Cabbage is king again.

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Ricard with an H
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Not really, well not for me because I can't grow it without slugs living in the leaves and I don't want to spend all that money on more slug deterrents that may or may not work.

I posted this because of an interesting two page article in todays Independent, it appears kale took over from cabbage. Now cabbage is making a come-back down to the odd keen chef, I didn't know that cavelo nero was a cabbage. They say it's called black cabbage so I am growing cabbage though a type the slugs don't fid hiding places.

Nice eh.

Also no slugs on my curly cabbage so the hispi et-al take a hind-seat in this establishment.

I do love cabbage and though I can buy nice slug free cabbage I dread to think what has been sprayed on them.
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alan refail
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Just to clarify.
Cavolo is the Italian word for all cabbage/kale vegetables.

So Cavolo nero is Black cabbage/kale
Cavolo riccio is Curly kale
Cavolfiore is Cauliflower
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Richard, do watch out for slugs in your Cavolo nero, too! The tiny black ones sometimes hide in the curly bits at the top of the leaf as do the cabbage white caterpillars. At least the caterpillars go white when you steam/boil the leaves, but the little black slugs remain hidden - and you will have meat with your kale/cabbage!
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Ricard with an H wrote:I do love cabbage and though I can buy nice slug free cabbage I dread to think what has been sprayed on them.


There are some crops that do fare better when grown in a large open field. Less nooks and crannies for slugs to hide in. Less cover for birds, rabbits etc that want to eat them - the ones round the edge are always worse than the ones in the middle of the field. More exposed to wind to deter flying insect pests.

Not saying that they don't receive a good dose of agrochemicals, but there are other factors too.
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Evening Richard, some cabbages seem more prone to slug damage than others....i adore Derby Day Cabbage, but this cabbage sits very low, with the bottom leaves resting on the ground, and is also very sweet tasting, so this makes it very attractive to slugs. I have now stopped growing it, but i might try again another year.
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Diane
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I spray my cavolo nero with my own potion of water with an added teaspoon of sunflower oil and a crushed garlic clove. Seems to work ok on slugs and whitefly.
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Also heard a slightly saline solution when watering can help with the slugs & snails but you can never be sure it will trickle down to where the little blighters hide. But hey wash them well when preparing, & when cut up can hide the blemishes - at least they don't affect the taste!

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Ricard with an H
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Did anyone else get the Independent.yesterday, some interesting ways of cooking various cabbage types in there.

Thanks for nudge on languages Alan, I should have worked that out for myself.

It was a shame last years crop of cabbages were so blighted with slugs, it wasn't just the slugs sitting in between leaves that bothered me it was the way they bored holes through the cabbages and got their way right into the inner leaves.

I suppose it was still a move in the right direction that I managed to grow cabbage at all and now as I type we have somewhere in the region of 30mph winds but my kale and broccoli are not only surviving but growing down to my use of enviromesh and the very rich soil I put together for the new raised beds in the paddock area that has very little shelter.

I could do with planting a hedge around the new raised bed area though the cost and what is hard work for me may be too much this year on top of other things I need to do ready for next winter.

The sea buckthorne hedge I planted two/three years ago is now established, the South elevation row is leaning over at almost 45degrees and the wind damage means lots of holes. It doesn't look good though clearly it is doing some sheltering.

Back to cabbages, I noticed one of the recipes in the Indpendent was for cabbage leaves rolled around sausage meat and minced beef, my mother used to make this served on a bed of meaty gravy though their recipe used a tomato sauce. What about brined hispi then, I can't imagine.
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Savoy, or crinkly, cabbage.

Clean and cut up or shred one cabbage.
Heat several tablespoons of olive oil in a large lidded pan.
Add several tablespoons of mustard seeds and fry until they start to pop, stirring constantly. At popping point add the csbbage in pinches, stirring to mix in the seeds.
Stir fry for a few minutes, then add the juice of three or more lemons, giving a last stir or two , put the lid on and turn the heat down.
Needs a few minutes with check stirs to prevent burning.
Serve with more lemon juice available.

Vary all above instructions to meet your tastes.
Should all be just cooked.
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FelixLeiter
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Ricard with an H wrote:I didn't know that cavelo nero was a cabbage.

There was an article by a cookery writer in a recent edition of The Times summarising what's on-trend with all the smart chefs these days. Always good for a giggle. Anyway, Cavalo Nero was one heading, under which all its great qualities were espoused (rightly so, which is why I've been growing it for the last twenty years). Then under another heading, for Kale, recommended varieties were Tuscan Black, Lacinato, Nero di Toscana — all other names for Cavalo Nero. It's all rather a muddle, and the waters are only further muddied by poorly-researched newspaper articles.
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Ricard with an H
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FelixLeiter wrote:Then under another heading, for Kale, recommended varieties were Tuscan Black, Lacinato, Nero di Toscana — all other names for Cavalo Nero. It's all rather a muddle, and the waters are only further muddied by poorly-researched newspaper articles.


Thanks for that Felix, Only in the last six months when I got to be really keen on my new crop of Cavolo Nero did I start reading every article I came across and I already planted Nero di Toscana as a preferred plant (They said) to my Cavolo Nero. Side by side they are growing and of course you can't tell the difference.

My love for dark outer cabbage leaves or spring greens together with the hard to get brussels tops should have got me a recommendation towards Cavolo Nero but the only kale I came across (This far west) during my shopping trips was curly kale chopped up with all the tough stalks included so I floundered for years.

I already have a flatbread recipe to perfect that is topped with Cavolo Nero pesto complimented by roasted garlic mixed into it. I made it once under instruction and it was fabulous. My first solo attempt wasn't good though I hope to report a recipe in the near future, the problems I bumped into were to do with creating sourdough using khorosan and spelt rather than the delicious topping.
How are you supposed to start and maintain a healthy lifestyle if it completely removes a wine lover’s reason to live?
Richard.
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