Such vegetables, the aerial parts of which a person eats, are called cabbage. They have a similar chemical composition. This article will list various cabbage vegetables, their beneficial properties and give tips on their cultivation and storage.
Heading
A fork or head of cabbage is called an overgrown apical kidney. It is surrounded by fleshy leaves located on a shortened stem. This is a poker. The size, color and shape of a head of cabbage directly depends on the variety and varieties of cabbage.
White cabbage
This variety of cabbage vegetables is the most common. Its popularity is due to several reasons. Firstly, its varieties bring a plentiful harvest. Secondly, vegetables have excellent taste. The third advantage is high transportability. Varieties included in this group may vary in size, shape, color.
Red cabbage
In general, the cabbage vegetables that make up this variety are similar in properties to white cabbage. However, they have denser forks. Leaves are colored blue-red or red-violet. They are characterized by increased rigidity.
Savoy cabbage
The loose loose head is represented by yellow-green corrugated leaves. The shelf life of these vegetables and their transportability are inferior to those of white cabbage. Despite this, the Savoy variety is quite common, as it contains a large amount of nitrogenous substances and minerals.
Brussels sprouts cabbage
These cabbage vegetables have an interesting feature: small heads of cabbage are formed in the axils of the leaves. The plant can reach a height of 1 meter. It is located from 20 to 740 head goat weighing 15-20 grams. Brussels sprouts are high in protein, vitamin C and minerals. This variety has the greatest nutritional value.
Chinese cabbage
The head of these vegetables is more loose. It is white at the base and light green at the top. Its shape is elongated. Often, Beijing cabbage is confused with Chinese. However, the latter variety does not head out at all; its leaves are collected in rosettes.
Cauliflower
So, it's time to move on to the second category of cabbage vegetables. This is cauliflower. The main are three varieties:
- Actually cauliflower. A person uses inflorescence for food. It and the pedicel form a head of white, yellow, green or purple. This vegetable is considered one of the best in dietary and even taste. It contains vitamins, mineral salts and a large amount of protein.
- Broccoli is another type of cauliflower. She also has edible inflorescences. They are painted green or purple.
- Romanesco is a cabbage with a milder taste and delicate texture. The edible portion is most often light green. It contains vitamins of groups C and K, as well as carotene.
Stem cabbage
This variety includes turnip cabbage, or kohlrabi. All the useful substances that this vegetable possesses are contained in the stem. That part of it, which is located above the ground, most often acquires spherical or repetitive outlines. It is she who is eaten. The flesh of kohlrabi is more juicy and tender compared to white cabbage. It contains vitamin B 1 , B 2 , C. It is more here than in citrus fruits.
Kale
A special group is formed by non-heading vegetables. Cabbage leaves contain vitamins, proteins and other nutrients. What vegetables belong to this group?
- Bok choy. The leaves of the plant are collected in sockets. Raw they are very rude. A person eats either young plants or only petioles for food. The taste is a bit spicy.
- Kale, or gruenkol - has lace leaves of green or white. The vegetable is exceptionally rich in proteins and calcium, as well as vitamins A, C, K and B.
- Portuguese cabbage is a bit like a salad. The blue-green leaves of an elongated oval shape in raw form are too hard, because of which often the vegetable is boiled or stewed. After heat treatment, the cabbage is still crispy.
- Mitsuna is a vegetable native to Japan, forming a large white root crop. Taste is excellent. The leaves have an unusual appearance: they look as if they were cut with scissors.
- Ta-choi is another kind of kale. She has oval-round leaves of dark green color. The taste is slightly spicy, mustard.
- Kai Lan is a unique kind of cabbage. The fact is that absolutely all aboveground parts are edible in her. The most delicious are the tops of the stems. The taste resembles asparagus, broccoli and kale.
Growing conditions
Cabbage and onion vegetables are considered unpretentious in growing crops. However, it is necessary to observe a number of conditions in order to get a plentiful harvest. First of all, you need to fertilize the soil in the fall. To do this, add manure, humus or compost to it and dig it all up. Mineral fertilizers are not suitable for cabbage, as the culture accumulates nitrates.
Harvest depends on the level of humidity. Water quickly evaporates with the help of large leaves, which leads to an almost instantaneous loss of moisture. If there is insufficient rainfall, you should regularly water the garden. At the same time, an irrigation method that saturates both soil and air with moisture is ideal.
Sowing in soil
There are two ways to grow cabbage. The first option is sowing seeds in open ground. This method will save you the hassle of transplanting plants. It is necessary to prepare small holes. After placing the seeds in them, the wells are covered with glass jars or transparent plastic bottles with a pre-cut house. This will help create conditions close to greenhouse, that is, cabbage will grow faster. Shelter is removed only after the leaves become crowded.
Transplanting
Seedlings can be planted in the ground at any time. However, it is better to use young outlets. This will allow the plant to take root faster in a new place. The vegetable is ready for transplant when it has already formed 2 or 3 leaves.
Before planting, seedlings are abundantly watered, as are the holes. Until the moisture has evaporated, the sockets are placed in the resulting dirt. After that, the soil is watered again. Mulch the soil with wood shavings and eggshells. With this shelter, moisture is stored for a longer time. Moreover, the plant will be protected from pests.
Care
Processing cabbage vegetables is carried out using drugs with fungicidal properties. These include, for example, Prestige. This drug protects the plant from various diseases and pests. With it, you can prevent the appearance of aphids, cabbage flies and cruciferous fleas, as well as defeat fungal diseases on the vine.
Processing cabbage and onion vegetables can be carried out without the use of chemical compounds. For example, insects can be controlled with wood ash, tobacco dust and ground red pepper. This mixture is applied to wet leaves. To protect plants from various pests, you need to plant nearby garlic, nasturtium, marigolds.
Storage of cabbage vegetables
When harvesting cabbage, almost the entire stump is cut, leaving only 2 cm. In order for the vegetables to remain in good condition for a long time, cover leaves must be left. The fact is that they serve as protection against various diseases and injuries. Remove fallen and rosette leaves that do not allow air to penetrate the cabbage. As a result, areas with high temperature and high humidity are formed, which becomes the reason for the propagation of harmful microorganisms.
Cabbage should be stored in piles or pallets. Such storage areas provide good air exchange. The bottom is laid with sawdust, plastic sheets or burlap. In such conditions, vegetables retain their quality for 2-3 months. You can also put cabbage in containers or even store it in bins.
Refrigerators are also suitable for storing cabbage. However, if the head of cabbage is positioned incorrectly, it will begin to rot in a few days. It is necessary by all means to protect the vegetable from moisture. To do this, you can wrap it in cling film or wrap it in paper. If you want to freeze vegetables for cooking the first or second courses, then you will need to rid the cabbage of damaged leaves, wash the cabbage and dry it thoroughly, and then cut it. There are different forms of slicing cabbage vegetables, but housewives most often choose straws. In this form, a vegetable is most conveniently added to various dishes.
Beneficial features
Various types of cabbage began to be cultivated in ancient times. To this day, these vegetables have high nutritional value. Of these, dishes are prepared in many countries of the world. For example, a Russian person cannot imagine a traditional table without cabbage soup, sauerkraut and cabbage rolls. Cabbage vegetables are cut and processed in various ways. Cabbage can be stuffed, baked, stewed, fried, pickled, used as a filling for pies and eaten raw.
Cabbage is of great value in traditional medicine. White cabbage juice contains a large amount of vitamin U, so it is widely used in the treatment of diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. It helps in the fight against purulent wounds and ulcers. Regular consumption of cabbage has a beneficial effect on the general state of health: the level of cholesterol and blood sugar return to normal, excess moisture is removed from the body. You should not get carried away with these vegetables to those people who suffer from spasms of the intestines and biliary tract, as well as acute enterocolitis or increased peristalsis. Cabbage juice is used as a cosmetic product, as it has a rejuvenating effect.