[bajmoe]

why do my Cauliflowers and calabrese have premature head growth, the leaves are not big enough to cover the curd and protect it from sunlight, other than a overabundance of nitrogen, what else could be causing this condition?

Thanks
Bajmoe

[BabbyAnn]

I wouldn't have thought an overabundance of nitrogen as this would most likely be the cause of headless caulis in favour of foliage.

I could stick my neck out and say that they usually have heads at this time of year?

It could possibly be the weather - warm, then cold, then warm and back to cold - confusing plants into going into seed mode before winter sets in.

Another possibility are roots - maybe a lack of water (?) have stressed the plants into going to seed before they "die" of thirst.  Pot bound plants, even when planted out, retain that pot bound confined root ball so the only feed and water they get is when it rains/being watered.

why do my Cauliflowers and calabrese have premature head growth, the leaves are not big enough to cover the curd and protect it from sunlight

Maybe the leaves will grow as the heads grow?

[mumofstig]

It sounds like they may be bolting due to stress of some kind Were the plants bought from the garden centre - some, purchased in modules, on my friends plot have done the same thing

[rudiplot42]

East Lothian - I bought a dozen cauliflower plants from the local garden centre and all have gone to shot. I believe that this was caused by stress due to the very hot dry weather.

[ally]

Although I have mulched mine to stop the roots getting too hot all of mine have small heads ... So I've started eating them . . . .  Yes they are small but I've got plenty

[3759allen]

my calabrese have all bolted. i'm guessing it's just been too hot for them. it has for me so must've been for them.

[Tea Break]

It depends on which type they are, if they are all year rounders they do tend to bolt in hot weather. one of the best ways round that is to make sure that they have a good mulch in the ground about a spades depth down. this helps with the rooting and searching for any water in dry spells. AS you said you have covered them that helps too. One of the things i was told as a kid is that the cauli is one of the hardest veg to grow just treat it like a lady and you will get at least a 75 to 90%  sucsess rate.

Mike

[goodtogrow]

Cabbage Root Fly?  Clubroot?  Anything which weakens the plant will cause premature flowering, I think, including all of the growing conditions already mentioned.

Also am studying at the moment variability in seedling vigour.  We know that some seed produces weak plants, even seed from the same packet.  My current batch of brassica transplants varies between those which have been attacked by every insect under the sun and those with scarcely a blemish on them.  So I think the vigorous ones have just produced more (chemical) defences which deter pests.

It must be possible to just get unlucky and end up with weak seed, or buy plants produced from weak seed.  Some of my maturing brassicas on the allotment have been hammered by pests and others scarely touched, yet all grown in exactly the same conditions.

I do agree that cauliflowers seem hard to grow, even with good seed, good soil and bonny weather.  So I'm still not sure, and never will be....