Cauliflower can be a funny one to grow for the first time, as it’s hard to feel that it is growing properly until the cauliflower head can be seen, and sometimes it can look a bit loose and just not quite right. This article explains what you can expect to see over the next few weeks.
Expect a lot of leaves in August:
It can seem that for ages the plants just grow more and more leaves, and that the cauliflowers themselves aren’t forming. If yours haven’t formed a head in mid-late August, then try to think back to when you planted it out. You would normally expect to see the head about 3 to 4 months after planting out. So if you only planted it in July, then you probably won’t see a head forming for another few weeks. However, if you planted them back in May, then you should hopefully have seen a head forming by now. It could be well tucked out of sight, wrapped up in the centre leaves, so hard to spot until it gets a bit larger.
If you planted in April/May, and think it should have formed a heart by now but you’re not seeing anything, it could be that the plant suffered during a long dry spell and got too hot, or perhaps that the soil is a little loose for them. You can still leave them in the ground for a little longer, and hopefully the cauliflower heads will come through soon.
Hope for a cauliflower head in September:
If you can see a small head forming in September, then things are looking good. Once it reaches about 5-8cm in diameter you can tie the outer leaves around the head using an elastic band or twine to hold it in place. This helps to keep the nice white colour rather than seeing the cauliflowers turn a bit yellow from the weather. Once you’ve done that you should be expecting to harvest the cauliflower around 2-3 weeks later.
If you planted in late June/July, then all this will be delayed for a few weeks – if this is you, you could expect to see the heads forming in October/November.
Harvest might begin in October:
Try to harvest before the heads start to open up. For those that planted out in April/May and June, this is likely to be in October.
For those planted later, you may be more likely to harvest in December.
Problems?
As ever, all these things are so dependent on your own plot, on weather conditions, soil conditions and so on. The key is to check regularly and think to when you planted out – add 3-4 months, and that should be roughly the time when the head begins to form.
It is possible that no head will form at all due to prolonged drought or unfavourable soil conditions. Remember, you can use the leaves much like cabbages, so all is not lost if this is the case. Sometimes the plants will produce lots of small florets instead of one tight head. Again, this is likely to be due to hot, dry conditions. You may find it helps to mulch cauliflowers next year to keep moisture in the soil, and water more frequently to keep the soil cool. They also need a lot of organic matter, so dig in some compost before planting, and firm them in really well.