forces the plant to produce the succulent side-shoots you are after.
Natures Babe,
I do not know of a dwarf or lower growing variety but I like John do not sow until quite late for my Spring varieties. I now also grow the summer varieties in succession from Feb 1st and then the first day of every month till July which I find are traditionally lower growing. I have just this last weekend sown Rudolph which here starts to produce between Christmas and the New Year.
JB.
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