Biennial seed crops are those that take 2 years to fully mature into a productive seed crop. In the first year there is a great deal of vegetative growth and there is an opportunity for selecting leaf shape, disease and root size. Temperatures drop in the winter bewteen the 2 growing season where the plant is subject to vernalization, a critical stage in promoting the the initiation of flowering in the following season. In the second year of growth there is a physical transformation into the flowering and seed production phase.
Why grow biennial seed crops?
They are tasty! They include crops like beets, carrots, kale, leeks, onions, parsnips, parsley and cabbage.
Why to not grow biennials?
Harder and more time consuming. As well as a risk of the crop being killed in the field if using a seed to seed method.
Will I be growing biennial seed crops this year?
No. I am not sure what next year will bring and I don't yet own my own property. To start, I will practice growing annual seed crops well and slowly increase the difficulty of seed crops.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Integrating Seed Production in My Life
Next year, I will incorporate lettuce seed production into my vegetable garden. It will be separated from the vegetable production by t...
Hi Carla - a nice synopsis and rationale for not growing biennial seed crops! I always recommend starting with annual seed crops, self-pollinators, and gradually increasing the difficulty and challenge of seed crops as you gain experience. As well, it makes sense to not invest in biennial seed crops if you don't yet own your own property :).
ReplyDeleteRegards,
Mary
Yes, well explained reasoning, and sound reasoning Carla. Better to focus on annuals for now. Once you are in a more long-term, stable land situation, you can experiment with biennials. If you want to try a biennial that gives you harvestable crops in the first year, but produces seed in the second year you could try parsley if you're growing it this year (either for yourself or for market), and just leave it to overwinter and it will produce seed next year. That way you take no risk of having lost use of the first year's planting.
ReplyDelete