Kohlrabi Donation Tracker

Quick Links: How & Where to Grow | Temperature | How to Care For | Harvest Signs | Harvesting | Pruning | Pests | Companions | Varieties | Preservation | Recipes | Michigan Tips | Fun Facts

🌱 How & Where to Grow Kohlrabi:

• Direct seed April-May and July-August.
• Quick-growing (50-60 days) – the UFO of the vegetable garden!
• Space plants 6 inches apart in rows 12 inches apart.
• Sunlight: Full sun (6+ hours) but tolerates partial shade.
• Soil Type: Well-drained, fertile soil with pH 6.0-7.5.
• Soil Amendment: Moderate compost – not a heavy feeder

Kohlrabi looks like an alien spaceship but tastes like a sweet, mild turnip crossed with cabbage!

🌡️ Temperature Guidance:

Optimal 60-70°F. Tolerates 25°F. Hot weather = woody bulbs.

• Best growth: 60-70°F consistent temperatures.
• Spring planting: As soon as soil can be worked.
• Mature plants tolerate frost to 25°F.
• Heat above 75°F causes woody, tough texture.

Michigan’s cool springs and falls are perfect – summer heat is kohlrabi’s enemy!

💧 How to Care for:

• Consistent Moisture: Essential for tender, non-woody bulbs.
• Watering: 1 inch weekly – steady moisture prevents toughness.
• Mulch: Light mulch to retain moisture.
• Fertilizer: Light feeding at planting is sufficient.
• Fast growth: Keep them growing quickly for best quality.

📏 Harvest Signs:

2-3 inches diameter. Don’t exceed 4 inches. Firm feel.

• Size is everything – harvest young for best texture!
• Tennis ball size (2-3 inches) is perfect.
• Larger than 4 inches becomes woody and tough.
• Should feel firm and heavy for size.

Don’t wait too long – kohlrabi grows fast and gets woody quickly!

🧺 Harvesting:

Pull entire plant or cut at soil level. Trim leaves and roots.

• Always harvest when soil is moist for easy pulling.
• Grasp bulb and pull straight up.
• Or cut at soil level with sharp knife.
• Remove leaves and roots immediately.
• Leaves are edible – use like collard greens!

✂️ Pruning:

Remove lower leaves as bulb forms. Harvest leaves for eating.

• Minimal pruning needed due to quick growth.
• Remove yellowing lower leaves for cleaner bulbs.
• Harvest young leaves for cooking – won’t harm bulb.
• Keep 4-5 top leaves to feed bulb growth.
• No topping needed – let it grow!

🪲 Michigan Pests:

Root maggots, flea beetles, aphids (minor due to quick growth).

• Root maggots – most serious pest. Use row covers.
• Flea beetles – tiny holes in leaves. Less damaging than on other crops.
• Aphids – occasional problem, blast with water.
• Quick growth helps outpace most pest problems!

🫱🏽‍🫲🏼 Companions:

Lettuce, spinach, onions, herbs, beans, radishes.

• Lettuce and spinach grow well in kohlrabi’s shade.
• Onions help deter pests.
• Radishes can be interplanted – similar growth rate.
• Beans fix nitrogen for following crops.
• Herbs like dill attract beneficial insects.

🛸 Varieties:

Early: ‘Kolibri’, ‘Winner’. Storage: ‘Korridor’, ‘Superschmelz’.

• ‘Kolibri’: 45 days, purple, sweet and tender.
• ‘Winner’: 45 days, light green, very uniform.
• ‘Korridor’: 55 days, stays tender at larger size.
• ‘Superschmelz’: 60 days, grows huge without getting woody!
• ‘Early White Vienna’: 55 days, classic variety.

🫙 Preservation:

Fresh 2-3 weeks. Freeze blanched cubes. Root cellar large varieties.

• Fresh storage: Remove leaves, store 2-3 weeks in crisper.
• Freezing: Blanch cubes 3 minutes before freezing.
• Root cellar: Storage varieties keep 2-3 months.
• Pickling: Makes great refrigerator pickles.
• Fermented: Use like turnips in sauerkraut.
• Dehydrated: Makes interesting veggie chips.

🧑🏽‍🍳 Recipes:

Kohlrabi slaw, roasted wedges, kohlrabi fries.

• Raw kohlrabi slaw with apple and cabbage.
• Roasted kohlrabi wedges with parmesan.
• Kohlrabi fries – better than potato fries!
• Cream of kohlrabi soup.
• Stuffed kohlrabi – hollow out and fill with grains.

✋🏼 Michigan Tips:

• Perfect for succession planting.
• Spring and fall crops both successful.
• Quick maturity beats pest problems.
• Grows well in containers.
• Michigan’s variable weather doesn’t faze it.
• Storage varieties extend harvest season.

🧠 Fun Facts:

• “Cabbage turnip” in German.
• Swollen stem, not root.
• NASA studied for space agriculture.
• Kohlrabi is actually a swollen stem, not a root or bulb!
• First recorded in Europe in 1554.
• Popular in Kashmir where it’s called “monj.”
• Purple varieties turn green when cooked.
• Contains more vitamin C than oranges – especially the leaves!