A delicious staple found in crisper drawers around the country, cauliflower is another member of the Cole crop family, making it a relative to cabbage and broccoli. The cauliflower grows in a head, similar to a cabbage or lettuce, but its edible portion is actually its flower, like broccoli. Cauliflower is one the more difficult vegetables to grow in a home garden due to its temperature sensitivity.

Are you going to plant cauliflower in your garden? According to our research, we don’t recommend planting rue and strawberries near cauliflower in the garden.

Cauliflower calls for nitrogen and potassium-rich soil beds that retain moisture, as the cauliflower is a very water-demanding vegetable.  In warmer climates, plant your seedlings in fall/early winter, and in cooler climates, plant in spring for a fall harvest. When planting cauliflower, be sure to give each plant about 2 feet of space to grow, and make a small depression around the stalk of the seedling, to help water reach directly to the root system as it develops. When growing a white-headed variety of cauliflower, when the head grows to the size of a fist, the head should be blanched. To do this, simply fold over a few of the plant’s leaves to loosely cover the head, and secure them in place with twine or rubber bands.

Harvesting your cauliflower is a fairly simple process that requires a sharp knife to separate the head and a few leaves from the remainder of the plant. It’s important to monitor your crop leading up to harvest to ensure that none of the buds on the head have opened yet, otherwise the cauliflower can be bitter tasting and have a rice-y consistency instead of the tight curds that are desired.