Splitting Cabbage

[Murray]

Has anyone got the knowledge on why my cabbages are splitting open ?
I suspect it is harvesting too late ??????

See pix below.

[anniefish]

Hi Murray,
Are your beds open to the rain? I think you will find the recent rain may have given the cabbages a boost of growth which will make them split.There is no reason they can't be used. Even though your plants get great nutrients in the system, you can't beat natural rain.
Anniefish

[fishfood]

Hi murray yep its the rain mine split to harvest them straight away and use

[Murray]

Hi FF, AnnieFish,
yes they are still very good eating.
Must be the rain as I have not had that happen before and we seldom get rain.
The Broccoli are still sending up secondary heads. It has been a most enjoyable harvest. I have been able to give away heaps to friends and visitors and still able to eat steamed Broccoli every evening.
The Broccoli is very deep green when steamed.
We have been steaming the smaller leaves as well. They are excellent eating.
I think that broccoli is a most bountiful crop to have in my aquaponics garden.
I am just sorry I did not space the plantings/timing, in order to have 2 or 3 plants maturing every couple of weeks.

I will be doing that next winter, for sure.

The veggies produced in an aquaponics garden are just so goooood !!

Murray

[anniefish]

Onya Murray,
We're all sitting at our computers, drooling on our keyboards! Just can't wait 'til our system is running - won't be long now.
Anniefish

[anniefish]

Hi Murray,
Just wondering if the recent rain affected the aquaponics system (apart from splitting your cabbages). Did it change the water to any degree?
Curiously yours, Anniefish.

[Murray]

Hi Anniefish,
Not to any great degree. There is only one grow bed that is not under the cover of the greenhouse, that is the one with the Broccili and Cabbage. The density of the plants possibly prevented a lot of the rain getting down into the grow bed.
The other is the NFT channel set-up Very little rain would have found it's way in via those 50mm round holes that have lettuce growing in them.
I tested the water for both ammonia and nitrate after the rain, and both readings were down a bit, but not by any amount that would be a problem.
My grow beds are getting a bit of age on them now so the plants have got plenty of good stuff down in there to eat. There are worms in the grow beds doing their thing.