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All the experts say you can't really save brassica seeds, because they are too promiscuous, your cabbage and brussels will get all mixed up. Is it true, has anyone tried? What do you need to do to prevent it?

grahamhobbs wrote:All the experts say you can't really save brassica seeds, because they are too promiscuous, your cabbage and brussels will get all mixed up. Is it true, has anyone tried? What do you need to do to prevent it?

What they told us in the workshop is that you can prevent this by cooperating with other growers. Instead of everyone growing brussels and cabbage and broccoli, each grower specializes in one, and then you trade the veggies. That way, each grower doesn't have to worry about cross-pollination.

grahamhobbs wrote:your cabbage and brussels will get all mixed up. Is it true, has anyone tried? What do you need to do to prevent it?

Living in a veggie growing area, I have often noticed rogue cabbages in fields of brussels sprouts. I originally put it down to the seedlings being identical when young but the contractor who planted them said that the weather conditions at planting out sometimes made a brussels plant grow as a cabbage.... I amnot convinced by his theory, but as I don't really like brussels, I was grateful for the *cough* unwanted rogue cabbages in the field next to my house....

Back on thread, I have found that Sorrel is easy to grow and can be cut right back to ground level where it will grow away again. I had two years of good young leaves this way from one plant. I had a wee look inside my big tunnel (now under new management!) and the Sorrel is still growing away nicely in it's fourth year. Sorrel soup is lovely too.