Curly cabbage, kale cabbage, wild cabbage, “Russian Red”, German, Dutch, Brauncol (Brunkol or Grünkol) - all these are different names for the same rare, not well-known, but very useful, nutritious and easily digestible kind of cabbage-free cabbage which also does not require special care, easily tolerates frosts and can even grow as a perennial. What other arguments are needed to organize a garden bed in this area with this plant?
Description and biological features
Braungol looks very elegant and looks more like openwork lettuce than a vegetable. The color of the curly leaves of the plant adds a similarity to the salad - they can be bright green or red-violet. 
As it was said, this plant has no head (the Latin name of the plant that is difficult to pronounce is translated as “without attachment”), and the stems are rather rigid, therefore light and tender leaves are used in food, which harmonize perfectly with garlic, various vegetables, cheese and nuts, and from the dressings - with mayonnaise, vegetable oil, sour cream, lemon juice and even light mustard. Like the usual white cabbage, kale can be pickled, pickled, stewed and even fried, but it is best to use it fresh as a basis for salad or tuff, since heat treatment is the main enemy of ascorbic acid, and this vitamin is especially rich in brauncole.
Did you know? Unlike cabbage, cauliflower and other cabbage species familiar to us, kale is a “reusable” plant: after you cut young brauncol leaves on a vitamin salad, the plant will release a new delicate growth, so that you can harvest from each bush again during the season and again.In addition to the abundance of vitamins, cabbage cabbage has many useful properties, in particular, compared with the closest relatives of the plant, this species is especially recommended for vegetarians, because it contains a large amount of protein, omega-3 fatty acids, and calcium, which is necessary for our skeleton.
Growing kale cabbage through seedlings
There are two ways to grow cabbage cabbage: directly from the seeds and through seedlings. 
In essence, the frost resistance of a plant allows it to be sown immediately in open ground, covering it with safety film, but we will tell you more about the features of the second variant.
Choosing a variety suitable for your climate
First of all, it is necessary to decide on what kind of Bruunkol we will plant, because Kale cabbage has many different varieties, and this is its added advantage: you can always choose the one that is most suitable for your site.
For example, Premier or Siberian Kale are well suited for cold climates - both of these varieties are frost-resistant, in addition to this, the first matures very quickly, but the second is more resistant to diseases and pests. 
Red Kale has the same features, it can be planted in addition to one of the above varieties to be able to add a multi-colored openwork basis to salads.
If space is limited in your area, choose tall (Dino Kale, also known as Latsinato with large thin leaves, Reed Cane) or curly varieties of curly cabbage (besides, Curly Kale leaves are especially tender and sweet) .
For those who can not afford to be afraid of the cold and do not save space, in addition to the above, it is also proposed gentle curly green feces or red "Redbor", and better - both. 
The choice of capacity and soil
Having dealt with the variety, prepare pots and soil mixture.
Cabbage is not the most compact plant; therefore, it is better to choose a larger capacity for seedlings right away, and to sow the seeds less often, so that you do not have to get rid of some viable seedlings just because they interfere with each other's development. 
However, you still have to thin out the seedlings, you also need to be ready for this. It is very convenient to grow Bruunkol in special cassettes for seedlings, but if they are not there, wide plastic trays with sides of 5-10 cm in height will do.
Did you know? Archaeological excavations indicate that people began to use cabbage since the days of the Stone and Bronze Ages.For the plant that we are going to grow, the pH level in the soil should vary between 5.5-6.8.
For sowing seeds for seedlings, it is better to immediately take a soil mixture of the necessary acidity, but this condition must also be met when plants are planted in open ground: if the soil does not meet the requirements, it must be “adjusted” - acidified or, on the contrary, reduced.
Important! Kale cabbage grown in a soil saturated with sand or clay loses its taste and grows worse.And, of course, the soil must be fertile to get a good harvest, so if you have not purchased ready-made nutrient mixture in the store, add compost, humus and other organic matter to the ground.
Sowing seeds for seedlings
We begin to prepare seedlings about six weeks before the end of the frost, in this case, before planting in the open ground, the sprouts will be well strengthened and at the same time they will not outgrow, since it will be harder for the seedlings to mature in a new place.
Cucumbers, dill, beans, potatoes, sage, radishes, garlic, peas, chard, beets, spinach, and celery are good cabbage neighbors.Presowing seed treatment is required. To do this, a weak solution of potassium permanganate is suitable, but it is better to purchase special roots.
Prepared tray with the ground well pour a little warm water.Carefully arrange the seeds and sprinkle them on top of a half-inch layer of soil mixture, then with all precautions tamp the soil.
Spray the surface of the earth from a spray bottle and place it in a well-lit place.
Conditions and care for crops
Till the moment of emergence of shoots, we make sure that the soil does not dry out, but instead of watering we use spraying. 
Proper care of the sowing implies avoiding the over-wetting of the earth, because otherwise there is a high probability that the seedling is affected by the so-called “black leg”. That is why it is necessary to plant the seeds in a well-moistened soil, but then watering should be dosed.
Did you know? A legend associated with the origin of cabbage, says that sweat droplets rolled to the ground from the head of the god Jupiter. From them grew cabbage.
Seedling care
As the emergence of shoots need to be thinning, leaving the strongest sprouts at a distance of about 2 cm from each other.
A couple of weeks after germination, the seedlings need to be swooped - they should be seated in separate pots (the optimum height and diameter of such a container is 5 cm), one seedling in each. 
This procedure is not mandatory, however, it is noted that after picking, seedlings become stronger and better tolerate planting in open ground.
Important! The abundance of light - a necessary component of the care of the cabbage seedlings, if necessary, it is even recommended to highlight artificially.
Planting cabbage seedlings in open ground
For planting seedlings on the bed it is necessary that the soil temperature stably kept at the level of not below 15 degrees.
When choosing a place for gardening, try to stop the choice on a hill or at least make sure that the soil has good drainage. 
Water stagnation - bad condition for growing braunkolatherefore, if your plot is located in a lowland, it is better to build a so-called high bed for growing this crop.
The cabbage planting scheme for kale depends on the variety you choose, but in any case, each plant must be provided with "own space" so that the distance to the nearest neighbors is at least 0.4 m, and for spreading varieties even more.
Pits for seedlings need to dig deep, so that before transferring to the bottom of the hole can be put fertilizing.
As a top dressing, manure and wood ash, as well as a pinch of nitrophoska, are well suited.Well pour the mixture right in the hole, drop the seedlings there with a lump of earth or a peat pot, sprinkle them with moist fertile soil and carefully tamp down so that there are no air holes in the hole.
Important! If you still failed to correctly calculate the time of sowing the seeds and the seedlings grew too high, for greater stability, it is better to bury such bushes a little more into the soil so that the surface of the soil is at the level of the first leaves.At the very top of the hole we pour dry earth so that after drying the soil does not come in a lump.
Care and cultivation of cabbage kale in the garden
With the right choice of soil, a place to accommodate the beds and respect for the distance between plants, kale cabbage grows quickly and does not need special care. 
But there are conditions, the observance of which is simply necessary for the good growth of this culture. The main one is watering.
How to conduct watering
It is sometimes difficult for an inexperienced summer resident to cope with the needs of the grunkol in moisture, since both the brute force and the shortage of a plant tolerate equally badly.
In order not to be mistaken, the soil around each bush must be more often loosen: this is the only way to clearly see when the soil is dry, because with a dry crust on the surface, the roots of a plant can rot in stagnant water. 
The number of waterings should be increased as soon as the seedlings finally begin and actively begin to grow.
Did you know? If you do not water the cabbage a couple of weeks before the final harvest, it will be stored longer, and the amount of useful fiber in its leaves will be much higher.Since, as was said, curly leaves of feces can be cut from the bushes several times per season, the rule mentioned above cannot be constantly observed: during the summer the plant needs regular watering, and a break should be made only in the fall, before “closing” the season .
Water the beds should be in the evening, otherwise the sun's rays, falling on the water droplets remaining on the leaves, cause them burns, which can severely damage the plant.Weed control
Another important condition for a good harvest - constant weeding. Cabbage, especially during the first weeks after planting in open ground, is very jealous of the presence of weeds nearby. 
Herbicides such as Hurricane Forte, Zencore, Reglon Super, Agrokiller, Ground, Lontrel-300, Roundup, Lazurit, Titus will help you in weed control.Therefore, if it is not possible to monitor the purity of the soil, it is recommended to use mulching.
Loosening and soil hilling
The soil around the bush should always be loose, it is especially important to loosen after watering, because, drying out, the soil forms a dense crust, which then begins to crack. This crust prevents the plant from breathing, and moisture escapes through the cracks. 
A good and powerful cabbage grows when the earth around it is spud. The first procedure should be carried out when the plant grows a couple of centimeters, and repeat several times during the season as needed.
Compliance with these simple rules is also an important component in the prevention of fungal diseases of cabbage.
Fertilization
Fertilization is carried out no more than once every six weeks. If the soil was well prepared for planting brauncol in the fall, during the season it is enough to hold two supplements for cabbage.
Of the minerals, cabbage especially needs nitrogen and potassium, and from organics it reacts well to liquid compost.
Important! Fertilizer is applied to moist soil, otherwise the roots of the plant may suffer from a chemical burn.
Pest and disease protection
Kale, like any cabbage, is susceptible to attacks of various pests and fungal pathogens. The best way to deal with them is prophylaxis.
To this end, given that the braungola leaves go on the table throughout the season, it is better to use not toxic chemicals, but safer means - biologics or folk tricks: soap solution, infusions of various plants (wormwood, garlic and many other natural antiseptics). 
Harvesting and storage of the crop
The braunkol represented in a rich variety variety ripens differently, but in general it can be stated that two and a half to three months after sowing the seeds or a half to two and a half months after planting the seedlings on the bed you can get a good harvest.
Landmark: you can start cutting leaves for a salad when the plant reaches a height of at least 20 cm. 
First of all, more mature leaves are cut, so it will be easier for the plant to recover. In addition, try to take quite a bit from each bush so that it does not lose all the green mass.
If this is not possible, it is necessary to leave at least 5 cm of the stem above the ground, then new leaves will flow from it, and the plant will not die.
Important! Too old cabbage leaves lose their softness and acquire bitterness, therefore it is undesirable to be late with harvesting.Final cleaning is carried out after the first frost. You can not let the cabbage to freeze, otherwise the leaves will lose all their attractiveness.
The first step is to use small damaged leaves, selected healthy specimens can be stored longer.
The ideal place to store kale - cellar: requires low temperature, high humidity and good ventilation. There are several storage methods: laying out in one layer, hanging or wrapping each fork in the newspaper. 
Unlike white cabbage, kale will not be able to be kept fresh for long enough, the plant is simply not intended for this. A good way to ensure long-lasting harvest is freezing.
Curly kale - a very useful vegetable crop, which has a huge number of advantages even in comparison with other cabbage.
Its main advantages - unique chemical composition, the ability to "recover" after harvest and even grow as a perennial, as well as the relative ease of care and excellent taste.
