Broccoli can be tough on our wallet at times.
But why buy, when you can grow it easily at home.
How to grow Broccoli at home in India?
To grow Broccoli at home in India, start in a cool season with temperature ranging from 15 – 30 degree Celsius, get good quality seeds, sow them in nutrient rich potting mix and once they turn into saplings, transplant them into final container, it will be ready to harvest in 80-100 days.
This was just a quick overview to let you know the process.
Let’s dive into the step by step guide.
How to grow Broccoli at Home in India – Step by Step
Best Time/Season to grow Broccoli in India
The best time to grow Broccoli in India is from August – Early November.
Broccoli prefers a cool season to grow when the temperature ranges from 15 – 30 degree Celsius and requires 5-6 hours of sunlight.
Sowing of Broccoli Seeds – Growing Broccoli at Home in India (Step – 1 )
Prepare a Seedling Mix
The first thing you need to do in order to grow broccoli at home in India, is to prepare a seedling mix.
This is the potting mix in which you will be sowing the broccoli seeds.
The seedling mix for broccoli needs to be nutrient rich and able to retain moisture for a good period of time.
For seedling mix use the following composition:
- Coco Peat – 50% ( you can buy it from here)
- Sand – 30%
- Vermicompost – 20% ( best one I recommend)
Mix them well before use.
Preparing the Container
For sowing broccoli seeds, use a wide container of 10 -12 inch (you can get it from here), make 3-4 drainage holes at the bottom, and fill it with the seedling mix that you just made.
Process of Sowing Seeds
Use a garden sprayer (like this one) and moist the seedling mix, make small holes (0.5 cm) inside it. Now sow the seeds ( you can get quality seeds from here) inside these holes, be sure to provide some gap between each seed.
After sowing seeds, cover the seeds with a thin layer of the same seedling mix.
Now, again lightly shower it with the help of a sprayer to make the soil moist.
Keep this container in a position where it receives light morning sunlight for 1-2 hours and is then under partial shade for the rest of the day and gets only indirect sunlight.
Germination of Seeds – Growing Broccoli in Pots India (Step – 2)
Maintain moisture in the seedling mix by lightly watering it from time to time. Don’t overwater, just water it enough that the soil gets moist.
Broccoli seeds take 4-7 days to germinate.
The saplings will grow big enough (developed 3-4 leaves) in 18-24 days to be transplanted to a big container.
Other Important Articles:
Transplanting The Saplings ( Step – 3)
Prepare Potting Mix
The first thing you will need to do while transferring the saplings is to prepare a potting mix.
The earlier one we used was just for seedling purposes.
The potting mix you are going to use for the final container should be a nutrient rich well draining soil.
You can make it using the following composition:
- Garden soil – 40%
- Sand – 20%
- Vermicompost – 40% ( this is the one I recommend)
Mix them well and allow them to blend together.
Container
Once you have prepared the potting soil.
Get 12 inch containers (each sapling will require one container, you can get container from here) make drainage holes for passage of air and excess water to pass.
Fill the pot with the potting mix that you just made.
Transferring Process
Carefully take out the sapling without hurting its root system.
And place it inside the 12 inch container.
Repeat the same process for each sapling.
Then water it gently to make the soil moist and keep it in bright indirect sunlight for 3-4 days until it deals with the shock of transplantation.
After this, move the container to a location where it receives 5-6 hours of direct sunlight.
Water it whenever the upper layer of the soil feels dry just enough to keep the soil moist.
Fertilizing Broccoli Plant
Broccoli requires a good amount of fertilizer to provide healthy yield.
After 35-40 days of germination, provide it with fertilizer in a gap of 7-10 days till the time of harvesting.
Best fertilizer for Broccoli in India:
Bone meal ( a good one like this)
Fish emulsion fertilizer ( you can get it from here)
Harvesting Broccoli
Broccoli will be ready to get harvested in 80 – 100 days.
Points to remember while harvesting:
- Broccoli should be tight and firm.
- Use a sharp knife or pruner to harvest.
- Don’t harvest if the flower has turned yellow, as the broccoli will turn bitter at this point.
Wrapping Up
I hope this guide will help you grow broccoli at home.
If you still have any doubts, you can ask them in the comment section.
