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How to grow Kale in the UK

Tough leafy green that keeps going all winter.

• DifficultyA bit more care
• WhereBeds or Pots
• Grows to70cm
• Spacing45cm
• Time to first pickabout 12 weeks

When to sow, plant and harvest kale

Dates are for central England. Sow about two weeks later in the north and Scotland, and up to two weeks earlier in the south and south west. Get the dates for your postcode.

Starting it indoors

1. Fill a small pot or tray with seed compost
2. Push the seeds in (1cm deep) - a couple per pot
3. Water gently, then put them on a bright windowsill
4. Keep the compost damp but not soggy - check it every day
5. When they have 2 proper leaves, give each seedling its own pot

Sowing it outdoors

1. Pull out any weeds and rake the top of your bed until it's crumbly, like cake crumbs
2. Make a little line in the soil (1cm deep) with your finger or a stick
3. Drop the seeds in, about 45cm apart each way
4. Gently cover them with soil and pat it down
5. Water with a watering can that has a sprinkler head
6. Push in a label so you remember what's there

Planting it out

1. Toughen them up ('hardening off'): put them outside in the day for a week, bring them in at night
2. Dig a hole a bit bigger than the pot
3. Tip the plant out gently, holding the leaves, not the stem
4. Pop it in the hole, firm the soil around it, and water well
5. Space the plants about 45cm apart each way

Top tips for growing kale

• Try 'Cavolo Nero' (dark and crinkly) or 'Redbor' (purple).

Soil and feeding

Firm, rich soil that isn't acidic. Add manure or compost the season before, then firm the soil well - tread it down! Loose soil makes floppy plants.

Pests and problems

• Wood pigeons: strip the soft young leaves off peas, beans and cabbage-family plants
• Cabbage white caterpillars: hatch under the leaves and eat them to lace
• Slugs & snails: munch seedlings overnight, worst in wet weather

• Use netting with small holes (butterfly netting) so butterflies can't lay eggs
• Bend canes or plastic pipe into hoops over the row
• Stretch netting over the hoops, pulled tight so birds can't get tangled
• Peg or weigh down the edges so nothing can sneak underneath
• Check it every day

Harvesting and eating kale

Pick the lower leaves a few at a time. It keeps growing from the top.

How to eat them: Rub with oil and salt and bake for 10 minutes to make kale crisps.

Storing kale

Keeps about 1 week.

• Keep in a bag in the fridge - or just leave it on the plant and pick when needed

Pull the leaves off the tough stalks, blanch them (dip in boiling water for 2 minutes, then straight into icy water - ask a grown-up to help), squeeze and bag.

Good varieties of kale

• Nero di Toscana: Dark, crinkly Italian kale (cavolo nero).
• Dwarf Green Curled: Short, curly and tough as old boots.
• Redbor: Frilly purple-red leaves.

Companion planting

Grows well with

• Nasturtiums: caterpillars go for nasturtiums instead of your kale
• Salad leaves: lettuce grows quickly between young kale plants
• Calendula (pot marigold): brings hoverflies, whose babies eat greenfly
• Sweet alyssum: tiny wasps and hoverflies that eat greenfly and caterpillars
• Cosmos: brings hoverflies and tiny wasps that eat pests
• Lavender: its smell may confuse cabbage white butterflies
• Dill: its flowers bring hoverflies and tiny wasps that eat greenfly and caterpillars
• Sage: may confuse cabbage white butterflies
• Thyme: may confuse cabbage white butterflies

Keep away from

• Strawberries: cabbage-family plants can stunt strawberries

Saving your own kale seed

It only makes seed in its second summer.

1. This plant flowers in its second year, so leave one or two strong plants in the ground over winter
2. Next summer they grow tall and flower - bees love them
3. Cut the seed heads when they're brown and dry, and shake out the seeds
4. Cabbage-family plants cross with each other, so seed may not come true

Things to build for kale

• Hoop tunnel cover:
• Cold frame:

Where to buy kale seeds

Thompson & Morgan · Suttons · Amazon

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Kale questions

When should I sow kale in the UK?

In the UK, sow kale indoors from mid March to mid May or outdoors from mid April to mid June. These dates suit central England; sow about two weeks later in the north and Scotland and up to two weeks earlier in the mild south and south west.

When do I plant out kale?

Plant kale out from mid May to late July.

When can I pick kale?

Kale is ready from early September to mid March. Pick the lower leaves a few at a time. It keeps growing from the top.

How long do kale take to grow?

Roughly 12 weeks from sowing or planting until the first harvest.

Are kale easy to grow?

Kale are rated 'a bit more care' for beginners, and can be grown in the ground or a raised bed or in pots and containers.