^- w. >> X^it '^^'•^'Jf^ :^-f^ -v*''. rj :'. r lJ?*'', ;';i^;- - '•■ ■ .■">■ ♦jj-j^i L.!^«-iV ' V* V ^: ^ ■^ v ,>■ ':,K*;.'i.;.' ■ .^>, ;;'Ar Please handle this volume with care. The University of Connecticut Libraries, Storrs Ci C C' O C" i t -x- '^ "^ rxtiVinnri d^ ^=t-t^^nT^rr30- ISSN 0097-0905 Broccoli Trials— 1985 By Davjd E Hill -- >M-,^r-r pUBUCATipNS U?5 /i, # -^ ' ^J CIonN THE CONNECTICUT AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION New Haven Bulletin 830 January 1986 Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2011 with funding from LYRASIS members and Sloan Foundation http://www.archive.org/details/broccolitrials830hill Broccoli Trials — 1985 By David E. Hill A recent marketing survey by the food Industry Institute at Michigan State University reported that, among all common vegetables grown in the United States, broccoli leads with a 16936 increase in per capita consumption in the past 10 years. During this time production increased from 200,000 tons in 1974 to 500,000 tons in 1984 in the major producing states of Arizona, California, Oregon, and Texas. Broccoli is a member of the genus Brassica, along with cabbage, cauliflower, and brussels sprouts, which has been recently widely publicized by the American Medical Association as an important component of human diet. Its consumption has also increased because of wide availability in salad bars and inclusion in prepared frozen TV dinners. Despite the increased consumption, Connecticut's production of broccoli has remained constant over the past decade with about 45 acres grown for sale at roadside markets. Virtually none has been produced for supermarkets. In 1985, however, two supermarket chains expressed interest in locally-produced broccoli for fall consumption. Their interest stems from a policy to purchase locally-produced vegetables when availa- ble, which are fresher than those that have gone through the rigors of expensive cross-country ship- ping. If the number of acres of broccoli grown are to increase for an expanded market it is highly impor- tant to examine the wealth of varieties or cultivars available to American growers to determine those best suited for Connecticut's soil and climate. From more than 60 old and new cultivars available from domestic seed companies I chose 28 for the 1985 trials. To this number I added four experimental cultivars that had not been tested in Southern New England. This report presents yields, quality, maturity, and dis- ease resistance of cultivars grown in Mt. Carmel and Windsor in the spring and fall of 1985. SITES AND MANAGEMENT The broccoli trials were conducted at i) the Valley Laboratory, Windsor, on Merrimac sandy loam, a sandy terrace soil with somewhat limited moisture holding capacity and ii) Lockwood Farm, Mt. Carmel, on Cheshire fine sandy loam, a loamy, upland soil with a moderate moisture holding capacity. The spring crop was started in a greenhouse with vents opened at 72 F and heated to maintain a temper- ature of at least 50 F. The seedlings were moved to a cold frame for hardening and then planted in the field. The fall crop was started in an outdoor lath enclosure providing 5036 shading and planted in the field when seedlings were 4 inches high. The seed- lings were grown in Promix B in standard plastic pots measuring 2 5/8" x 2 1/4" x 2 5/16" and held in packs of 36. About 4 weeks after germination, water- soluble 20-20-20 fertilizer was added to the seed- lings. The seedlings were planted in rows 36 inches apart with spacing 18" within rows to provide a density of 9680 plants/A. Each planting consisted of five randomized blocks with six plants/cultivar in each replication. Transplanted seedlings dying the first week were replaced. Mature heads were har- vested at 2- or 3-day intervals. Yields were weighed, and quality was judged by color, evenness and compactness of head, excessive stalkiness and leaves protruding from the head. The details of management of the soil and crop Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station Bulletin 830 Table 1. Soil and crop management of broccoli and pertinent dates. Activity Soil fertilization (Rates based on soil tests) 10-10-10 lime (Mt.Carmel) lime (Windsor) Planting dates Seeding in greenhouse or lath house Experimentals & Citation (sown late) Transfer to cold frame Experimentals & Citation Transplant seedling to field Mt. Carmel Experimentals St Citation Windsor Experimentals & Citation Spring Crop Fall Crop 1300 lbs/A 3250 lbs/A None March 7 April 2 April 8-10 April 19 1300 lbs/A 3250 lbs/A None June 12 April 19-22 July 25-29 May 1 April 23-24 July 23-24 May 6 Pest Control Root maggots (Windsor) Root maggots (Mt. Carmel) Cabbage worms Lorsban 4E Lorsban 4E Malathion 50 EC* Lorsban 4E Malathion 50 EC Irrigation Windsor Mt. Carmel Weed Control Cultivations * Rate = 1 tbsp(15.8 ml)/5 gal water - 4 oz applied to each plant in planter water. ** Rate = 1 tbsp/gal water. and pertinent dates are listed in Table 1. The differences in management between trials at Windsor and Mt. Carmel are noted. YIELD AND QUALITY— SPRING CROP The average yields were similar at the two loca- tions: at Mt. Carmel 6602 lb/A and 6355 at Windsor, a difference of only 4.2 5B (Table 2). At Mt. Carmel Dandy Early, Green Duke and Prominence yielded most, about 6.5 tons/A. At Windsor Green Duke, Mercedes, and Prominence yielded 6 to 7.5 tons/A. At Mt. Carmel Bravo, Green Comet, Green Dwarf, Green Goliath, Mercedes, and the experi- mental hybrid XPH 5004 yielded over 4 tons/A. At Windsor Dandy Early and Green Dwarf exceeded 4 tons/A. High yield is not necessarily synonymous with the best quality. Some varieties have pronounced defects that would affect their marketability. Explanations of undesirable characteristics listed in Table 2 follow: Leggy. The crown is borne on a loosely branched stalk. Heads are normally cut leaving a 5" stalk that is generally shorn of leaves. Cutting a leggy stalk at 5" would reduce the size of the head because the outermost branches would be severed. Leafy. Leaves are usually borne on the stalk below the head but extend around and above the head. A leafy head has small to medium sized leaves pro- truding through the head. Lumpy, A lumpy head is one in which portions grow faster than others. The uneven surface of a lumpy head is less appealing to the eye. At times depressions in these heads may collect water and become focal points for bacterial and fungal infections. Buttoning. Buttoning is the maturation of the plant while it is still small. This is caused by vernalization or chilling of the plant in the seed- ling stage. The head formed on a small plant has only about 1" diameter. The cultivar Futura buttoned in over 95^ of the spring planting. Color. Ideal heads are dark to bluish green. A purplish cast does not detract from its desirability. Pale green, yellowish and reddish colors indicate mineral deficiencies or disease. Brown, black, or water soaked patches indicate disease. Mottled yel- low and green patches may be caused by uneven matura- tion of individual florets. Broccoli Trials — 1985 Table 2, Yield and quality of broccoli at Mt. Carmel and Windsor, Spring 1985. Cultivar Atlantic Bonanza Bravo Calabrese Citation Cleopatra Dandy Early + DeCicco Early One Futura Galaxy Gem Goliath Grande Green Comet Green Duke Green Dwarf + Green Goliath Green Hornet Green Sprouting Mercedes + Orion + Paragon + Prominence Southern Comet ■» Spartan Early Walt ham 29 XPH 853 XPH 1127 XPH 5003 XPH 5004 -t- Mt. Carmel 1 Heads Avg. First Side 1 Hvstd. Head Cut Cuts 1 % lb lb/A lb/A 1 87 0.8 6641 2025 1 97 0.6 5023 2614 1 100 0.8 8027 2867 1 90 0.4 3473 1115 1 97 0.6 5699 1 57 0.6 3369 6702 1 100 1.4 13488 2563 1 80 0.6 4372 2820 1 27 1.4 3609 2180 1 3 0.6 178 5362 1 90 0.6 5552 6536 1 93 0.5 4852 3903 1 70 0.6 4256 5241 1 87 0.8 6748 2573 1 100 1.0 9459 960 1 93 1.4 12725 841 1 97 0.9 8013 2917 1 100 1.0 9828 955 1 73 0.7 4889 4807 1 73 0.5 3493 1969 1 97 1.0 9357 664 1 87 0.7 6250 4652 1 97 0.8 7641 2372 1 100 1.3 12830 2993 1 87 0.8 6404 5888 1 93 0.7 5927 2333 1 97 0.4 4141 829 1 97 0.6 5677 1 97 0.8 7244 1 93 0.6 5541 1 100 0.9 8977 Windsor 1 Heads Avg. First Side 1 HvEtd. Head Cut Cuts 1 % lb lb/A lb/A Quality of head 1 83 0.7 5890 2427 Loose and leafy 1 90 0.7 5753 2615 Compact, small stem 1 97 0.8 7735 4013 Large, leggy, heavy side cuts 1 97 0.5 4380 1110 Leggy and leafy 1 90 0.7 5986 Medium sized, somewhat lumpy, purplish tinge 1 S3 0.8 6132 4750 Loose, lumpy, poor quality 1 90 1.1 9191 2661 Large, dense, somewhat lumpy, purplish tinge 1 77 0.5 3791 2744 Leggy and lumpy 1 77 0.4 2697 2025 Small, leggy, loose 1 3 0.3 92 6352 Premature buttoning, heavy side cuts 1 60 0.7 4329 6124 Good, sometimes lumpy 1 73 0.5 3679 4192 Somewhat leggy and lumpy 1 53 0.9 4536 5443 Small, compact 1 90 0.9 7732 3021 Large, somewhat leafy 1 97 0.8 7203 1165 Small compact, all matured at once 1 93 1.4 13017 1561 Large, matured at once, sometimes discolored 1 100 0.9 8782 3193 Ball-type, compact, dense, stalkless 1 100 0.8 7450 464 Compact, smooth 1 87 0.7 5835 5486 Somewhat lumpy, long stems 1 77 0.5 3544 2493 Leggy and leafy 1 100 1.2 12093 376 Consistently perfect, large compact 1 63 0.7 4590 4309 Good quality 1 100 0.7 6800 2271 Beautiful semi-large compact, good side cuts 1 97 1.6 14961 2463 Large, tough stem, all matured at once 1 97 0.7 6912 3109 Beautiful 1 90 0.6 5212 3455 Small, leggy, lumpy, yellow centers (immature) 1 80 0.4 3009 836 Small leafy 1 100 0.6 5943 Small, somewhat leafy 1 93 0.8 7015 Medium sized, leafy 1 93 0.7 5938 Very uniform, compact, 4-5 inch 1 87 0.8 6781 Very uniform, compact, 5-7 inch + Cultivars produced high quality heads at both Mt. Carmel and Windaor. Table 3. Yield and quality of broccol i at Mt . Carmel and Windsor, Fall 1985. Mt . Carmel Windsor Heads Avg. First Heads Avg. First Disease Hvstd. Head Cut Hvstd. Head Cut Suscept. Cultivar % lb lb/A % lb lb/A t Quality of head Atlantic 90 0.4 3641 90 0.4 3214 S Small, lumpy and leafy, some rotting in W Bonanza 100 0.4 4114 100 0.6 5719 Early, small, leggy at W Bravo 100 0.5 4978 83 0.8 6520 VS Lumpy, leggy, yellow, much rotting at W Calabrese 97 0.4 3510 77 0.4 2851 Few primary, much branching Citation 97 0.5 5090 97 0.7 6462 s Mostly leafy, some rotting at W Cleopatra 93 0.7 6557 60 0.7 4365 Leggy, lumpy, some rotting at MC and W Dandy Early + 97 0.9 8395 97 0.9 8385 Tight, flat, large, some late yellowing DeCicco 100 0.4 4262 90 0.3 2831 Small, some leafy Early One 90 0.3 3043 90 0.3 2767 VS Leafy, leggy, very susceptible to rotting Futura 100 0.5 4541 100 0.5 5281 Leafy, leggy, small Galaxy 100 0.6 5534 100 0.8 7569 s Late yellowing, good sprouts, some rotting at W Gem 93 0.7 5998 97 0.5 5034 Leafy, leggy, some late yellowing Goliath 100 0.7 6369 100 0.7 6926 s Medium, good sprouts, some rotting at W Grande 97 0.7 6688 93 0.6 5749 Leafy, lumpy, widely variable size Green Comet 100 0.4 4312 100 0.5 4816 Lumpy, yellow at W Green Duke 97 1.0 9137 97 0.7 6827 s Yellowing at W, large compact at MC Green Dwarf + 100 0.9 8287 97 0.6 5916 Ball-type, compact, stalkless, some late yellowing Green Goliath 90 0.5 4225 100 0.7 6599 Large, leggy at W, smaller, compact at MC Green Hornet 100 0.7 6596 97 0.7 7068 Early heads small, some leggy and yellow Green Sprouting 90 0.4 3554 90 0.4 3471 Leggy and leafy Mercedes 93 1.5 13624 83 2.0 16794 Large branching, internal browning at W Orion 97 0.7 6405 97 0.7 6634 Leggy, leafy, small, some yellowing Paragon 97 0.5 4416 87 0.8 6987 Somewhat lumpy, leggy, some yellowing Premium Crop 87 0.8 6879 97 0.7 6888 VS Medium, good sprouts, some rotting at W Prominence + 100 0.9 9149 93 0.8 7363 Large compact, some late yellowing at W Southern Comet 100 0.6 6034 93 0.7 6600 s Variable shape and size, some rotting at W Waltham 29 100 0.4 3551 67 0.2 1555 Few primary, much branching XPH 853 100 0.5 5052 97 0.5 5028 Leafy, small XPH 1127 97 0.6 5288 97 0.5 4782 Leafy, somewhat lumpy XPH 5003 + 100 0.9 8870 100 1.0 9416 Very uniform, compact 6-7 inch, good sprouts XPH 5004 + 100 0.5 4450 100 0.9 8685 Compact, medium, good sprouts + Cultivars produced high quality heads at both Mt. Carmel (MC) and Windaor (W) . # S = susceptible to downy mildew and bacterial rot VS = very ausceptible Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station Bulletin 830 Table 2 contains the most prominent characteris- tics of each cultivar. Mercedes was judged to have the best quality. The 6 to 8" diameter heads were consistently perfect and weighed over 1 lb. Paragon was judged second best with 6 to 7" diameter heads weighing about 3/4 lb. Other cultivars judged to be excellent quality were Dandy Early, Green Dwarf, Orion, Southern Comet, and the experimental hybrid XPH 5004. The late maturing heads of Dandy Early tended to be somewhat lumpy with a purplish tinge. Green Dwarf had a 5 to 6" compact, ball-shaped head borne on a short stalk and averaged a little less than 1 lb. Southern Comet heads were 5 to 6" in diameter, compact and averaged 3/4 lb. Orion had compact 5" heads weighing a little less than 3/4 lb. The experimental cultivar XPH 5004 had uniform, compact 5 to 7" heads averaging a little less than 1 lb. These cultivars performed similarly at both Mt. Carmel and Windsor. The remaining cultivars did not produce consistently high quality heads at either site. Secondary heads form on branches developing from the main stalk after the primary head has been cut. Their harvest is called "side cutting". Side cuts were harvested for 4 weeks following harvest of the primary head. Only sprouts at least 3" in diameter were harvested. The stalks were sufficiently long to bunch together for sale. Because Citation and the experimental cultivars were planted late, side cuts were not harvested. Futura produced the most side cuts. After the buttoned heads were severed the small plants produced many large side branches, some with 5" diameter heads. Bravo and Paragon produced excellent side cuts. Cleopatra, Galaxy and Green Hornet also produced abundant side cuts, but these heads suffered the same defects as the primary heads. YIELD AND QUALITY— FALL CROP The average yields at Mt. Carmel and Windsor were again similar. The average yield per cultivar at Windsor was 5909 lb/A compared to 5705 lb/A at Mt. Carmel, a 3.5% difference (Table 3). Compared to the spring yield, the fall yields were 14% lower for Mt. Carmel and 1% less for Windsor. Mercedes produced most, 8.4 tons/A at Windsor and 6.8 tons/A at Mt. Carmel. Although the yields were high, the tight, compact heads of spring were absent. Although many large fall heads of Mercedes exceeded 2 lb, rampant growth produced loosely branched, lumpy heads that did not appeal to the eye. At Windsor, Dandy Early and the experimentals, XPH 5003, and XPH 5004, yielded more than 4 tons/A. At Mt. Carmel, Dandy Early, Green Duke, Green Dwarf, Prominence and the experimental XPH 5003 also exceeded 4 tons/ A. Dandy Early, Green Dwarf, Prominence and the experimentals XPH 5003 and XPH 5004 produced compact heads with excellent deep green color. At Windsor the late maturing heads of Dandy Early had a yellow- ish tinge that was not observed in early maturing heads. Heads of Dandy Early were not yellowed at Mt. Carmel. Green Duke, with high yield of excellent quality at Mt. Carmel, had excessive yellowing at Windsor. Green Dwarf, with a ball-type head borne on a short stalk, and Prominence and the experimentals XPH 5003 and XPH 5004 produced excellent quality, compact heads with deep green color. Green Hornet produced excellent medium sized heads at Windsor and Mt. Carmel, but yielded only 3 to 3.5 tons/A. The remainder of the cultivars had low yield, had in- consistent quality, or were susceptible to downy mildew and bacterial rot. MATURITY An important characteristic of any vegetable crop is the length of time to produce a mature plant from seed or transplanting. This information is required to determine when to plant in order to har- vest at a given time. The days to maturity for broccoli may be stated as the number of days from seeding to maturity or from transplanting seedlings to maturity. In Table 4, the days to maturity were calculated from the day of transplanting to the day when half the heads were harvested; i.e. the harvest date of the 15th head from a population of 30 plants. Maturity among the 32 cultivars planted varied from 48 to 62 days at both sites for the spring crop and from 45 to 94 days at both sites for the fall crop. The apparent increase in time to maturity for the fall crop is due entirely to the sprouting culti- vars of Calabrese, DeCicco, Green Sprouting, and Waltham 29. Most hybrid cultivars had maturities that were relatively constant between sites for both spring and fall crops, as expected. The only excep- tion was Orion, an excellent spring producer, whose fall performance was rather poor and accompanied by about 12 days longer to maturity. Futura's early spring maturity was caused by vernalization of seed- lings in the cold frame with subsequent rapid produc- tion of "buttons". Another important facet of maturity is the span of harvest or the days between the harvest of the first and last marketable heads. For mechanical harvests of broccoli for processing and freezing, short spans are highly desirable. Thus, the spring crops of Green Comet, Green Duke, Mercedes, Prominence, and the experimentals XPH 1127 and XPH 5003 with spans of 7 days or less would be desirable for mechanical or single harvests by hand. Similarly, fall crops would be limited to Green Duke, Broccoli Trials — 1985 Table A. Maturity of broccoli at Mt. Carmel and Winds or, Sp cing and Fall 1985. Mt. Carmel Windsor Harvest Harvest Harvest Harvest Midpoint Span Midp oint Spar Spring Fall Spring Fall Spring Fall Spring Fall Cultivar Days * Days ** Days* Days ** Atlantic 60 60 27 18 62 62 26 19 Bonanza 56 50 20 9 58 51 9 4 Bravo 53 47 11 12 55 50 15 15 Calabreee 60 85 20 35 61 75 30 35 Citation 57 60 19 16 52 61 11 34 Cleopatra 50 54 24 14 55 55 19 22 Dandy Early 56 52 21 23 55 53 12 13 DeCicco 57 70 33 35 57 68 16 41 Early One 56 58 11 12 55 57 18 19 Futura 30 63 7 16 29 62 7 18 Galaxy 48 50 9 9 50 49 15 9 Gem 48 60 17 27 51 56 15 15 Goliath 51 45 17 13 54 49 15 22 Grande 56 60 27 34 58 62 22 36 Green Comet 59 56 7 25 61 50 10 20 Green Duke 57 54 7 4 62 52 7 7 Green Dwarf 60 58 14 7 55 57 14 15 Green Goliath 60 58 11 11 62 50 13 9 Green Hornet 51 54 17 23 51 52 12 22 Green Sprouting 57 70 21 41 55 70 22 43 Mercedes 56 52 4 9 58 59 9 4 Orion 48 59 20 30 51 63 26 27 Paragon 53 47 11 9 54 49 13 4 Premium Crop 56 9 52 20 Prominence 59 54 7 9 62 55 7 3 Southern Comet 54 50 24 12 55 51 15 15 Spartan Early 56 9 55 9 Waltham 29 64 81 21 21 61 94 18 21 XPH 853 58 59 19 31 56 62 13 20 XPH 1127 55 54 7 9 52 55 11 7 XPH 5003 48 47 7 2 49 47 7 2 XPH 5004 51 45 10 2 1 49 50 7 7 * Time from transplanting to midpoint of harvest. ** Time from start to finish of harvest of primary heads. Mercedes, Paragon, Prominence and the experimentals, XPH 1127, XPH 5003 and XPH 5004. For other hybrids the harvest span was generally from 7 to 25 days, and these would be suited for repeated harvests. The primary heads of the sprouting eultivars,Calabrese, DeCiecoand Green Sprouting were harvested over 4 to 5 weeks, which would be desirable for home gardeners seeking a steady supply for the table. WEATHER During the growing period for the 1985 spring crop precipitation was above average and temperature below average. In the past (Brumbach, 1965) about 7.5 inches of rain fell during May and June^ At Windsor 8.2 inches were recorded and at Mt. Carmel, 8.7. For crops, temperature is usually measured in growing degree days. (Daily average temperature-base 40 F). Past records (Dethier & Vittum, 1963) indi- cate 1650 degree days expected for the growing period. Windsor experienced 1487 degree days and Mt. Carmel, 1393. Broccoli, a cool weather crop, was probably favored by these lower temperatures. The spring crop was not under moisture stress at any time during its development because one to two irrigations were provided in the early stages of growth of the newly planted seedlings. During growth of the 1985 fall crop, precipita- tion was above average and temperature was normal. In the past 10.8" fell at Windsor and 12.1" at Mt. Carmel from June 25 to Oct. 28. During the 1985 Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station Bulletin 830 period of crop growth, 13.8" fell at Windsor and 13.2" at Mt. Carmel. Past weattier records indicate that 2284 growing degree days may be expected during the fall season. In 1985, 2287 degree days were recorded at Windsor and 2295 at Mt. Carmel, both close to normal. There were severe disparities, however, in dis- tribution between the two stations during this period. From August 1 to 11, 4.7" of rain fell in three thunderstorms at Windsor, while only 1.1" fell at Mt. Carmel. DEVELOPMENT OF DISEASE Abnormal weather in early August in the upper Connecticut Valley favored development of disease on broccoli that did not appear in Southern portions of the state where weather was normal. The 4.7" of rain in early August at Windsor soaked the plants and ground for a prolonged time. Dry air masses did not appear during this period. This rainy period was followed by 3 days of 92 F daytime temperatures with warm nights. These conditions favored downy mildew and bacterial soft-rot, which damaged broccoli in the upper Connecticut Valley. The southern portion of the state received only 1.1" of rain during this period and disease was minimal. The symptoms of the diseases were brownish lesions on leaves and a water soaked appearance of developing heads. Soft rot bacteria completely decimated some plants, while others displayed brown to black patches on the heads after the crop finally dried. In my trials, disease seemed to be confined to those cultivars that produced the uneven heads des- cribed as "lumpy". Depressions in the uneven heads collected morning dew and rain. Symptoms were gener- ally in these depressions. Plants with uniform heads seldom became diseased. Less than 10 SK of the fall crop at Windsor was diseased and less than 1^ at Mt. Carmel. I list the cultivars and their susceptibil- ity to downy mildew and soft rot: —Very susceptible (more than 10%): Cleopatra, Early One, Premium Crop —Susceptible (less than 1056): Atlantic, Bravo, Citation, Galaxy, Green Duke, Goliath, Southern Comet All other cultivars were free of disease at both Windsor and Mt. Carmel. STRATEGIES FOR CONNECTICUT The 1985 cultivar trials demonstrate that broc- coli of commercial quality can be produced in Connecticut for harvest from early June through July 1st and early September through late October. The spring harvest was shorter than the fall harvest because of the onset of hot weather in July. Produc- tion was accomplished with transplanted seedlings set out in a single planting about April 20th for the spring crop and around July 25th for the fall crop. The use of only one or two cultivars may increase risk of crop failure. For example, the unusual fall weather of 1985 favored downy mildew and bacterial rot, which lowered anticipated yields of certain cultivars. The use of cultivars that can withstand these diseases would seem prudent even though the disease problem was confined to the upper Connecticut Valley and did not develop on broccoli in southern portions of the state. The cultivars that I judged best in the trials were not affected by disease. My results suggest that a desirable span of har- vest may be accomplished in three ways: 1. Plant cultivars that mature over a broad span of time. 2. Plant cultivars with varying maturity. 3. Plant cultivars with short spans of maturity in several plantings at weekly intervals. Plan 1 can be accomplished with as few as two plantings, perhaps 3 weeks apart. For example, the spring planting of Dandy Early, Orion, and Southern Comet on April 20 provided a 3-week harvest span from June 7 to June 28. After June 21 the harvest dimin- ished. A second planting on April 26 to 28 would have filled in the last 10 days of June, but again the harvest would have diminished rapidly in early July with the onset of hot weather. Planting earlier than April 20 would probably cause a higher percentage of "buttoning". The fall planting of Dandy Early, Goliath, Green Dwarf, Green Hornet, Prominence and the experimentals XPH 5003 or XPH 5004 on July 25th provided a nearly 3-week harvest from September 10 to 29. A second planting 3 weeks after the first would be harvested in October to early November. Plan 2 could be accomplished using cultivars whose maturities differ, but whose harvest span is short. For the spring crop, early and medium maturing Paragon, Mercedes, and Green Dwarf with short harvest spans coupled with early maturing Dandy Early with a long harvest span provided a 3-week harvest span from June 5 to June 27. The harvest diminished after June 24. A second planting on April 26 to 28 would have filled in the last week of June. For the fall crop, experimental XPH 5003 yielded on September 10 to 14, a short span. Green Dwarf yielded September 19 to 27, a 7-day span. A 6- week harvest period would require three plantings of each cultivar at 10 to 14 day intervals. Under plan 3, single cultivars could be grown in several plantings. For the spring crop, Mercedes with a short harvest span of 4 to 9 days yielded from Broccoli Trials— 1985 June 12 to 16 at Mt. Carmel and June 13 to 24 at Windsor. Three plantings one week apart starting April 20 would be required for a June harvest. For Green Dwarf, a later maturing, longer span variety, two plantings would suffice. The harvest of Dandy Early began June 5 to 7. Its long span of harvest would require a second planting about 14 days after the first. For the fall the experimentals XPH 5003 and XPH 5004 were harvested September 9 to 14. Six plantings would be required at weekly intervals starting about July 20 to fill a harvest from early September through October. Cultivars like Dandy Early harvested September 11 to 29, Goliath harvested September 9 to 24, and Green Hornet harvested Septem- ber 9 to 26, would need a second planting 2 to 3 weeks after the first. Plan 1 seems to offer a long harvest span with fewest plantings and provides diversity against the possible ravages of disease, REFERENCES 1. Brumbach, J. J. 1965. Climate of Connecticut. Conn. Geol. and Nat. Hist. Sur. Bull. 99. 215 pp. 2. Dethier, B. E. and M. T. Vittum. 1963. Growing Degree Days. New York Agr.Expt. Sta. Geneva. Bull. 801. 84 pp. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I am indebted to Abigail A. Maynard for her capable assistance from planting to harvest and in data compilation and to Dr. George R. Stephens for his many helpful suggestions throughout the trials. University of Connecticut Libraries 39153028928564 ^^' .■V^wV" *■ ■ V Vt ^^iJ-'/'Vi ■»■•:■,&■-■>•: 'T Af'C' ■v.».. V^^ ^