This group includes Chinese cabbage and Napa cabbage and are cool-weather annuals or biennials in the mustard family (Brassicaceae) and originated in China. The genus name is Latin for cabbage. This plant will grow 1-2 feet tall in full sun in fertile amended well-drained moist garden soils. You can use transplants or direct sow seeds inJuly for a fall crop or in early spring (around March) for a later crop. Get a soil test before planting and fertilize according to recommendations. This variety produces a dense, tall, barrel-shaped head. The leaves that grow in an erect form are pale, thin and tender. It can be harvested when the heads are a usable size. They should feel firm and dense. If not, they need more time before harvesting. Once mature, harvest promptly as it tends to lose its quality. The appearance of a flower stalk, calling bolting, signals the end of leaf growth, leaving the leaf with a bitter taste. Use them in an edible garden, a border or plant among the perennials for fall/winter interest. Click here to see a calendar of planting schedules, time-to-harvest, and recommended spacing. Problems, Pests and Diseases: aphids, whiteflies, flea beetles, and caterpillars such as cabbage loopers, cutworms, and beet army worms. Slugs and snails may also be a problem. Diseases include club root, white rust, leaf spot, and rots such as damping off and bacterial soft rot.
Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds
whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.
No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.
Also noted by NC State
Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell
apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.
Fills a similar nicheBrassica rapa Chinensis GroupBrassica rapa Rapifera GroupBrassica rapa var. rosularis
Full plant profile
Growing Conditions
Plant type
Cool Season Vegetable; Edible; Vegetable
Life cycle
Annual; Biennial
USDA zones
4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b
Light
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
Soil texture
Clay; High Organic Matter; Loam (Silt)
Soil pH
Acid (<6.0); Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Moist
Available space
12 inches-3 feet
NC region
Mountains; Piedmont
Growth rate
Medium
Maintenance
High
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Erect
Texture
Medium
Leaf color
Green; White
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf shape
Oblong
Leaf feel
Fleshy
Leaf value
Edible
Leaf size
> 6 inches long
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
Leaves vary per species. They are often crinkly in dark to pale green with white midribs.
Flower color
Gold/Yellow
Flower form
Insignificant
Flower shape
Cross
Flower size
< 1 inch
Flower detail
Plants are generally harvested before blooming occurs. If left to grow a cluster of 4-petaled yellow flowers will apear.
Slugs and Snails Found on Flowers and Foliage; Cabbage Looper on Ornamentals; Caterpillars Found on Flowers and Foliage; Insect and Related Pests of Vegetables; Pests of Crucifers
Disease problems
Damping-off in Flower and Vegetable Seedlings; Clubroot of Brassicas; Black Rot of Brassicas; Southern Bacterial Wilt on Herbaceous Ornamental Plants
Other problems
Growing Food
Problems
Frequent Disease Problems; Frequent Insect Problems; Problem for Horses