Cauliflower is not an ordinary garden crop. This is the rare case when not fruits, root crops or even leaves are eaten, but unopened inflorescences. They are fried, pickled, salted or consumed as one of the ingredients of vegetable winter salads.
Is it easy to grow a plant like cauliflower? Growing and caring for this cultivar involves following certain rules: timely planting, temperature conditions, proper watering and periodic fertilizing. Cauliflower is a photophilous, thermophilic and hygrophilous plant, but with proper agricultural technology you can get an excellent crop.
However, the following phenomenon is often observed in the beds - cauliflower is not tied, that is, inflorescences that are used as food are not formed. Or unopened buds appear, but they do not combine into a dense and dense inflorescence, but look loose and sparse.
So, let's try to answer the question of why cauliflower is not tied. After all, if there are no ovaries, there will be no harvest. Meanwhile, cauliflower is several times higher than cabbage in terms of protein, vitamin C and mineral salts, so this will be a very significant loss for our diet.
The first reason why cauliflower is not tied is the wrong variety. Certain hybrids and some zoned varieties are too sensitive even to slight fluctuations in temperature and humidity, and under stressful conditions do not form an ovary.
Another reason why cauliflower is not tied is a mistake in choosing the time of sowing. Despite the fact that this plant is quite thermophilic, the ovaries form at a temperature not exceeding + 18 ° C. A lower temperature leads to a delayed development, but the inflorescences turn out to be larger. Therefore, seeds and seedlings must be planted so that the formation of buds occurs before intense heat (early varieties) or after it (late varieties).
Another typical reason why cauliflower is not tied up is irregular watering. This culture is hygrophilous, and especially a lot of fluid is required during inflorescence and foliage.
Contrary to popular belief, the lack of nutrients in the garden does not prevent the formation of buds, but the head is loose and sparse. The same can be observed in case of lack of moisture. But the excess of fertilizers harms much more seriously - green leaves that are not consumed come to growth, and as a result huge green bushes without heads are formed on the beds. One of the common mistakes when growing cauliflower is to pick off the lower rosette leaves. Although they are not eaten, they serve as a storehouse of nutrients for inflorescences. Therefore, the head begins to form only after the formation of 7-9 rosette covering leaves.
To obtain a large, dense white inflorescence, it is recommended that, after the formation of the ovaries, slightly shade the head from direct sunlight. To do this, you can use any auxiliary materials, but the easiest way is to slightly break and tilt the upper rosette leaves or simply tie them over the inflorescences.