A guide on how to grow Cauliflower from seed to harvest

One of the most popular vegetable that is grown in the world today is Cauliflower. This particular plant belongs to the family of Cruciferous. Cauliflower plants actually work as anti-cancer agent. This particular plant really helps to promotes heart health, it also helps to lower cholesterol levels. Without been told after crops like potatoes and onions, Cauliflower is one of the most consumed vegetable throughout the world on a daily basis. A lot of commercial Cauliflower farmers are really making a lot of profits from there Cauliflower farm. Starting a Cauliflower farm can be very profitable if it is done in a proper way. The following are the conditions and requirement on how to grow Cauliflower from seed to harvest.

The climate requirement

The temperature should be 12-30°C
Rainfall 120-125mm
The sowing temperature should be 25-30°C
The harvesting temperature should be 12-18°C

The soil requirement

One thing about Cauliflower plant is that it can grow well in a wide range of soil from sandy loam to clay. Clay loam soils are preferred for late sown variety, while for early maturing varieties sandy loam soil is recommended. Make sure the soil pH is about 6 to 7. If the pH is low you can add lime.  

The preparation of the land

Make sure you bring the soil to a fine tilth by ploughing the land thoroughly. Also make sure you add a well decomposed cow dung and then mix it well in the soil at the time of last ploughing.

The sowing

June to July is the time for transplanting, for early season variety. But for main season variety, August to mid-September and October to first week of November is actually the best time for transplanting for late varieties.

The spacing of plant

Make sure you use spacing of 45x45 cm for main season crop, why for early and late maturing crop you can use spacing of 45x30 cm.

The sowing depth

Make sure you sow the seeds at a depth of about 1-2 cm.

The sowing method

If you want to sow the seed you can apply dibbling method and transplanting.
Make sure you sow the seeds in nursery and also apply irrigation, fertilizer dose as per the requirement. The seedlings will be ready for transplant within 25-30 days after sowing. For transplantation use 3 to 4 weeks old seedlings.

The seeds rate

The early season variety seed rate should be about 500 gm per acre, why the late and main season variety seed rate should be about 250 gm per acre.

The Cauliflower seed treatment

Make sure you dip the seeds in hot water (50°C for 30 min) or streptocycline@0.01 gm/Ltr for 2 hours Before sowing. Immediately after treatment you can dry them in the shade and then sow on the bed. Don’t forget that blackrot are mostly observed in Rabi. For preventive measure, seed treatment with mercury chloride is very important. You can dip the seeds in Mercury chloride@1 gm/Ltr solution for 30 min after that dry them in shed. Don’t also forget that crops grown in sandy soils are more prone to stem rot. If you want to prevent it carry out seed treatment with Carbendazim 50%WP@3 gm/kg of seeds.

The fertilizer application

Make sure you apply a well decomposed cow dung@40 tonnes per acre in the soil along with Nitrogen@50 kg, Phophorus@25 kg and Potash@25 kg in form of Urea@110 kg, Single Superphosphate@155 kg and Muriate of Potash@40 kg. Make sure you apply the whole quantity of cow dung, SSP and MOP and half quantity of Urea before transplanting. Also make sure you apply the remaining quantity of Urea 4 week after transplanting as top dressing.
If you actually want to get better flower (Curd) set and also to obtain a good yield, you can spray Water Soluble Fertilizer (19:19:19)@5-7 gm/Ltr water during the early plant growth. 40 days after transplanting take spray of 12:61:00@4-5 gram + microneutrients@2.5 to 3 gram + Boron@1 gm per Ltr water. If you actually want to improve the curd quality, you can apply Water Soluble Fertilizer 13:00:45@8-10 gm/Ltr of water at the time of curd development.
Make sure you carry out soil testing and if magnesium deficiency is actually observed, if you want to overcome the magnesium deficiency you can apply magnesium sulphate@5 gm/Ltr, 30-35 days after transplantation and for Calcium deficiency you can apply Calcium Nitrate@5 gm/Ltr, 30-35 days after transplanting.

The weed control in Cauliflower plant

For weed control you can apply Fluchloralin (Basalin)800ml/150-200 Ltr water before transplantation followed by hand weeding 30 to 40 days after transplanting. Also make sure you apply Pendimethalin@1 Ltr/acre one day before transplanting the seedlings.

The irrigation of Cauliflower plant

Try and give the first irrigation immediately after transplanting. The applying of irrigation depends on the soil, climatic condition. Make sure you apply irrigation at interval of 7-8 days in summer season and 10-15 days during winter season.

The harvesting of the Cauliflower

 The Cauliflower can be harvested if it has developed a proper head. Make the harvesting is done in the morning or in the evening time. Try and keep the product cool after harvesting.
Starting a commercial Cauliflower farming can be very profitable if it is done in a proper way. To get a step by step guide on how to start commercial Cauliflower farming you can purchase the book on AMAZON STORE. To purchase the Cauliflower farming book click the button below.