How to Grow Kohlrabi

Would you like to grow kohlrabi in your garden this year? Find plenty of helpful tips about when to plant some, the spacing, and when to harvest. Use my tip below to keep insects away from your plantings.

Latin Name: Brassica oleracea var. gongylodes
Plant Family: Brassica (Brassicaceae)
Cool-season crop

Did You Know?

Have you ever seen kohlrabi in the grocery store or grown it in the past? You have to admit it looks like it’s from another planet. Kohlrabi has a thick, fleshy bulb from which leaves randomly emerge and is delicious. Its German name means “cabbage turnip.” While many cabbage family crops have been around for thousands of years, the first references to kohlrabi occurred about 500 years ago in regions of Europe.

Plant Seeds or Seedlings? Direct-sow seeds in the garden, or start them indoors 4 weeks before the last anticipated frost.

When: Sow seeds in the garden as soon as the soil can be worked. Plant seedlings in the spring as well.

Days to Germination: 5 to 10 days

Depth to Sow: 1/2 inch

Spacing: Plant seeds 1 inch apart with an eventual spacing of 6 inches, or plant seedlings 6 inches apart.

Days to Maturity: 60

Cultural Information:

Prepare bed and sow seeds or transplants at the above spacing. If aphids or cabbage worms are a problem in your area, immediately cover the bed with floating row cover or agricultural insect netting to create a physical barrier over the plants. Since the plants don’t require pollination, it can be left on the bed for the entire season.

Water regularly. Once plants are up and growing, feed them with an organic nitrogen fertilizer. Kohlrabi grows best under cooler conditions. Consider planting a second crop of it in mid- to late summer for a fall harvest.

Susan’s Picks: ‘Delicacy’ (available in white or purple), ‘Kolibri’, ‘Kordial’, ‘Winner’

Potential Insect Problems: aphids, cabbage worms, slugs, pillbugs

When to Harvest:

Pull kohlrabi when the bulbs are 2 1/2 to 3 inches in diameter. If harvested at larger sizes, they can be pretty tough.

How to Cook & Preserve:

Shred kohlrabi for use in salads or slice for fresh eating as appetizers and snacks. You can also chop and steam for a side dish, or add to a stir-fry. Preserve kohlrabi for later use by washing and peeling the bulbs. Then either blanch whole in boiling water for 3 minutes, or as cubes for 1 minute. Chill in cold water, drain and pack into freezer bags.

Back to Vegetable Grow Guide Chart

Copyright: Susan Mulvihill, Susan’s in the Garden, SusansintheGarden.com.