This week shops in the UK are introducing a new variety of broccoli, Beneforte, which reduces the risk of prostrate cancer in men.
broccoli
It has long been known that glucoraphanin in broccoli lowers the rates of cancer. In 1983 a wild Italian broccoli variety was found to contain higher levels of glucoraphanin. The John Innes Centre in Norwich have bred this new variety, Beneforte, which contains two to three times the level of glucoraphanin than standard broccoli.
The Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital have worked with the Institute of Food Research to show that men who ate a broccoli-rich diet experienced changes in the activity of genes associated with tumour survival and growth.
Broccoli also lowers rates of heart disease and some other forms of cancer. It also boosts the body’s antioxidant enzyme levels.
Men who eat broccoli-rich diets have a reduced risk of aggressive prostate cancer – the most common non-skin cancer for males in western countries.
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The term Broccoli is a bit of a minefield and misunderstanding often occurs because supermarkets, seedsman and farmers use different names for the same thing.
Broccoli is Italian for little branches.
- Calabrese is the type of broccoli which has the little branches as one large head.
This is sold in the supermarkets as broccoli but is known as Calabrese to the seedsmen.
calabrese
Calabrese originally came from Calabria in Southern Italy.
- Sprouting broccoli has lots of shoots instead of one big flower.
If you ask a seedsman for broccoli he will probably give you sprouting broccoli, which is sold in supermarkets as purple (or white) sprouting broccoli.
spear sprouting broccoli
Sprouting broccoli has a very short season in early spring.
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Pick the sprouting broccoli spears:
- just before the flower buds open
purple-broccoli-spear
sprouting-broccoli-spear
- when young, so very tender & not stringy
early sprouting rudolph
- leaving some stem on the plant, so that the buds will produce more spears – cut & come again!
The central head on the sprouting broccoli plant will be larger than the side shoots, but not as big as the standard broccoli sold in the shops. This is actually calabrese – quite different from sprouting broccoli harvested in the early spring.
Cut the large central head out before the flower buds open, when still tender. Cutting out the central head will encourage the side shoots to develop.
whitesprouting-brocoli
Pick sprouting broccoli every few days to make sure the shoots are young and tender. It is often difficult to see the sprouts in amongst the leaves, particularly the purple sprouts, but white sprouting broccoli is easier to see and pick!
Gill has grown some purple sprouting broccoli in her new raised bed.
broccoli----raised-bed
This is the first season that Gill has grown veg & she says that she will not grow broccoli again because it takes up so much room and stays in the bed for a long time (from April till March – a full year!).
Gill has 3 raised beds, so she plans to grow vegetables which have:
- a short growing season – like radish, french beans
- a compact habit – like carrots
This way she will produce more vegetables for the kitchen. She feels that broccoli has taken up valuable space & has not produced much yield – as she could only fit about 4 plants in , together with a few cabbage.
purple-sproutg-raised-bed
BUT, Gill has not tasted the broccoli yet. It is such a treat to be able to pick fresh veg from the garden at this time of the year. The broccoli in the photo was picked this afternoon – so will Gill change her mind once she has tasted her purple sprouting broccoli from her raised beds?
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Broccoli is full of fiber and nutrients, especially vitamins A and C, iron and calcium.
As with other vegetables, broccoli begins to lose valuable nutrients as it ages. Freshness is especially critical to the flavor of broccoli, which turns sharp and bitter if it sits around too long. These are just more reasons why it’s best to grow your own whenever you can.
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There are 3 types of sprouting broccoli:
1. white sprouting broccoli
sprouting-brocoli-white
The white broccoli has small white flowering tips. These are snapped off when about 2″ long.
Steam or boil them for 10-15 minutes for a very special veg. Ours are about ready to harvest from February & through March.
2. purple sprouting broccoli
purple-sprouting-broccoli
The purple sprouters are a week or so later than the white sprouting broccoli, & have a stronger taste.
3. perpetual sprouting broccoli
everlasting-broccoli
The perpetual broccoli comes up year after year, so rather messes the rotation up. But it is easy to grow.
The 3 types of sprouting broccoli give a good spread of green vegetables in the spring when not much else is ready to harvest.
Phoma, or stem canker, is a fungal disease (Latin name Leptosphaeria maculans )which can cause significant crop losses in winter broccoli and other brassicas in epidemic years.
fungus-attacks-broccoli
Initial infections are caused by fungal spores which infect the young
leaves of the recently emerged crop to form phoma leaf lesions.
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Many vegetables grown in the garden are good for the health of eyes, when eaten.
Carrots help you see in the dark . Beta-carotene gives carrots their yellow colour. It forms Vitamin A, which is an antioxidant.
everlasting-brocoli
Leafy green vegetables are very good for eyes, too. They contain lutein & Vitamin E which are antioxidants. Lutein protects the retina from sunlight.
Leafy green vegetables are the best veg in the garden in February. Examples are kale, spinach, cabbage and sprouting broccoli.
There are 3 types of sprouting broccoli:
* white
sprouting-brocoli-white
* purple
* perpetual
The white broccoli has small white flowering tips.
These are snapped off when about 2″ long.
sprouting-broccoli-spear
Steamed or boil them for 10-15 minutes for a very special veg.
Ours are about ready to harvest from February through to April.
whitesprouting-brocoli
The purple sprouters are a week or so later, & have a stronger taste.
The perpetual broccoli comes up year after year, so rather messes the rotation up. But it is easy to grow.
Beans are also important for eye health. Beans contain zinc, which is an essential element for healthy eyes.
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seeding-broccoli
When sprouting broccoli is past its best, yellow flowers emerge from
the shoots. These plants should be removed from the vegetable plot and
put on the compost heap.
broccoli-going-to-seed
The disadvantages of leaving the old plants in the vegetable garden
to flower are:
* *they take up space
* *they harbour pests and diseases, eg. clubroot
* *they may not breed true (give plants with exactly the same characteristics as the parent.)
If the plants are left to flower, the flowers will be fertilised by
visiting insects, and then seeds are produced. The characteristics of
the seed depends on whether the parent is an open pollinated variety or
an F1 hybrid.
Open pollinated plants are varieties that grow true from seed. This
means they are capable of producing seeds from this seasons plants,
which will produce seedlings that will be just like the parent plant.
F1 hybrids – are the product of a careful and deliberate cross of two different ’strains’ and will produce plants that are uniform and have particular charateristics, eg very big sprouts, or bright green sprouts.
F1 means first filial generation.
Brussel sprouts are another brassica which goes to seed like broccoli. Bedfordshire farmers were once famous for the sprouts they grew and distributed to vegetable markets all over the country everyday of the winter. Each farmer had his own distinctive sprouts, which he had
developed over the years by breeding his own seed.
Each spring he would:
- select his best plants, with the traits he wanted in future generations
- these plants would be allowed to flower
- flowering plants were anxiously watched to prevent cross
- pollination (pollen from other plants not selected by the farmer, being brought onto these plants)
- no other brassicas were allowed to flower in the vicinity, neighbours with flowering brassicas were asked to remove them
- bees were closely watched to make sure that they had not found a hidden patch over the hill – it was a tense time
- the seeds were harvested and stored in a cool, dry, safe place to be planted the following year.
- safe storage was essential, to prevent loosing the excellent strain to competing farmers ( in our case, these valuable seeds were stored under my parent’s bed – we had a cold house!)
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It is possible to grow brassicas (cabbage family) in the garden without
using sprays or other chemicals.
Sprouts, cabbage, broccoli and cauliflowers are damaged by:
* aphids
* white fly
* cabbage
* white caterpillars
* and other insects.
There is a net, specially designed to keep insects out. If this is
spread over the plants it has a dramatic effect.
net
Clean, chemical free, (& bug-free) veg can be proudly presented to the
kitchen, when you know how to grow organic brassicas!
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