Cabbage Brigadier F1: description, planting and care, reviews

Description of Cabbage Brigadier

White cabbage, which differs in appearance and taste from the usual one, is often found at the autumn and winter markets. A hybrid called Brigadier weighs approximately 3.5-6 kg, has a rounded-flattened shape, and is closer to green in color. Brigadir cabbage is grown in the summer-autumn season, the growing season is 110-120 days.

Attention! The cabbage hybrid Brigadier F1 is famous for its long shelf life both in the field in the beds and in the farmer's reserves.

The positive characteristics of the variety include its resistance to diseases and pests. Productivity is usually good, even if growing conditions are disrupted. It is noted that this variety is best used for processing, i.e. sourdough.

It is noteworthy that cabbage germinates in open and closed ground. However, if it is necessary to get the harvest early, gardeners prefer growing indoors. The Brigadier's root system is well developed.

The shelf life of this variety reaches 5 months. Cabbage Brigadier rarely succumbs to such ailments as cracking and fusarium.

Features of growing crops

According to the description of the Brigadier cabbage variety, planting should be carried out only by seedlings. You should take care in advance about the correct planting of seeds.

Brigadier cabbage seeds must go through all stages of disinfection. It is recommended to use the drug "Epin". The seeds are soaked in it for 2-3 hours, after which they are thoroughly washed under cold running water.

Seeds are planted in early March in common containers. As soon as 2 pairs of main leaves appear on the seedlings, the plant is picked. It is better to use peat containers for this.

Disembarkation

Keep your distance when planting

In early April, when the seedlings reach the desired size (15-20 cm), they can be planted in open ground or a greenhouse. It is important that the soil warms up to a temperature of 14-16°C. When planting, you should adhere to the 40 x 40 cm pattern.

Advantages and disadvantages

Speaking about cabbage of the Brigadier F1 variety, we should note its advantages and disadvantages. We can immediately say that it has virtually no downsides, except perhaps “in taste and color.”

The advantages of a Brigadier include:

• the heads of cabbage do not crack;
• considered resistant to fusarium;
• withstands temperature changes;
• the yield is stable;
• long storage time;
• a light weight;
• easy transportation;
• fresh and processed use;
• strong root system;
• the ability to grow ahead of schedule;
• unpretentiousness.

There are, one might say, no disadvantages, although buyers sometimes note that the taste of this hybrid is different from ordinary white cabbage, and the foliage is too dense. It is reluctantly used fresh, giving preference to juicier varieties, and Brigadir is actively used in cooking and fermentation.

Consumer properties

The Brigadier cabbage variety is a mid-late variety. The ripening period of the crop is 120-130 days from the emergence of shoots. Cabbage forms a round, almost spherical fork, covered with bluish-green, tightly adjacent leaves. The edges of the covering leaves may bend upward.

The density of the head of cabbage is one of the highest. On the scale, it is rated at 4.8 points. In cross-section, such a fork appears monolithic; when pressed by hand, the top layer does not bend. Even small-sized heads of cabbage reach an average weight of 2.5-4 kg. The largest cabbage at home can reach a weight of 5 kg.

The color of the head of cabbage when cut is snow-white, with a slight greenish tint along the edge. During processing, very little waste remains: the inner part of the stalk is short and does not even reach 1/3 of the diameter of the fork. Due to the lack of petioles, the cabbage leaves are especially tender. They are thin and tightly compressed; when chopping, no hard or large pieces remain.

The sugar content of the vegetable is lower than that of the standard Slava variety. But this has little effect on the taste of cabbage; it is characterized as sweet or sweetish. The taste is completely free of bitterness.

The main use is the consumption of fresh vegetables in the form of salads and cabbage dishes. Tender leaves without petioles are well suited for preparing cabbage rolls with meat or vegetable filling. The crispy and tender structure of cabbage allows it to be used in salads with large-cut vegetables. Shredded leaves are used to prepare hot dishes: borscht, bigos, casseroles or pancakes.

The variety is suitable for preparing winter preparations in a variety of ways. Brigadir is ideal for traditional pickling. Regardless of the size of the cut, there are no hard parts of the stalk in the mass of sauerkraut. Heads of cabbage can be fermented and cut into halves or quarters. With this method they do not fall apart and do not become soft.

In addition to pickling, Brigadir cabbage is pickled, shredded or cut into skewers, and included in winter salads and appetizers. The heads of cabbage can be saved entirely. Fresh cabbage forks can be stored until spring.

Cabbage yield Brigadier

Gardeners often use the rule of so-called crop rotation. It consists in not planting the same product on the same land every year. In the case of cabbage of the Brigadier F1 variety, planting is carried out after cucumbers, tomatoes, carrots or potatoes have been grown in that place.

The Brigadier variety is unpretentious and gives a large harvest

Attention! Brigadier is re-sown on the same land once every 4 years.

It is not recommended to plant this hybrid after cabbage of other varieties has been harvested.

The harvest promises to be on time if Brigadier is planted in April. And 3 weeks before harvesting, the watering process is stopped. Despite the fact that cabbage can stay in the beds for quite a long time, you should not delay harvesting, otherwise, if it freezes, the crop will lose the quality of long-term storage in reserves. Cabbage is collected with the stalk, and heads with defects are not kept together with whole ones and are used first. Copies for storage are placed under a canopy for 24 hours and only then the stalk is cut off, leaving three leaves. The crop is stored in a dark, cool place, but not allowed to freeze, i.e. the air temperature should not be below 0. If the temperature and high humidity are maintained, the crop is stored for approximately 5 months from the date of harvest.

Planting seedlings

Kale, like any cabbage, lags behind in growth after transplantation and takes a long time to take root, so they prefer to sow it directly into the ground. But the seedling method also has its advantages - the harvest can be obtained a month earlier.

Sowing seeds for seedlings

Seeds are sown 1.5 months before transplanting into the ground. For cultivation, seedling boxes or containers are used. The best option is to sow in separate glasses, then the seedlings do not have to be picked. Picking is unnecessary fuss and transplantation, which adversely affects the growth and development of cabbage.

Seed preparation:

• Soak for 20 minutes in heated water (45-50°C).
• Immersion in cold water for 5 minutes.
• Exposure in a weak (1%) solution of potassium permanganate – 20 minutes.
• Place in a damp cloth for 2-3 days. Seeds are germinated in a warm place.
• When the seeds hatch, they are sown in containers or a glass filled with soil mixture.

To grow seedlings, use a purchased substrate or prepare your own soil mixture from fertile soil and sand. Or another variant of the mixture is to take two parts of peat, part of humus, part of fertile soil and half of sand. Add 3 tbsp to a bucket of soil mixture. l. wood ash.

Sowing order:

• The seeds are carefully laid out on a moistened substrate - in rows or holes made. The interval between seeds is from 5 to 8 cm. The depth of seeding is 1.5 cm.
• The seeds are sprinkled with soil and compacted slightly with your hands.
• The crops are covered with transparent film or glass.
• Place the crops in a warm place. Every day the film is removed for a couple of hours so that the crops can be ventilated.
• When seedlings appear, containers are placed closer to sunlight.

For information on planting kale cabbage in seedling trays, watch the video:

Seedling care

Kale cabbage seedlings are cared for in the same way as any other cabbage seedlings:

• Water regularly as the substrate dries out.
• Ventilate the room in which the seedlings are located. But so that young shoots are not exposed to drafts.
• If the seeds were sown in boxes or containers, then the cabbage is planted in separate glasses - when the seedlings have a pair of true leaves.
• A week before planting, hardening is carried out and the seedlings are taken outside.

How to prepare a landing site?

The best place to grow kale is on flat areas or a slight hill. Preparing the area for cabbage:

The soil. The culture grows well in neutral, humus-rich soils. The main condition is that the soil should not be acidified. The planting site is prepared in the fall - slaked lime or dolomite flour is added to remove acidity. Before digging, humus is added (3-4 kg per 1 sq. m), and in the spring, before planting seedlings, complex mineral fertilizers are applied (100 g per 1 sq. m).

Lighting. Sunny or slightly shaded areas are suitable. Predecessors. Good ones are potatoes, onions, cucumbers. The bad ones are radishes and other cruciferous vegetables. Favorable neighbors are dill, celery, spinach, beets, beans, sage, potatoes, garlic, peas.

Transplanting

Seedlings are planted in open ground at the age of 45 days. By this time, it should have formed 4 leaves. The height of the planted seedlings is from 8 to 10 cm. The optimal temperature for planting is from +5 °C to +35 °C.

As soon as the danger of return frosts has passed, the seedlings can be planted in the ground. Disembarkation order:

• In the beds prepared in advance, dig holes at intervals of 30-40 cm. 50-60 cm are left between the rows. Dwarf varieties can be planted more densely.
• The depth of the hole is made such that the root system of the seedlings fits comfortably in it. The roots are covered with soil up to the first leaves.
• Before planting, the roots of the plants are dipped in mash made from ash and clay.

Planting and caring for Brigadier cabbage

Hybrid Brigadier is sown by seedling method on the soil where cabbage of this or another variety has not grown for 4 years. Therefore, it is recommended to plant it in place of other vegetable crops, such as potatoes, carrots, cucumbers and tomatoes.

Although the Brigadier variety is called unpretentious, compliance with the rules and conditions of its cultivation will ensure healthy, juicy and tasty specimens. At the same time, it is important to purchase high-quality seeds, so you should buy them in specialized stores.

Planting is carried out in the spring, around April. But first, the seeds are planted in general containers for germination. The fertility of the soil is taken into account by preparing it in advance using humus, ash and turf. Immediately before starting the sowing process, Brigadier cabbage seeds are immersed in warm water for a quarter of an hour. After that - into the cold. Or you can soak the seeds for 3 hours in the Epin preparation, then rinse thoroughly in cold water. This manipulation will help protect future plants from fungus. You can use a growth stimulator. After sowing the seeds, the plant is provided with greenhouse conditions, i.e., covered with film. The first shoots may appear in less than a week. When 2 pairs of leaves sprout, pick them in peat vessels.

Attention! Brigadier cabbage loves fresh air, but does not welcome drafts.

For better results, you should fertilize the cabbage

It is important to provide this hybrid with long-term sunlight contact, approximately 15 hours a day. Gardeners favor the use of fluorescent lamps.

Watering is carried out weekly, however, when the air temperature becomes more than + 24 ° C, it is increased up to 3 times a week. It is important not to overwater the beds to prevent rotting of the roots.

Feeding is carried out:

1. 10 days after planting - organic fertilizer (compost, humus), 400 g of fertilizer is applied to each bush.
2. Phosphorus is used during the formation of inflorescences in order to obtain denser fruits.
3. Using saltpeter during the fruiting period to increase yield and weight.

Agricultural technology for growing the variety

Mid-season cabbage varieties are sown for seedlings from the 10th of April. 35–45 days after emergence, the seedlings are planted in the beds.

Soaking seeds for sowing

Hybrid seeds usually undergo primary processing, and this information is indicated on the package, so they are only soaked before planting.

If the seeds are not inlaid, it is recommended to soak them for 12 hours in a nutrient solution. For this you can use sodium humate, "Epin". After soaking, the seed material is washed and dried on a napkin. Then they are moved to the refrigerator shelf for a day for stratification.

If the bag does not contain any information about seed treatment, then before soaking in the nutrient solution, the seeds are soaked in potassium permanganate for 20 minutes and then washed.

Further care of seedlings

Sowing of prepared seeds is done in seedling containers with nutrient soil, and then they are planted or immediately sown in individual containers measuring 5x6 cm. Planting depth is 1–1.5 cm. These containers are covered with film and taken to a warm place with a temperature of +18 …+20°С. Every day, the film is removed and the crops are ventilated, and the soil is moistened.

When the shoots appear, they are transferred to a cooler, illuminated place with a temperature of +7...+9°C and kept there for 2 weeks. After this time, the temperature is raised to +14…+18°C. On the 8th–10th day from germination, cabbage is picked into separate containers, deepening the plants to the cotyledon leaves.

Important! You can’t over-irrigate to avoid blackleg. It is necessary to water with settled water at room temperature.

Watering is carried out as needed. The soil should be slightly damp.

Cabbage seedlings are fed 2 times:

1. A decade after the dive. To do this, irrigation is carried out with complex fertilizer (1/2 teaspoon per 1 liter) or with ammonium nitrate (2 g per 1 liter).
2. 2 weeks before landing. In a 10-liter bucket, dilute it to the table. a spoonful of urea and potassium sulfate.

1–2 weeks before planting, cabbage seedlings begin to be taken out onto the balcony for hardening. First, it is taken out for a short time during the warmest time of the day, then the exposure to fresh air is increased. By the day of planting in the beds, the seedlings should already spend the night in outdoor conditions.

Preparing the site and soil in the garden bed

The plot for cabbage beds has been prepared since autumn. The best soils for this vegetable are nutritious loams that can retain moisture with acidity in the range of 6.4–7.4 pH. It is optimal if the area previously grew legumes, potatoes, cucumbers, onions or garlic, and tomatoes.

Important! In places where cabbage itself or other representatives of the Cruciferous family grew, the crop is planted only after 4 years.

Sand is added to too heavy clay soil, and acidic soil is deoxidized with dolomite flour. During autumn digging, 3–4 kg of humus (compost or rotted manure), 40 g of superphosphate and 20 g of potassium chloride are added to each m². In the spring, the soil is dug and loosened again with the simultaneous addition of urea and ash.

Transplanting seedlings into open ground

When planting, seedlings should have 5-6 true leaves, and the soil should be heated to +14°C, the average air temperature should be at least +17°C. If the weather is not yet so warm, then shelters for planting should be built.

Planting scheme for cabbage variety Brigadier F1 - 40x40 cm. If the beds were not fertilized before planting, then put a couple of handfuls of humus, 50 g of ash and a little nitrophoska in each hole, and water with settled water. Plants are buried to the top leaf and after planting, if necessary, moisten the top layer of soil.

Diseases and pests

Cabbage variety Brigadier F1 is famous for its unpretentiousness, endurance and resistance to environmental changes. It is noted that changing the amount of watering does not harm the crop. Temperature changes, including sharp frosts, are not terrible; the plant tolerates such phenomena withstands.

Attention! Hybrid Brigadier is one of the less susceptible to disease among other cabbage varieties.

Gardeners pay attention to the fact that Brigadier is well resistant to fusarium. Fungal diseases are reduced through pre-treatment of seeds. Also, to avoid infection with diseases or parasites, gardeners carry out preventive treatment of plants. The beds are regularly cleared of weeds and the soil is loosened after watering to provide air to the roots and prevent the appearance of midges. For aphids and beetles, treat with Oxyx weekly.

If during the harvesting process some specimens were injured or grew incorrectly, they are stored separately and also used first.

General characteristics of the plant

Brigadier cabbage bushes are compact, have a relatively low and strong stem with a powerful root system. In loose soil in private gardens, even this does not save heavy heads of cabbage from falling over, so it is recommended to hill up the plantings throughout the season.

The rosette is horizontal, the leaves are spreading, but have very short petioles. This allows the Brigadier cabbage to not take up too much space in the garden bed. In addition, the leaves do not tend to fall to the soil as they age, which reduces the labor costs of the vegetable grower and saves time on collecting old leaves.

Hybrid Brigadier is resistant to temperature changes during the season, and can easily tolerate long-term unfavorable environmental conditions: prolonged rains or hot and dry weather.

Cabbage is relatively undemanding when it comes to watering and can tolerate slight drying without loss of growth rate. At home, young seedlings will have to be watered daily if there is no natural precipitation, but as the plants mature, it is enough to provide abundant watering once every 5-7 days.

Cabbage variety Brigadier is resistant to Fusarium wilt and is practically not affected by this disease. It is rarely affected by thrips, and the leaves covered with a waxy coating are resistant to aphid attack. One of the most valuable characteristics of the Brigadir hybrid is its low tendency to crack the heads. Even in rainy summers, cabbage that is ripe and ready for harvest is well preserved on the vine for 2-3 weeks.

You can plant 4-5 bushes of Brigadier cabbage per 1 m². This allows you to count on a yield of about 15 kg per unit area. The return can be greater with good care and timely watering. In terms of yield, the Brigadir variety is superior to the classic Russian varieties Podarok, Nadezhda, Favorit.

Planting seedlings

The quality of the harvest depends on the seeds. Therefore, the choice of seed material should be taken responsibly. It is best to give preference to trusted manufacturers. You can start sowing in April.

Cabbage is undemanding when it comes to soil composition. However, the soil must be prepared in the fall. To do this, you need to mix humus, turf soil, and ash.

Important. You cannot use soil from a plot where cruciferous crops were grown for planting. First of all, you need to prepare the seeds

They need to be heated in water for 20 minutes. Then immerse in cold water. Such procedures will help protect seeds from fungal diseases. In order for the seeds to germinate, they should be treated with a growth stimulator.

First of all, you need to prepare the seeds. They need to be heated in water for 20 minutes. Then immerse in cold water. Such procedures will help protect seeds from fungal diseases. In order for the seeds to germinate, they should be treated with a growth stimulator.

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Before sowing, the soil must be moistened and the seeds sown. The depth of embedding should not be more than 1 cm. After which the container should be covered with film. For normal development, crops need to ensure a temperature within 20 degrees.