DELIVERY INFO: If you order spring plants today we expect to ship from mid-May onwards. - See FAQs for more info.
Broccoli – Purple Sprouting (Autumn)
(10 Plug Plants)
Ready-to-plant organic plugs
Good for raised beds
Plant from spring to early autumn
Shipped within 3-5 days
£5.99
Out of stock
Easy to grow, beautiful colour and fantastic flavour
This delicious variety of purple sprouting broccoli will produce fantastic coloured broccoli spears during late winter and early spring, possibly as early as February if mild. You can expect to then enjoy harvesting the broccoli spears for several weeks, usually into May when you can pull the plants up to replace with a spring planting. You will receive a growing guide with the plug plants.
Number of plants: 10 plug plants
Variety: Purple Sprouting (organic*)
In the kitchen: Try stir-frying purple sprouting broccoli with a little garlic and chilli or boil/steam for just a few minutes so that the florets become tender.
Array
(
[name] => Broccoli
[blogtitle] => More About Growing Broccoli
[blogintro] => Broccoli is a brassica, and has all the same needs as other members of the brassica family, like cabbages, kale and cauliflower. The articles below will help you get started.
[blogs] => Array
(
[0] => WP_Post Object
(
[ID] => 3642
[post_author] => 4
[post_date] => 2016-05-04 09:17:29
[post_date_gmt] => 2016-05-04 08:17:29
[post_content] =>
The brassica family is a big one in the veg world with the likes of broccoli, cauliflower, cabbages, kale, turnips, swede, and Chinese cabbages all playing a part. As it's such a big family, we thought it was worth bundling them all together for a few top tips...
Why grow them?
They have a good reputation for providing plenty of vitamin C and they have properties that many believe can prevent cancer cells from building. To keep all the goodness in when you cook them, try steaming or stir-frying. Boiling them takes out a lot of the nutritious value. We’re particularly fond of broccoli and cabbages stir-fried with a little freshly chopped garlic, red chilli and ginger with a squeeze of lime and a drop or two of soy sauce. Delicious!
Growing them:
They are easy to grow in the UK and can all be looked after in much the same way. Choose a nice sunny site with deep, moisture retentive soil (a raised bed is ideal for brassicas) and plant them 30-40cm apart. When you plant them, we’d advise not giving them any water for a few days. This encourages them to put their roots down nice and deep which will make them stronger as they grow.
During dry spells water them regularly, to make sure they don’t dry out, but other than that you’re best to leave them to their own devices. With their nice deep roots they won’t have too much trouble finding the water that they need.
What to look out for:
You’ll need to protect them from frosts when it’s chilly - some horticultural fleece loosely draped over them should do the trick. And we highly recommend putting a brassica collar around the base of the baby plants to protect against cabbage root fly which is a real pain! You can buy these collars from a garden centre or cut a 15cm circle out of cardboard or old carpet, make an incision from the outside edge to the centre of the disc and lay it around the base of the stem. The reason for doing this is to prevent the cabbage root fly from laying their eggs here. If the eggs are laid and hatch, the maggots bury down into the roots and slowly destroy your lovely brassicas. And probably the first you’ll see of it is slow growth and a wilting plant.
Our favourites:
Cavolo Nero - loads of nutrition in just a few leaves
Red Cabbage - so good looking and really tasty
Pak Choi - brilliant in stir fries
[post_title] => A bit about Brassicas
[post_excerpt] =>
[post_status] => publish
[comment_status] => open
[ping_status] => open
[post_password] =>
[post_name] => a-bit-about-brassicas
[to_ping] =>
[pinged] =>
[post_modified] => 2016-05-04 09:23:46
[post_modified_gmt] => 2016-05-04 08:23:46
[post_content_filtered] =>
[post_parent] => 0
[guid] => https://www.rocketgardens.co.uk/?p=3642
[menu_order] => 0
[post_type] => post
[post_mime_type] =>
[comment_count] => 0
[filter] => raw
)
[1] => WP_Post Object
(
[ID] => 61559
[post_author] => 4
[post_date] => 2022-08-17 13:58:48
[post_date_gmt] => 2022-08-17 12:58:48
[post_content] => Planting up in September or October will keep your veg patch productive, giving you a home harvest right through till next spring. Growing in autumn requires less work and attention, and is well worth it for the supply of healthy greens over the colder months!
Below is an FAQs guide to planting and growing in autumn.
What can I grow?
SALAD LEAVES: Salad lovers can enjoy tasty Mustard Leaves, Mizuna, Wild Rocket and WinterLettuce varieties that are all suitable for the colder months. There's also a fun range of other leaves that are great for winter salads, like Landcress (which has a similar flavour to watercress), Winter Purslane (a small leaf with spinach like flavour) and Corn Salad.
PERFECT FOR STIR FRIES:Pak Choi and Tatsoi are great to grow during the colder months as it is their natural 'leafy' season and they are less likely to bolt as they so often do in the summer months. You can plant Spring Onions in autumn for a late winter/early spring harvest.
HEALTHY GREENS: Kale, Chard and Spinach grow well over autumn and winter, and you should get plenty of leaves from them if using as a cut and come again. Winter Greens and Spring Greens can be grown for harvesting whole and you can plant Sprouting Broccoli varieties for spring cropping.
ROOTS: You can grow turnips and swede in autumn, and they'll provide you with a crop in late winter/early spring.
When can I plant?
September and October are the main months for autumn planting. We'll be despatching from early September until mid/late October when the weather usually starts to get a bit cooler.
Will it take up lots of time?
Plants actually don't need very much attention over autumn and winter, as pests and weeds are fewer and rain is more frequent! This makes it a bit easier for those who are off at work most of the week and unable to tend to their plots during the week, as you'll only need to spend an hour or so in the veg patch at weekends.
What you will need to allow for is a bit of time when you are planting as this can take a few hours, especially if you are putting up any netting or fleece tunnels (more on that in a moment). You will massively reduce the amount of time needed by applying a mulch at planting time as this will help to keep weeds, pests and disease under control.
Other than that you'll probably find that you can get away with doing very little other than popping down slug traps, checking that plants are ok from time to time and harvesting things as and when you want to eat them. We find we may spend an hour or two in the veg patch at weekends, but not necessarily every week.
How do I care for my veg plants?
At planting time:
Add a 5cm layer of mulch, ideally organic compost before planting as this will help to keep weeds down, will improve the quality of the soil and will help to keep the roots of the plant protected from frost/snow.
Net cabbages, kales and broccoli to protect them against pigeons and cabbage whites.
Protect tender crops with horticultural fleece tunnels (or grow them in a greenhouse if possible) - winter lettuces
Put down slug traps/prevention - beer traps work well, wool pellets, grit etc
Ongoing care:
Unless you are growing things under cover (in a polytunnel/greenhouse etc) you probably won't need to water them.
Lay horticultural fleece over rows of veg or move pots under cover during frosty/snowy weather.
Keep on top of slugs.
Check the plot for wind/rain damage and keep it clear of debris (fallen leaves/branches etc)
Can I grow in pots?
Absolutely! Growing in pots is actually a really good way of growing your own over autumn and winter as you can move them in and out of shelter as required, and it can be a bit easier to keep slugs at bay. You can grow any of the autumn/winter crops in pots, containers and grow bags so just go for it!
When will I be able to harvest?
Obviously this will depend on the weather and will be affected by cold spells, but as a general idea you could expect the following:
Most of the leafy veg will be able to be harvested as cut & come again throughout the season, from November onwards, particularly if you're growing under cover or are in a milder part of the country. You'll find that growth slows as the temperature drops and the days get shorter. Winter greens should reach maturity in December/January, whilst Spring Greens and Spring Onions will be more like February/March. Broccoli should start sprouting in early spring, hopefully the end of March/early April.
[post_title] => A guide to Autumn Planting & Growing
[post_excerpt] =>
[post_status] => publish
[comment_status] => open
[ping_status] => open
[post_password] =>
[post_name] => beginners-guide-autumn-growing
[to_ping] =>
[pinged] =>
[post_modified] => 2022-08-19 10:11:21
[post_modified_gmt] => 2022-08-19 09:11:21
[post_content_filtered] =>
[post_parent] => 0
[guid] => https://www.rocketgardens.co.uk/?p=61559
[menu_order] => 0
[post_type] => post
[post_mime_type] =>
[comment_count] => 0
[filter] => raw
)
[2] => WP_Post Object
(
[ID] => 6650
[post_author] => 4
[post_date] => 2016-08-10 16:35:59
[post_date_gmt] => 2016-08-10 15:35:59
[post_content] => If you've been growing Purple Sprouting Broccoli plants for the first time this summer, then you may be unsure when to harvest the broccoli. Wait until you see the 'leader' form on the main stalk. Depending on when you planted your broccoli, this could be anytime between very early spring and late spring.
Cut the broccoli head off cleanly, using a knife, so that you get the floret and a couple of inches of stalk. Once this one has been harvested, the side shoots will start to grow faster. As they grow to a decent size, harvest them in the same way, cutting them off sharply with a good amount of stalk, and a couple of leaves here and there too. It'll keep producing for about a month after that first floret is harvested.
Be sure to harvest florets before the little flowers start to open though as it loses flavour at this point.
Towards the end of the season, the spears are likely to become quite spindly, with very thin stems and small florets that flower before the stalk fattens up - we'd recommend just harvesting even though they are very small and tossing them into a stir-fry.
[post_title] => Harvesting Purple Sprouting Broccoli
[post_excerpt] =>
[post_status] => publish
[comment_status] => open
[ping_status] => open
[post_password] =>
[post_name] => harvesting-purple-sprouting-broccoli
[to_ping] =>
[pinged] =>
[post_modified] => 2022-06-20 13:20:15
[post_modified_gmt] => 2022-06-20 12:20:15
[post_content_filtered] =>
[post_parent] => 0
[guid] => https://www.rocketgardens.co.uk/?p=6650
[menu_order] => 0
[post_type] => post
[post_mime_type] =>
[comment_count] => 0
[filter] => raw
)
)
)
More About Growing Broccoli
Broccoli is a brassica, and has all the same needs as other members of the brassica family, like cabbages, kale and cauliflower. The articles below will help you get started.
The brassica family is a big one in the veg world with the likes of broccoli, cauliflower, cabbages, kale, turnips, swede, and Chinese cabbages all playing a part. As it’s...
Planting up in September or October will keep your veg patch productive, giving you a home harvest right through till next spring. Growing in autumn requires less work and attention,...
If you’ve been growing Purple Sprouting Broccoli plants for the first time this summer, then you may be unsure when to harvest the broccoli. Wait until you see the ‘leader’...
So many ideas and prompts on what to do and when. I remember learning so much from my grandad about growing, the weekly ideas is like having a perpetual grandad!
B. K.
“”
The plants arrived in excellent condition packaged with care in good condition. Very happy with everything. Thank you.
D.E
“”
Just received my first order and wow, pleasantly surprised, so pleased. All plants were well packaged and in such a good condition. Never had such good service ?
The 
Growing them:
They are easy to grow in the UK and can all be looked after in much the same way. Choose a nice sunny site with deep, moisture retentive soil (a raised bed is ideal for brassicas) and plant them 30-40cm apart. When you plant them, we’d advise not giving them any water for a few days. This encourages them to put their roots down nice and deep which will make them stronger as they grow.
During dry spells water them regularly, to make sure they don’t dry out, but other than that you’re best to leave them to their own devices. With their nice deep roots they won’t have too much trouble finding the water that they need.
What to look out for:
You’ll need to protect them from frosts when it’s chilly - some horticultural fleece loosely draped over them should do the trick. And we highly recommend putting a brassica collar around the base of the baby plants to protect against cabbage root fly which is a real pain! You can buy these collars from a garden centre or cut a 15cm circle out of cardboard or old carpet, make an incision from the outside edge to the centre of the disc and lay it around the base of the stem. The reason for doing this is to prevent the cabbage root fly from laying their eggs here. If the eggs are laid and hatch, the maggots bury down into the roots and slowly destroy your lovely brassicas. And probably the first you’ll see of it is slow growth and a wilting plant.
Our favourites:
