Kitchen Garden Forum

Can anyone grow this ? I mean, to get nice fat bulbs like the ones you buy ? Mine either bolt, or make rather flat, stringy bulbs. I noticed on Gardener's World a while ago that Joe Swift's results did not look much better than mine, although he seemed pleased with it. Can anyone share how to get proper bulbs ? Without moving to Italy

Grown it once, didn't grow very big. plus no-one really liked it
Jane

I find autumn sowings do well, sown about now, in fact. Also, it doesn't seem to do well raised in modules: that thick taproot needs to be allowed to grow unhindered. If you do sow now, direct sowings will germinate quickly in a warm soil. Not much growth is then made until next spring, by which time the taproot will have gone right down to where it can bring up uninterrupted nutriment, which is what fennel seems to need to be succulent and not stringy. Your fennel may develop quite fat bulbs, which is satisfying, but in my view size does not really matter and I leave mine quite dense within the row and harvest each as it reaches a usable size, which really isn't all that large. It will always eventually bolt, but spring-sowin fennel tends to bolt before it has had as much opportunity as autumn-sown, which is why it is seldom as successful.

By coincidence I harvested some Florence fennel today and it was almost the same size as shop-offered ones. I sowed them (variety di Firenze) on 29 June in long roottrainers and planted them into the ground on 28 July.
I have never sown them as late as suggested by Felix but certainly learnt over the years that it's no good planting them out too early - they always bolt.

Another veg that needs continuious growth and no check to it, plenty of water especially in our dry summers and no drying out. worth persevering with if you like it.

Beryl.

I'm not a fan but my wife likes them and we gave a couple away this year that were well received. Achieved by moving to Italy; well not quite, grew them in the polytunnel. Sown in modules 11th May and planted out 17th June (fits with Monika's month in rootrainers) but I haven't recorded when they were harvested, they were quite large. Another batch are growing nicely at the moment that were sown 12th July and planted 3rd August.

Had a great crop this year. Started them off in individual cells and planted them out into a well manured bed.

Mine turned out quite well - eventually! Sown direct the first lot bolted right from little before they even bulbed so I pulled them & just put another seed in the same spot. I am now harvesting small but perfectly formed fennel, about 6 inches or so wide which is just how I like them as they are not my favourite but OK for a flavour boost. I'll cover them soon so they don't get frosted as still have another dozen or so about the same size.

Westi

Westi wrote:Mine turned out quite well - eventually! Sown direct the first lot bolted right from little before they even bulbed so I pulled them & just put another seed in the same spot. I am now harvesting small but perfectly formed fennel, about 6 inches or so wide which is just how I like them as they are not my favourite but OK for a flavour boost. I'll cover them soon so they don't get frosted as still have another dozen or so about the same size.

Westi

6 inches isn't small, Westi.

The ones in the shops can be huge but these are little in comparison to them so I just considered them small. Blessed by the Indian Summer they matured enough to give a crop.

The other thing I am monitoring is the Pak Choy which I separated out from the stir fry mix and planted separately & they also seem to be enjoying it - obviously just enough warmth to not bolt but to grow!

Westi

Westi wrote:The other thing I am monitoring is the Pak Choy which I separated out from the stir fry mix and planted separately & they also seem to be enjoying it - obviously just enough warmth to not bolt but to grow!

Like fennel, pak choi behaves itself when days are getting shorter. I should have emphasised this point in my earlier post, but I thought it was received wisdom that many crops naturally run to seed with lengthening days, and are better summer sown, on or approaching mid June after when days start to shorten. They then put everything into vegetative growth, to build up to flower the following year. This applies to most Oriental greens (pak choi et al), and also to fennel. So Monika's success from sowing in June fits in well with this model. When these crops are spring sown, it is possible to lavish nutrients and water on them to delay their bolting, but it's a battle.