Kale is predominantly known for its light or dark green foliage but there are also varieties that produce leaves in shades of blue-green, purple-pink, or bi-colours, and with varying degrees of ‘frill’. The types also vary greatly in size, from dwarf kales that can be grown in a pot to those that reach up to 2.5m tall and are obviously better off growing in a garden bed.
Why is home grown kale healthier than store bought?
With its high nutritional value and superfood status, kale has become a popular vegetable that is freely available in grocery stores, but sadly kale is listed, year after year, among the vegetables with the highest amount of pesticide residues - a compelling reason to grow your own at home.
How many different types of kale are there?
There are around 150 known kale varieties, and botanically, kale belongs to two different species:
Brassica oleracea (Acephala group)
These are the ‘true’ kales, which can be divided into two categories: “Scotch Kale” with its deeply curled and wrinkled leaves and “Lacinato Kale” with its dark green, savoyed, blade-shaped leaves.
Brassica napus (Pabularia group)
The “Siberian Kale” or “Russian Kale” varieties, with their large flat leaves with lobed or scalloped edges, belong to this species. It is commonly called Siberian kale for a good reason, as it is a cold weather vegetable.
Kale 'Scarlet' Picture courtesy Doug McAbee from flickrIs Kale a biennial?
Most varieties of kale grown today are classed as biennials, as they produce leaves in the first year and flowers in their second year of growth. However, there are some perennial heritage kale varieties that will come back year after year.
What growing conditions does kale require?
Kale is traditionally a cool season vegetable sown in autumn. However, it is surprisingly versatile and can also be grown in spring and early summer provided you keep it watered. All kale varieties enjoy the same growing conditions and while they are all cold hardy, some varieties are hardier than others, and as the temperatures drop their leaf colouring intensifies and the flavour will become sweeter.
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What is the difference between open pollinated Heirloom Seeds and F1 Hybrids?
If you are intent on saving the seeds for next season or to grow microgreens, make sure to pick open-pollinated, heirloom varieties. F1 hybrids may be strong in some aspects but they can be vulnerable in others. These hybrids are also usually sterile, meaning that they will not produce viable seed, and you will have to purchase fresh seed every season if you want to keep growing that variety.
What are the best kale varieties for the home garden?
If you are wondering which kale variety to grow, here are some of the most commonly grown types available in South Africa. If you don’t find the ones you are looking for in garden shops you will find them online.
Kale 'Russian Red' Picture courtesy lostinbrooklyn from flickrKale ‘Red Russian’ (Brassica napus) Pabularia Group
Russian Red Kale is an heirloom variety also known as “Ragged Jack” because it has a unique appearance, with frilly, almost raggedy looking blue-green leaves, with purplish-red stems. In fact, some gardeners cultivate it just for ornamental purposes. Hailing from Siberia, it is extremely cold hardy, and because it has a short shelf life, is not often found in supermarkets.
It offers a mild nutty flavour that is slightly sweet and earthy, with a hearty texture, and because it has large leaves that are softer than other varieties it does not require lots of cooking, and as a microgreen or baby leaf it is fantastic in salads.
It is ready for harvest around 65 days, and microgreens should be ready within 25 to 30 days. Basically, allow the plants to grow to knee height and then start harvesting the leaves. It generally grows between 60 and 90cm tall, but if not harvested all at once it will continue to grow, and will last at least two seasons in the garden.
Click here to see Google Images of Red Russian Kale
Kale 'White Russian' (Brassica napus) Pabularia Group
White Russian Kale is a gently lobed, slender-leafed variety with beautiful sage-green leaves that are complimented by white stems. It looks a lot like a white-ribbed version of Red Russian Kale, and that’s no accident, since Red Russian is one of its ancestors. Bred by American plantsman Frank Morton from the Wild Garden Seeds gene pool in 1984, it resulted as a cross between Brassica napus ‘Red Russian’ and ‘Siberian’ kales. If allowed to reach maturity, it can reach 60cm in height or more. White Russian is great for pairing with Red Russian for an attractive colour blend in the garden.
Tender and delectable after a frost, White Russian is a nutritious favourite. This pale variety brings a sweet and tender taste to your dishes. As a microgreen it is delicious raw in salads, but does turn slightly sweeter when cooked, making it perfect in soups, stews, casseroles, and side dishes.
If you live in our winter rainfall regions, or in extremely cold regions this open pollinated variety is the kale for you. It’s a cold-loving Siberian heirloom that thrives in wet northern climates and is known to be the cold-hardiest kale, and also the one most tolerant of rainy winter weather and damp soils. As a baby green it can be harvested within 20 to 25 days, and matures around 50 to 60 days when it can be harvested all at once, or individual leaves can be cut as needed.
Click here to see Google Images of White Russian Kale
Kale 'Halbhoher Curly' Picture courtesy Terry Donovan from flickrKale 'Red Ursa' (Brassica napus) Pabularia Group
In the ‘90s, Frank Morton, an organic breeder of Wild Garden Seed in Corvallis, Oregon USA, crossed Siberian Kale with Red Russian Kale, and Red Ursa was born. In 1997 it was entered in the National Variety trials and was chosen as one of the top five vegetables of the year in the USA! This extra frilly version combines the broadleaf frills of ‘Siberian’ with the colour of ‘Red Russian’, resulting in a plant with striking dark red to purple stems and rich green leaves. Its disease resistance and its tolerance of both extremely cold weather and bolting during warm weather, extends the harvest season, making Red Ursa ideal for an early spring or autumn harvest.
When the plant is kissed by frost it intensifies not only the colour but also its sweet, distinct flavour. It tastes like kale should, with meaty leaves complemented by a sweet stem, and is wonderful to eat raw or cooked. As a younger, baby leaf, Red Ursa is terrific fresh in salads, and older leaves are perfect in stir-fries or comforting winter soups and stews.
The plant can be harvested for delicious baby leaves which are green with a hazy purple stem that blushes deeper purple in colder weather. The plant matures at around 60cm tall, and can be harvested within 65 days, or larger leaves can be harvested a few at a time as required.
Click here to see Google Images of Red Ursa Kale
Black Palm Kale ‘Nero di Toscana’ (Brassica oleracea) Acephala Group
Black Palm Kale is an Heirloom variety from Tuscany that has been cultivated in Italy since at least the 1700’s. This type of Kale is also called “Lacinato Kale” and is one of the most productive crops you can grow, producing delicious, long, and slender leaves year-round. It also goes by the common names: “Black Tuscan Kale” and “Black Cabbage”. Black kale leaves are narrower than most other varieties with a blade-like shape. They are deeply veined and a dark greenish-purple to almost black. The plant is a biennial which can grow quite tall in its second year of growth, producing a sturdy stem that can reach up to 1.2m in height, and a leafy spread up to 90cm wide, hence the name “Dinosaur Kale”. And, because the leaves are harvested from the bottom up, the plant looks rather like a small palm tree, hence the common name “Palm Kale”.
It is an essential ingredient in the famed Tuscan soup called “Rabolita” made from leftover bread and the minestrone or other vegetable soups from previous meals. Black Palm Kale is famous for its flavour which, when enhanced by a touch of frost becomes sweeter. It is one of the traditional ingredients of minestrone and a favourite for stews. The young leaves can be eaten raw in salad, made into kale chips, or just simply rubbed with olive oil and baked until crispy.
You can harvest black palm kale for baby greens approximately 25 to 30 days after sowing, or you can allow the foliage to mature and start harvesting at about 60 to 90 days. Black palm kale is a very hardy year round crop, but does best in winter.
Click here to see Google Images of Black Palm Kale
Kale ‘Dazzling Blue’ (Brassica oleracea) Acephala Group
By back crossing ‘Lacinato Rainbow’ with the Wild Garden Seed ‘Lacinato’, ‘Dazzling Blue’ was born, thanks to Hank Keogh from Avoca farm in Oregon, USA. This variety really lives up to its name with its rough, wrinkled and creased blue-green leaves, that are tinged with pink and purple, with bright purple nerves and vibrantly pink-purple stems.
Dazzling Blue has that classic “Lacinato Kale” leaf shape plus all the flavour, making this tender kale great for sautéing and steaming, and adding to salads. The delicate flavour improves and the colouring of the leaves intensifies in cold weather.
Kale 'Nero di Toscana' Michigan United States. Picture courtesy F. D. Richards From flickrDazzling Blue has a well-earned reputation for being more winter hardy than other strains of Lacinato Kale, and is also very vigorous. It grows around 1 to 1.5m tall with a spread of 90cm or more, and in season two it can grow to 2m tall. The plant is ready for harvest around 60 to 90 days after sowing, and microgreens are harvested after 25 to 30 days.
Click here to see Google Images of Dazzling Blue
Kale ‘Vates Blue Curled’ (Brassica oleracea) Acephala Group
Vates Blue is an open pollinated variety with Scottish roots that thrives in cold weather, and is also known as “Curled Scotch Kale”, and “Curly Kale”. It is a dwarf, low-growing variety with finely curled blue-green leaves that are quite delicious.
The succulent mild flavour makes it a good addition to fresh salads and for juicing. It is also used in stir fries and is great for making kale chips.
Vates Blue only grows 30 to 40cm tall with a 60cm spread, making it suitable to grow in large pots. Because it is very cold hardy, and is also slow to bolt in hot weather this type is suitable to grow in warmer regions. For microgreens it will be ready to harvest within 30 to 40 days and for mature leaves it will be ready to
harvest within 60 to 90 days. It’s a really good “cut-and-come-again” plant, meaning you can trim the mature leaves as needed for a continuous supply of fresh greens.
Click here to see Google Images of Vates Blue
Kale ‘Scarlet Curled’ (Brassica oleracea)
This super stunning open pollinated kale is pretty enough to use in the flower garden with its large, densely curled violet-green leaves that turn a gorgeous violet-red as the temperatures drop in winter.
Of all the kale varieties its leaves are the most tender and mild tasting, making young baby leaf scarlet kale perfect for fresh salads, and delicious lightly steamed and tossed with some olive oil. More mature leaves are added to soups and casseroles, and if you are specifically looking for a juicing kale, this one is perfect.
Scarlet Kale is a very winter hardy biennial, and it is also resistant to bolting during the warmer summer months, enabling gardeners to produce reliable yields in both spring and autumn. It produces strong stems and can grow 60 to 90cm tall with a spread of 60cm. As a baby leaf it can be picked anything from 25 to 30 days and a mature harvest around 55 to 65 days after sowing. Individual leaves can be harvested as required throughout the year.
Click here to see Google Images of Scarlet Curled Kale
Kale ‘Chou Moullier’ (Brassica oleracea) Acephala Group
Chou Moullier is an heirloom variety with very large, fairly flat green leaves with just a bit of curl at the edges. This species is the tallest growing of the forage brassicas, and it can reach up to 2.5m tall with a strong, tall trunk and a broad, leafy spread, hence its common name “Tree Kale”. It is also called “Thousand Headed Kale”, and “Boerkool”.
It has a delicious crisp texture and tastes a bit like a blend of cabbage and Brussels sprouts. The young baby leaves are a wonderful raw green veggie, and the stems are thick, juicy and sweet. The larger leaves are often used in stir-fries, but they can also be steamed or boiled. They also make great kale chips and can be added to smoothies.
This lovely hardy kale variety just keeps on giving and is most productive in the garden. Once established it will handle frost well, and planting or sowing in late summer is recommended for heading in early spring, as this kale does not handle extreme heat well. Baby leaves are harvested within 25 to 30 days after sowing, and you can harvest the entire crop within 60 to 100 days, or, if you pick leaves from bottom of stem up this biennial kale will reward you with a succession of new leaves for a long time.
Click here to see Google Images of Chou Moullier
Curly Kale ‘Halbhoher Grüner Krauser’ (Brassica oleracea var. sabellica)
Kale 'Chou Moullier' Picture courtesy Ball Straahof
This incredibly popular open pollinated kale variety was recognized as rare by a wonderful foundation called "sativa" that works to preserve the diversity of rare plant varieties. It is active in the care of these traditional plants, and sells them to gardeners to ensure their survival. Click here to visit their website.
Halbhoher Grüner Krauser produces heavily curled, medium sized dark green leaves with an outstanding flavour that can be prepared like spinach. It is exceptionally good with garlic and can be added to thick and creamy potato, bean, sausage soups, or roasted sweet potato dishes.
Curly kale will grow to a height of around 60 to 70cm and a spread of 30cm, and is so pretty you could add it to your winter flower borders. Because it’s cold and frost tolerant it is ideal for autumn sowings. Microgreens can be harvested early and the entire plant can be harvested within 100 to 120 days, or individual leaves can be harvested throughout the season as needed.
Click here to see Google Images of Halbhoher Grüner Krauser
Portuguese Kale/Cabbage (Brassica oleracea var. tronchuda)
If you live in a subtropical, tropical, or arid, climate this kale is perfect for you because it can take the heat. It is also great to grow in cool or temperate regions. However, it does not like the cold and is a crop that you start in spring to harvest throughout summer and autumn then scurry to gather leaves before the first hard freeze. Portuguese kale, called “Couve Tronchuda” is an heirloom vegetable often referred to as a kale or as a leaf cabbage, and although it has many similarities to a kale with its loose leaf growing habit, the flavour and leaf texture is definitely closer to that of a cabbage.
It is the most tender, leafy brassica, and the large, broad, deep blue-green leaves are white-ribbed and tender enough to eat raw in salads, as well as cooked, and the texture resembles spinach more than kale. It's a beautiful loose-leaf picking cabbage, with a very robust and sweet flavour that falls between Russian Kale and Cabbage, with some of the body of kale, and less mustard or sulphur often found in Cabbage. If you have eaten the national dish of Portugal called “Caldo Verde” then you will know all about this cabbage. Click here to find our recipe for Caldo Verde Soup.
This is a plant that you start in spring to harvest throughout summer and autumn, then scurry to gather leaves before the first hard freeze. It germinates quickly and can be harvested as baby greens, reaching maturity after 80 to 90 days. It can be harvested all at once when 30 to 60cm tall, but the beauty of this loose leaved variety is that you can harvest individual leaves as you need them over an extended period of time. It will grow continuously, as long as only the side shoots are picked and you do not cut off the top of the main stalk.
Click here to see Google Images of Portuguese Kale
I hope this article has inspired you to grow Kale
