Purple Sprouting Broccoli 'Red Arrow' Seeds (AGM)

Overview

Red Arrow Purple Sprouting Broccoli is a great addition to the winter plate, just as the leeks are beginning to finish Broccoli will be ready. It looks and tastes fantastic - just eat with a little knob of butter, pepper and a few shavings of parmesan cheese.

It is sometimes hard to justify looking after a veg when it takes nearly a year to crop and be eaten. But in the depths of winter there is something very special about going into your own veg patch and seeing the frost on the broccoli and the ground still being productive especially when it is so expensive in the supermarkets. It can be underplanted with catch crops to improve the productivity of the soil.

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Seed qty (approx)	125
Sowing months	April, May
Site conditions	Like other Brassicas the ground should be rich and firm but not recently manured. A sunny position is ideal.
How to sow	Sow thinly in a seed-bed 1cm deep in rows 10cm apart. They can also be sown under cover in pots, 2 seeds to a pot, then remove the weaker one. In mid-summer transplant to final growing position, place 60cm apart. You could sow a catch crop underneath like lettuce until the plants reach full size.
Care	Keep watered in dry periods. Add lots of organic matter as a top-dressing as they are hungry plants and this also helps to retain moisture. The broccoli will reach 1m and will require staking, so it is best to support it with a short cane. Pigeons love the young shoots so cover with netting or tin foil on canes.
Harvest	February to April, they are a cut & come again veg that needs regular picking to prevent it going to seed.
Information	RHS Award of Garden Merit (AGM)

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