Grow Broccolini for Fresh Greens All Season
One of the best vegetables you can grow, fresh from the garden almost every day, for the price of a few starts and a pack of seeds.
1. Why broccolini, not broccoli
Regular broccoli grows one big head, and then it is mostly done. Broccolini grows thin stems you cut, and new ones keep coming back for most of the season. One plant feeds you again and again.
2. Plant in waves
Put in your first plants. A week or two later, put in a second batch (slightly smaller starts are fine). A few days after that, sow seeds. Each wave is ready at a different time, so your harvests overlap and never stop.
3. Pick the right season
It is a cool-weather plant. Grow it in fall, winter, or early spring. Hot weather makes it flower fast and stop making good stems.
4. Sun, space, water
Give it full sun (6 hours or more), about 12 to 18 inches between plants, and steady water. Don't let the soil dry out hard.
5. Cut early, cut often
Cut stems when the buds are tight and green, before any yellow flowers open. Cut the first center shoot early: that tells the plant to grow more side shoots. Keep cutting every few days. The more you cut, the more it makes.
6. If it flowers
Yellow flowers are still safe to eat, but the plant slows down. Cut them off and it will keep going.
Common questions
Is broccolini the same as baby broccoli?
Yes. It is a cross between broccoli and Chinese broccoli (gai lan). Stores often sell it as baby broccoli.
How long until the first harvest?
About two months after you plant a start. Seeds take a few weeks longer.
Can I grow it from seed?
Yes. Start seeds indoors 4 to 6 weeks before you plant them out, or sow them straight in the ground when the weather is cool.
Why plant in waves instead of all at once?
All at once gives you too much one week and nothing the next. Waves a week or two apart keep a steady supply coming.
Why we give this away: free, in the open, no sign-up, no tracking. We're the ones who won't trade your data for "free" tech — and we can prove it.
Want all of this offline, in your pocket, working with no signal? → Get the app
More tips: · Make Creek or Rain Water Safe to Drink With No Power · Stop Bad Bleeding and Treat Shock · Running Your Car in Snow: The 30-Minute Exhaust Rule · Communications When the Grid Goes Down · Keep Your Phone Alive in the Cold · Your Freezer Is a Grid-Down Food Vault · Jack Up a Car Without Getting Killed · Get Unstuck From Sand, Snow, or Mud · Stay Warm With No Power (Without Carbon Monoxide Killing You)
General gardening information. Growing times change with your weather and where you live.