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What is it?
There are many plants in the cabbage family, they include broccoli, brussels sprouts, cauliflower, chinese cabbage, collards, kale, kohlrabi and of course the common cabbage. Bolting mainly occurs in broccoli, cauliflower and brussels sprout plants when an elongated stalk with flowers grows from within the main stem of the plant.
What does it look like?
Bolting appears in hot weather. It is easy to spot as the elongated stalk is covered with flowers, and is a seed stalk. It typically sprouts from the center of the cabbage family plant, but can easily be spotted as it grows from the main, or largest stem of the plant. In the actual cabbage plant, the center of the head splits open and the elongated stalk emerges from within that opening.
How does it manifest?
Early cabbage family plant exposure to cold temperatures will result in the formation of a seed stalk, or bolting. Typically, once the plant reaches as size of approximately two inches across and it is exposed to temperatures between 40° and 50° for four or five days in a row, these temperatures cause flower buds to form within the plant. These buds will remain dormant until the weather gets hot and then the buds turn into the tall flowered seed stalk. Bolting is a problem because as the stalk grows and flowers, the taste of the plant deteriorates and becomes bitter.
What can you do about it?
Once the elongated seed stalk has sprouted from the cabbage family plant, there is nothing you can do to prevent a bad flavor. Typically, it is best to discard plants which have bolted entirely, however they are still edible but will be bitter. When planting any member of the cabbage family, be sure that you don’t put plants out too early and it is best to bolt them before temperatures become too hot and the plants begin to bolt.
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