vegetable
Kale
Spring and fall. Sweeter after frost. One of the few greens that earns its keep into December in the Midwest.
- Sun
- Sun to part shade
- Spacing
- 12–18 in
- Days
- 50–65
- Zones
- 3a–10a
How to sow
Start indoors 5 weeks before last frost, or direct-sow for fall 6–8 weeks before first frost.
Harvest
Pick lower leaves. Sweeter after a frost.
Mistakes that waste a packet
- Giving up after cabbage worms without a cover
- Only planting in spring
Three packets
Lacinato
FlavorDinosaur kale. Holds texture in soup and in frost.
Winterbor
Short seasonBred to stand the cold. Plant it for fall.
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Related
Tomatoes
Start indoors. Match days-to-maturity to the weeks you actually have after last frost.
Peppers
Need more heat and a longer indoor start than tomatoes. Short-season varieties matter north of zone 7.
Lettuce
The crop that makes a first garden feel like a garden. Sow in spring and again in late summer.
The sow list
A note when it is time to sow
Seasonal, not daily. We will send what to start in your zone, and skip the rest of the year.
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