Sea Kale

I planted 4 sea kales in my garden (Norwich, Vermont, zone 4b/5a) this past spring into raised beds created by sheet mulching over lawn. ...Read MoreI started with small plants started from root divisions. Unlike the stereotype for perennials ("the first year they sleep, the second year they creep, the third year they leap"), these all have been leaping from the start growing shockingly large and healthy in their first season. I have been eating some of the un-blanched leaves and enjoy them. They remind me most of collards. Leaves from three of the plants have a touch of bitterness to them, but the fourth plant seems to lack all bitterness. I will follow this next year and if it continues to hold true, I will use that preferred plant to create new root divisions. In this first year they did not flower, but my source for the plants (Permaculture Nursery) promotes them as a perennial source of mini-broccoli florets. The reports at Apios Institute describe them as tasting indistinguishable from true broccoli. I hope to be able to taste test the florets next year.

Most interestingly, while all my annual cole crops (green and red cabbage, collards, kale, Brussels sprouts, and broccoli) have been nibbled more or less by cabbage worms this year, I have not seen a single mark of any sort on the sea kale, which is planted fairly nearby to the annuals.

All in all, I am extremely pleased with this plant and highly recommend it as a productive, perennial edible.

Quite a common plant on the shingle beaches of the UK coast.

I love this plant. Hard to believe but it has the nicest 'evening' scent that perfumes the whole garden . Almost burumansia -like in frag...Read Morerance.
Good smelling Kale ? ... hahahaha . Go figure.
The over five feet tall flower stalk bloomed for about 3 weeks .
I was very happy to see it does comeback in the Spring without any special treatment such as mulching .

I have 3 of these scattered about as magnets for chewing critters. I'd rather see holes in these leaves than my prized hybrids.

Dutch name is Zeekool..(transl. Sea Cabbage)..It is flowering wild in Dutch coastal areas.. highly endangered and protected.. I have 'nt ...Read Moreseen it growing in wild myself in Netherlands but I 've seen lots of it growing along the Danish coasts ..just on the stony and sandy beach. ..their natural habitat. In the garden it can be grown as a ornamental vegetable in not to heavy soil that is deeply made loose. It roots very deep. The 'bleached' (new growth forced in complete darkness during early spring) growth can be harvested ..taste is similar to aspergus. The little flowers are honey scented...the seedpods are round and look like little peas...each 'pea' contains one seed..So after flowering the plant is still nice to see ..the dried sprays of those seeds are nice in dried flowers arangements and give winter interest in the garden.
Plants can get very old ..up to twenty years is possible if they are kept well.