by Lisa Giroday, Sandra Lopuch and Sam Philips | Summer broccoli is here and it is glorious! Having broccoli straight from the garden is right up there (with harvesting carrots and tomatoes) on the list of things that bring pure satisfaction in life. One question we often get asked is, “Can I eat the leaves”? You totally can. They work well – together with the flavorful stems – in soup stocks and in stir-fries. Since broccoli takes up a bit of space in a small garden, this is a very good thing.

Broccoli readies for harvest and seems to go to seed the minute you have your back turned. People often wait to see if the crown will get bigger and miss their window of opportunity. Here’s a tip: cut only the crown of the broccoli after it looks harvest-able and worth eating but before it begins to loosen and separate. You can see the beginning of the process when the flowers (little yellow flowers) are almost ready to bloom. Don’t fret too much if you don’t catch them in time, as all is not lost. The flowers attract bees and are a great addition to salads. You can usually continue to harvest broccoli for several weeks, so don’t hack the whole plant down. Rather, wait for more florets to form.

If you’re thinking of growing broccoli in the garden, summer broccoli can be started between March and June for harvesting between June and October. Yes, while it is time to start harvesting these beauteous brassicas, it is not too late to plant them, too. Just choose a cultivar that overwinters. Phew! Purple sprouting broccoli cultivars that overwinter should be considered at this time in the season for your winter garden. You can plant it after certain crops in the summer garden get harvested. If you’re curious on the details, we are here to help.

If you decide to grow broccoli – summer or overwinter – they are pretty heavy feeders, so make sure you have some soil rich in nutrients! And remember, slugs LOVE broccoli leaves, so have your arsenal of broken eggshells, beer traps, and headlamps for nocturnal handpick removal ready!

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Victory Gardens is a team of local urban farmers for hire. Lisa, Sandra and Sam help transform tired or underused residential and commercial green spaces into food producing gardens. Their goal is to challenge the way communities use space and to participate in the change needed to consume food more sustainably. For the rest of the growing season, they’ve hooked up with Scout to share some cool tips and tricks on how to get the best from of our own backyards.