Chinese Kale (Brassica oleracea alboglabra)

Family: Brassicaceae or Cruciferae | Edibility: Edible (3/5)

Brassica oleracea alboglabra is a PERENNIAL growing to 0.5 m (1ft 8in) at a fast rate. It is not frost tender. It is in flower from May to August, and the seeds ripen from July to September. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Bees. The plant is self-fertile. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils, prefers well-drained soil and can grow in heavy clay soil.

Edible Parts & Harvest Seasons

Edible Parts: Leaves, Flowers

Harvest Seasons: Early Summer, Spring

Flavor & Culinary Uses

Delicious if used when fairly young though they can become tough with age. — Young flowering shoots and small leaves- raw or cooked.; Delicious if used when fairly young though they can become tough with age.; Older stems should be peeled.; All parts of the growing plant are used, including the developing inflorescence.

Habitat & North American Range

Not known in the wild, it probably originated in the Mediterranean and is very close to B. oleracea costata, the Couve tronchuda. (Zone 4, Zone 5, Zone 6, Zone 7, Zone 8)