Chinese / Napa Cabbage & Oriental Leaves
Chinese or napa cabbage – Brassica rapa, Pekinensis Group; Pak choi/bok choi – Brassica rapa, Chinensis Group; and other Latin names – see below
All of these vegetables are part of the wonderful and enormous species of Brassica rapa, from China, Japan, Korea and many Asian countries.
Introduction
This lesson is titled Chinese cabbage because it takes up more than half of the content – it is a fast and exciting vegetable to grow. I give information on other vegetables from Asia because they are closely related and you can grow them in similar ways.
All are part of the wonderful and enormous species of Brassica rapa vegetables from China, Japan, Korea and many Asian countries.
Chinese cabbage is called napa cabbage in North America. It is uncertain whether this word comes from the Napa Valley, where it was first grown commercially, or from the Japanese word ‘nappa’, which means leafy vegetable.
- The heavy and fast-growing heads of Chinese cabbage result from centuries of breeding in China (especially in the Beijing region) between turnips and pak choi, of which bok choy is the equivalent American term.
- The choi/choy vegetables of Chinensis Group vegetables do not make heads. Their growth of new leaves is strong in cool winter months, the best time to grow them. This is true for mustards and rocket too, with the one exception of wild or perennial wall rocket – see below.
Nomenclature
There is a minefield of colloquial words used. I am aware that my audience is from many countries, where the descriptive terms vary.
This lesson uses a range of names in English and Latin, but cannot be comprehensive, otherwise there would be more descriptive terms than descriptions! The photos can give you clues to my descriptions if you are unsure.
Harvest period
- Days from seed to first harvest: Pekinensis heads 70–80, Chinensis leaves 30–40 (similar for most Oriental leaves).
Seeds sownReady to harvestPekinensis late summerHeads mostly in late autumnChinensis and Oriental late summerLeaves mid-autumn, through winter if temperateChinensis and Oriental late winter under coverEarly spring but only briefly
- Best climate for these covers many possibilities, from temperate to continental, but with no excessive heat or continual cold.
Why grow them
Chinese cabbage makes heads far faster than ordinary cabbage. They make it possible to have a considerable amount of cabbage leaves in autumn, from one sowing right at the end of summer. This enables productive use of ground in the autumn, which might otherwise be empty after a preceding harvest of beans, onions or beetroot, even early summer squash.
Likewise, the leaves of pak choi and tatsoi come to harvest fast. As with Chinese cabbage, they are highly susceptible to damage from many insects.
From one sowing you can harvest many times, and they are useful as catch crops in the autumn or even in early spring, though only briefly, before insects arrive and flowering initiates.
The heads of Chinese cabbage make super sauerkraut, and the leaves of all other vegetables here contribute strong and varied flavours and textures, to both cooked and salad dishes. They bring a valuable amount of chlorophyll to winter cuisine when other greens are scarce.
Pattern of growth
Spring flowering means that spring sowing is considerably less productive for leaves than sowing in late summer and early autumn.
Chinese cabbage is the only one of these vegetables to make firm heads. Pak choi makes a tight cluster of leaves, which are often harvested as a loose head, all together.
- These all grow faster than perhaps any other vegetables. If you enjoy spicy flavours and want salad and cooking leaves in autumn, even through to winter, these are for you.
Types and varieties
Just a few examples from the hundreds available.
Chinese Cabbage
Yuki F1, Blues F1 and Sativa are barrel-shaped and firm. Sativa is slightly longer, matures a little later and stores well.
Wong Bok variety is one of many barrel types that grow very long and are less suitable for long-term storage.
Michihili is a type with pointed leaves in medium-sized heads, shaped like cos/romaine lettuce. Leaves are tender and sweet.
There are a few red varieties, mostly hybrids. The colour is rich and varied but heads are not heavy.
Oriental leaves, including Pekinensis, Juncea and the rockets
Mustard leaves/Oriental mustard (Brassica juncea)
Originated in the Himalayan foothills. Mustards are a large family, with many cultivated varieties of pungent mustards and the less spicy mizuna and mibuna. A spectrum of red and green colour variations occur, and the speed of growth is remarkable.
Pak choi
Varieties are available in huge number. My favourite is the hybrid Joi Choi for its large white stems and vigour of growth. Tatsoi is a lower growing type of pak choi, forming beautiful rosettes of leaves, and Yukina Savoy is probably the most vigorous and upright.
Salad rocket/arugula (Eruca versicaria, Sativa Group)
Native to the Mediterranean region. In temperate climates it crops most prolifically outdoors in autumn and under cover in winter, from sowings in late summer and until the autumn equinox – see the photos below and in the ‘Interplant’ section.
Wild rocket/perennial wall rocket/wild arugula (Diplotaxis tenuifolia)
Grows wild in the Mediterranean region. It crops most prolifically through spring to early summer, from sowings in early autumn. To enjoy pungent rocket flavour over a long period, you can combine the spring cropping of wild rocket with the autumn and winter cropping of salad rocket.
Suitable for containers/shade?
All of these tolerate shade and are worth growing in containers. You can harvest leaves all through late autumn and then through winter if you have a space under cover – see the photos for ideas.
Clear
Normally one is clearing these plants, or any remains of them, in late autumn, with no time for new plantings afterwards. Use a sharp knife or trowel to cut stems at soil level, or simply twist out any residue.
Then spread some compost as cover in winter, food for soil organisms, and for plants through the coming year.
Follow with
In terms of timing, you have the whole of a year to enjoy growing whatever you like. Rotation theory says not to grow brassicas, but I don’t see this as a rule, rather a guideline.
I prefer to grow vegetables of a different family after brassicas, but sometimes, and especially for those growing a lot of brassicas, you grow them consecutively.
