Top Bunch Collard Greens
Brassica oleracea var. acephala 'Top Bunch'
Height: 24 inches
Spacing: 18 inches
Sunlight:
Hardiness Zone: (annual)
Description:
Early maturing, cool weather selection is a must have in large patio containers and kitchen gardens; withstands moderate frost; slightly savoyed blue-green leaves have a rich and savory flavor, perfect for soups, stews or steaming; great for bunching
Edible Qualities
Top Bunch Collard Greens is an annual vegetable plant that is commonly grown for its edible qualities. The crinkled oval bluish-green leaves with distinctive creamy white veins are usually harvested from early spring to mid fall. The leaves have a bitter taste.
The leaves are most often used in the following ways:
Planting & Growing
Top Bunch Collard Greens will grow to be about 24 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 24 inches. When planted in rows, individual plants should be spaced approximately 18 inches apart. This fast-growing vegetable plant is an annual, which means that it will grow for one season in your garden and then die after producing a crop. Because of its relatively short time to maturity, it lends itself to a series of successive plantings each staggered by a week or two; this will prolong the effective harvest period.
This plant is typically grown in a designated vegetable garden. It does best in full sun to partial shade. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America.
Top Bunch Collard Greens is a good choice for the vegetable garden, but it is also well-suited for use in outdoor pots and containers. With its upright habit of growth, it is best suited for use as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the center of the pot, surrounded by smaller plants and those that spill over the edges. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.
