I walk in the Farmers Branch community garden, and some exceptional gardener has grown what looks like some type of cabbage the size of a beach ball. It is really quite extraordinary. This grower also has managed to find a way to keep pests from eating the cabbage too. There are no holes in the leaves at all. I have tried to grow shrubs and flowers but have never been very successful. I guess I do not have the gardening gene. Perhaps if I lived in England where gardening is a favorite pastime, I would improve. However, not sure I would like a steady diet of gloomy weather. Regardless of my gardening deficiencies, let’s explore the cabbage.
According to Wikipedia, cabbage — comprising several cultivars of Brassica oleracea — is a leafy green, red (purple) or white (pale green) biennial plant grown as an annual vegetable crop for its dense-leaved heads. It is descended from the wild cabbage — B. oleracea var. oleracea — and belongs to the "cole crops" or brassicas, meaning it is closely related to broccoli and cauliflower (var. botrytis), Brussels sprouts (var. gemmifera) and Savoy cabbage (var. sabauda).
Cabbage weights generally range from 1 to 2 lbs. Smooth-leafed, firm-headed green cabbages are the most common, with smooth-leafed purple cabbages and crinkle-leafed savoy cabbages of both colors being rarer. Under conditions of long sunny days, such as those found at high northern latitudes in summer, cabbages can grow quite large. As of 2012, the heaviest cabbage was 138.25 lbs. Cabbage heads are generally picked during the first year of the plant's life cycle, but plants intended for seed are allowed to grow a second year and must be kept separate from other cole crops to prevent cross-pollination. Cabbage is prone to several nutrient deficiencies — as well as to multiple pests — and bacterial and fungal diseases.
Cabbage was most likely domesticated somewhere in Europe before 1000 BC, although Savoys were not developed until the 16th century AD. By the Middle Ages, cabbage had become a prominent part of European cuisine. They can be prepared many different ways for eating; they can be pickled, fermented for dishes such as sauerkraut, steamed, stewed, sautéed, braised or eaten raw. Cabbage is a good source of vitamin K, vitamin C and dietary fiber. World production of cabbage and other brassicas for 2018 was 69 million tons, with China accounting for 48% of the total.
History
Although cabbage has an extensive history, it is difficult to trace its exact origins owing to the many varieties of leafy greens classified as "brassicas". A possible wild ancestor of cabbage — Brassica oleracea, originally found in Britain and continental Europe — is tolerant of salt but not encroachment by other plants and consequently inhabits rocky cliffs in cool damp coastal habitats, retaining water and nutrients in its slightly thickened, turgid leaves. However, genetic analysis is consistent with feral origin of this population, deriving from plants escaped from field and gardens. According to the triangle of U theory of the evolution and relationships between Brassica species, B. oleracea and other closely related kale vegetables — cabbages, kale, broccoli, Brussels sprouts and cauliflower — represent one of three ancestral lines from which all other brassicas originated.
Cabbage was probably domesticated later in history than Near Eastern crops such as lentils and summer wheat. Because of the wide range of crops developed from the wild B. oleracea, multiple broadly contemporaneous domestications of cabbage may have occurred throughout Europe. Nonheading cabbages and kale were probably the first to be domesticated, before 1000 BC — perhaps by the Celts of central and western Europe — although recent linguistic and genetic evidence enforces a Mediterranean origin of cultivated brassicas.
While unidentified brassicas were part of the highly conservative unchanging Mesopotamian garden repertory, it is believed that the ancient Egyptians did not cultivate cabbage, which is not native to the Nile valley, though the word shaw’t in Papyrus Harris — the longest known papyrus from Egypt, with some 1,500 lines of text — of the time of Ramesss III has been interpreted as "cabbage." The ancient Greeks had some varieties of cabbage, as mentioned by Theophrastus, although whether they were more closely related to today's cabbage or to one of the other Brassica crops is unknown. The headed cabbage variety was known to the Greeks as krambe and to the Romans as brassica or olus; the open, leafy variety or kale was known in Greek as raphanos and in Latin as caulis. Ptolemaic Egyptians knew the cole crops as gramb, under the influence of Greek krambe, which had been a familiar plant to the Macedonian antecedents of the Ptolemies. By early Roman times, Egyptian artisans and children were eating cabbage and turnips among a wide variety of other vegetables and pulses.
Chrysippus of Cridos wrote a treatise on cabbage, which Pliny knew, but it has not survived. The Greeks were convinced that cabbages and grapevines were inimical, and that cabbage planted too near the vine would impart its unwelcome odor to the grapes; this Mediterranean sense of antipathy survives today.
Brassica was considered by some Romans a table luxury, although Lucullus considered it unfit for the senatorial table. The more traditionalist Cato the Elder, espousing a simple Republican life, ate his cabbage cooked or raw and dressed with vinegar; he said it surpassed all other vegetables and approvingly distinguished three varieties; he also gave directions for its medicinal use, which extended to the cabbage-eater's urine, in which infants might be rinsed. Pliny the Elder listed seven varieties, including Pompeii cabbage, Cumae cabbage and Sabellian cabbage. According to Pliny, the Pompeii cabbage, which could not stand cold, is "taller, and has a thick stock near the root, but grows thicker between the leaves, these being scantier and narrower, but their tenderness is a valuable quality". The Pompeii cabbage was also mentioned by Columella in “De Re Rustica.” Apicius — a collection of Roman cookery recipes thought to have been compiled in the 1st century AD — gives several recipes for cauliculi, tender cabbage shoots. The Greeks and Romans claimed medicinal usages for their cabbage varieties that included relief from gout, headaches and the symptoms of poisonous mushroom ingestion. The antipathy towards the vine made it seem that eating cabbage would enable one to avoid drunkenness. Cabbage continued to figure in the materia medica of antiquity as well as at table: in the first century AD, Dioscorides mentions two kinds of coleworts with medical uses — the cultivated and the wild — and his opinions continued to be paraphrased in herbals right through the 17th century.
At the end of Antiquity, cabbage is mentioned in De observatione ciborum or "On the Observance of Foods" of Anthimus, a Greek doctor at the court of Theodoric the Great, and cabbage appears among vegetables directed to be cultivated in the Capitulare de villis, composed c. 771-800 that guided the governance of the royal estates of Charlemagne.
In Britain, the Anglo-Saxons cultivated cawel. When round-headed cabbages appeared in 14th-century England, they were called cabaches and caboches, words drawn from Old French and applied at first to refer to the ball of unopened leaves. The contemporaneous recipe that commences "Take cabbages and quarter them, and seethe them in good broth" also suggests the tightly headed cabbage.
Manuscript illuminations show the prominence of cabbage in the cuisine of the High Middle Ages, and cabbage seeds feature among the seed list of purchases for the use of King John II of France when captive in England in 1360, but cabbages were also a familiar staple of the poor: in the lean year of 1420 the "Bourgeois of Paris" noted that "poor people ate no bread, nothing but cabbages and turnips and such dishes, without any bread or salt." French naturalist Jean Ruel made what is considered the first explicit mention of head cabbage in his 1536 botanical treatise “De Natura Stirpium,” referring to it as capucos coles or "head-coles."
In Istanbul, Sultan Selim III penned a tongue-in-cheek ode to cabbage: without cabbage, the halva feast was not complete. In India, cabbage was one of several vegetable crops introduced by colonizing traders from Portugal, who established trade routes from the 14th to 17th centuries. Carl Peter Thunberg reported that cabbage was not yet known in Japan in 1775.
Many cabbage varieties — including some still commonly grown — were introduced in Germany, France and the Low Countries. During the 16th century, German gardeners developed the Savoy cabbage. During the 17th and 18th centuries, cabbage was a food staple in such countries as Germany, England, Ireland and Russia, and pickled cabbage was frequently eaten. Sauerkraut was used by Dutch, Scandinavian and German sailors to prevent scurvy during long ship voyages.
Jacques Cartier first brought cabbage to the Americas in 1541–42, and it was probably planted by the early English colonists, despite the lack of written evidence of its existence there until the mid-17th century. By the 18th century, it was commonly planted by both colonists and Native Americans. Cabbage seeds traveled to Australia in 1788 with the First Fleet and were planted the same year on Norfolk Island. It became a favorite vegetable of Australians by the 1830s and was frequently seen at the Sydney Markets.
Taxonomy and etymology
"Cabbage" was originally used to refer to multiple forms of B. oleracea, including those with loose or non-existent heads. A related species, Brassica rapa, is commonly named Chinese, napa or celery cabbage, and has many of the same uses. It is also a part of common names for several unrelated species. These include cabbage bark or cabbage tree — a member of the genus Andira — and cabbage palms, which include several genera of palms such as Mauritia, Roystonea oleracea, Acrocomia and Euterpe oenocarpus.
The original family name of brassicas was Cruciferae, which derived from the flower petal pattern thought by medieval Europeans to resemble a crucifix. The word brassica derives from bresic, a Celtic word for cabbage. Many European and Asiatic names for cabbage are derived from the Celto-Slavic root cap or kap, meaning "head." The late Middle English word cabbage derives from the word caboche or "head," from the Picard dialect of Old French. This in turn is a variant of the Old French caboce. Through the centuries, "cabbage" and its derivatives have been used as slang for numerous items, occupations and activities. Cash and tobacco have both been described by the slang "cabbage," while "cabbage-head" means a fool or stupid person and "cabbaged" means to be exhausted or, vulgarly, in a vegetative state.
Cultivation
Cabbage is generally grown for its densely leaved heads, produced during the first year of its biennial cycle. Plants perform best when grown in well-drained soil in a location that receives full sun. Different varieties prefer different soil types, ranging from lighter sand to heavier clay, but all prefer fertile ground with a pH between 6.0 and 6.8. For optimal growth, there must be adequate levels of nitrogen in the soil ó especially during the early head formation stage — and sufficient phosphorus and potassium during the early stages of expansion of the outer leaves. Temperatures between 39 and 75 °F prompt the best growth, and extended periods of higher or lower temperatures may result in premature bolting or flowering. Flowering induced by periods of low temperatures — a process called vernalization — only occurs if the plant is past the juvenile period. The transition from a juvenile to adult state happens when the stem diameter is about 1/4 inch. Vernalization allows the plant to grow to an adequate size before flowering. In certain climates, cabbage can be planted at the beginning of the cold period and survive until a later warm period without being induced to flower, a practice that was common in the eastern U.S.
Plants are generally started in protected locations early in the growing season before being transplanted outside, although some are seeded directly into the ground from which they will be harvested. Seedlings typically emerge in about 4–6 days from seeds planted 1/2 inch deep at a soil temperature between 68 and 86 °F. Growers normally place plants 12 to 24 inches apart. Closer spacing reduces the resources available to each plant — especially the amount of light — and increases the time taken to reach maturity. Some varieties of cabbage have been developed for ornamental use; these are generally called "flowering cabbage." They do not produce heads and feature purple or green outer leaves surrounding an inner grouping of smaller leaves in white, red or pink. Early varieties of cabbage take about 70 days from planting to reach maturity, while late varieties take about 120 days. Cabbages are mature when they are firm and solid to the touch. They are harvested by cutting the stalk just below the bottom leaves with a blade. The outer leaves are trimmed, and any diseased, damaged, or necrotic leaves are removed. Delays in harvest can result in the head splitting as a result of expansion of the inner leaves and continued stem growth.
When being grown for seed, cabbages must be isolated from other B. oleraea subspecies, including the wild varieties, by 1/2 to 1 mile to prevent cross-pollination. Other Brassica species — such as B. rapa, B. juncea, B. nigra, B. napus and Raphanus sativus — do not readily cross-pollinate.
Cultivars
There are several cultivar groups of cabbage, each including many cultivars:
- Savoy – Characterized by crimped or curly leaves, mild flavor and tender texture.
- Spring greens – Loose-headed, commonly sliced and steamed.
- Green – Light to dark green, slightly pointed heads.
- Red – Smooth red leaves, often used for pickling or stewing.
- White, also called Dutch – Smooth, pale green leaves.
Some sources only delineate three cultivars: savoy, red and white, with spring greens and green cabbage being subsumed under the last.
Cultivation problems
Fungal diseases include wirestem, which causes weak or dying transplants; Fusarium yellows, which result in stunted and twisted plants with yellow leaves; and blackleg, which leads to sunken areas on stems and gray-brown spotted leaves. The fungi Alternaria brassicae and A. brassicicola cause dark leaf spots in affected plants. They are both seedborne and airborne, and typically propagate from spores in infected plant debris left on the soil surface for up to 12 weeks after harvest. Rhizoctonia solani causes the post-emergence disease wirestem, resulting in killed seedlings or "damping-off," root rot or stunted growth and smaller heads.
One of the most common bacterial diseases to affect cabbage is black rot, caused by Xanthomonas campestris, which causes chlorotic and necrotic lesions that start at the leaf margins, and wilting of plants. Clubroot, caused by the soilborne slime mold-like organism Plasmodiophora brassicae, results in swollen, club-like roots. Downy mildew, a parasitic disease caused by the oomycete Peronospora parasitica, produces pale leaves with white, brownish or olive mildew on the lower leaf surfaces; this is often confused with the fungal disease powdery mildew.
Pests include root-knot nematodes and cabbage maggots, which produce stunted and wilted plants with yellow leaves; apids, which induce stunted plants with curled and yellow leaves; harlequin cabbage bugs, which cause white and yellow leaves; thrips, which lead to leaves with white-bronze spots; striped flea beetles, which riddle leaves with small holes; and caterpillars, which leave behind large, ragged holes in leaves. The caterpillar stage of the "small cabbage white butterfly" — commonly known in the United States as the "imported cabbage worm" — is a major cabbage pest in most countries. The large white butterfly is prevalent in eastern European countries. The diamondback moth and the cabbage moth thrive in the higher summer temperatures of continental Europe, where they cause considerable damage to cabbage crops. The cabbage looper is infamous in North America for its voracious appetite and for producing frass that contaminates plants. In India, the diamondback moth has caused losses up to 90 percent loss in crops that were not treated with insecticide. Destructive soil insects include the cabbage root fly and the cabbage maggot, whose larvae can burrow into the part of the plant consumed by humans.
Planting near other members of the cabbage family, or where these plants have been placed in previous years, can prompt the spread of pests and disease. Excessive water and excessive heat can also cause cultivation problems.
Factors that contribute to reduced head weight include: growth in the compacted soils that result from no-till farming practices, drought, waterlogging, insect and disease incidence and shading and nutrient stress caused by weeds.
Consumption
Cabbage consumption varies widely around the world: Russia has the highest annual per capita consumption at 44 lbs, followed by Belgium at 10 lbs 6 oz and the Netherlands at 8 lbs 13 oz. Americans consume 8.6 lbs annually per capita.
Food preparation
Cabbage is prepared and consumed in many ways. The simplest options include eating the vegetable raw or steaming it, though many cuisines pickle, stew, sautée or braise cabbage. Pickling is one of the most popular ways of preserving cabbage, creating dishes such as sauerkraut and kimchi, although kimchi is more often made from Chinese cabbage. Savoy cabbages are usually used in salads, while smooth-leaf types are utilized for both market sales and processing. Bean curd and cabbage is a staple of Chinese cooking, while the British dish bubble and squeak is made primarily with leftover potato and boiled cabbage and eaten with cold meat. In Poland, cabbage is one of the main food crops, and it features prominently in Polish cuisine. It is frequently eaten, either cooked or as sauerkraut, as a side dish or as an ingredient in such dishes as bigos (cabbage, sauerkraut, meat and wild mushrooms, among other ingredients) gołąbki (stuffed cabbage) and pierogi (filled dumplings). Other eastern European countries, such as Hungary and Romania, also have traditional dishes that feature cabbage as a main ingredient. In India and Ethiopia, cabbage is often included in spicy salads and braises. In the United States, cabbage is used primarily for the production of coleslaw, followed by market use and sauerkraut production.
Herbalism
In addition to its usual purpose as an edible vegetable, cabbage has been used historically in herbalism. The Ancient Greeks recommended consuming the vegetable as a laxative and used cabbage juice as an antidote for mushroom poisoning, for eye salves and for liniments for bruises. The ancient Roman, Pliny the Elder, described both culinary and medicinal properties of the vegetable. Ancient Egyptians ate cooked cabbage at the beginning of meals to reduce the intoxicating effects of wine. This traditional usage persisted in European literature until the mid-20th century.
The cooling properties of the leaves were used in Britain as a treatment for trench foot in World War I and as compresses for ulcers and breast abscesses. Other medicinal uses recorded in European folk medicine include treatments for rheumatism, sore throat, hoarseness, colic and melancholy. Both mashed cabbage and cabbage juice have been used in poultices to remove boils and treat warts, pneumonia, appendicitis and ulcers. As of 2019, there is no clinical evidence that cabbage has any medicinal properties.
Cabbage Patch Kids
Cabbage Patch Kids dolls were a line of one-of-a-kind, cloth dolls with plastic heads first produced by Coleco Industries in 1982. They were inspired by the Little People soft sculptured dolls sold by Xavier Roberts as collectibles and registered in the United States copyright office in 1978 as “The Little People.” The brand was renamed “Cabbage Patch Kids” by Roger L. Schlaifer when he acquired the exclusive worldwide licensing rights in 1982.
The new doll brand set every toy industry sales record for three years running and was one of the most popular lines of children’s licensed products in the 1980s and has become one of the longest-running doll franchises in the United States. The characters and graphics created by Schlaifer and developed by his company, Schlaifer Nance & Co., were used on all Cabbage Patch products ranging from children’s apparel, bedding and infants wear to record albums and board games.
Popularity of cabbage today
According to Naomi Tomky’s June 25, 2020 article “How Cabbage Became Lockdown’s Most Popular Vegetable” in HuffPost, cabbage popularity spikes each year around St. Patrick’s Day. But this year, instead of searches for the rugged green tumbling back to the usual year-round low levels, Google Trends shows that people kept looking for cabbage recipes through the end of March, into April, and even now. The summer sun brings strawberries into stores, yet Americans still want cabbage ― 50% more than they did at this time last year.
Scrolling social media, the vegetable screams its too-cool-for-school status—under roasted chicken in The New Yorker food writer Helen Rosner’s version, butter-braised and tossed with pasta by The Takeout writer Allison Robicelli and even freshly plucked from the garden by Oprah herself.
But the vegetable of the moment lacks the usual eye-catching colors or over-the-top calorie count of most Instagram darlings. It cooks to the color of a dirty napkin and supplies health benefits galore. Packed with fiber and nutrients, cabbage climbed to the top of lockdown cooking popularity for the most utterly mundane reason: practicality. Cabbage lasts basically forever in the fridge, costs almost nothing and works just as well as a star centerpiece of a main dish or shredded and cooked down to near invisibility.
Eater writer Jaya Saxena saw the writing on the wall even before the pandemic, predicting in December that “cabbage is your next great vegetable crush.” Watching where it intersects with comfort, wellness and cuisines from around the world that so many Americans love to appropriate, along with a forecast economic recession, she warned: “Get ready to be sick of it by 2021.”
Though Rosner has been cooking through a cabbage or two each week lately, one of the advantages of cabbage is that there is no need to do so. In “The Book of Greens,” chef Jenn Louis says that properly stored wrapped in plastic in the crisper drawer of a refrigerator, cabbage can last at least a month — far longer than most greens.
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