Can you trim the cabbage? Information on cabbage leaf trimming

Cabbage is a relatively easy vegetable to grow, but like any garden crop, it is prone to certain problems. Perhaps the leaves touch the ground and start to rot, or the leaves are hanging over other crops because the plant has not yet dried out. The answer would be to prune the cabbage leaves, but can you prune the cabbage? Let’s see.

Can you trim the cabbage?

Cabbages are seasonal vegetables that keep for several weeks in the refrigerator. Before harvest, cabbage must be fed and cared for as it grows, and part of this care may involve pruning the cabbage plants. Therefore, the answer is yes, pruning cabbage plants is possible and in some cases necessary.

The purpose of cabbage leaf trimming is to create healthier plants in general. In addition to pruning the cabbage leaves, maintenance can also consist of true thinning. Cabbage thinning is different from pruning and involves the removal of an entire plant, usually the plants that have been planted directly in the garden and are beginning to pile up. This allows the plant to mature and develop.

Both techniques are used to promote the growth of healthy, productive plants and to remove parts or whole plants that are not healthy or do not meet your expectations. The size of the cabbage will allow the plant to concentrate all its energy to become a healthy specimen.

How to cut cabbage

In some cases, cabbage leaves can be trimmed at any time during growth; for example, removal of leaves that crawl on the ground and crack after being trampled, eaten or mouldy. In other cases, the cabbage must be allowed to flower.

Remove unhealthy or soft leaves either by pulling them out or pruning them with pruning shears or pruning shears. Also, sometimes you may want to remove what appear to be perfectly healthy leaves because they invade other plants before harvest. Go ahead, but don’t throw the leaves away. This often happens in the last few months of spring, when the plant is growing rapidly and the cut leaves are often called «spring leaves» and are therefore delicious.

Keep in mind that cabbage leaves contain the entire cabbage industry, so it is in the plants’ best interest to keep it free of unhealthy foliage.