Romanesco, minaret or tower cabbage: the special cauliflower. We show pictures, give variety and cultivation recommendations. Learn more here.
The extraordinary Romanesco (Brassica oleracea convar. botrytis var. botrytis), also known as minaret cabbage, has unusual synonyms such as minaret cabbage or turret cabbage. The tower/minaret-like bulges of the inflorescences give it its name. An extreme peculiarity of this type of cabbage is that the inflorescences have a self-similarity. The so-called flower of Romanesco has Fibonacci spirals and fractal structures. Even if you read it again and again: The Romanesco is a natural variety of cauliflower and not a cross between broccoli and cauliflower and is therefore a real miracle of nature.
Romanesco is particularly aromatic, which is due to the chlorophyll content of the inflorescences. It is also significantly richer in vitamins A and C than white cauliflower. The flowers usually mature a little later and are also a little smaller than in modern cauliflower varieties. Good news for anyone interested: we can do it too Cultivation of Romanesco with a little skill and compliance with the relevant installation instructions.
Varieties of minaret cabbage
- Romanesco: designation of a fairly old variety; the variety is vigorous and needs a lot of space (70×70 cm); medium sized flowers.
- Celio (F1): vigorous variety for year-round cultivation; safe and good yield.
- Veronica (F1): Minaret cabbage variety for late summer and autumn cultivation with uniform and visually appealing flowers; resistant to powdery mildew; a popular commercial variety.
- white gold: Minaret cabbage variety for late summer and autumn cultivation; regular and high quality flowers; high yield and robust in cultivation.
- Navona (F1): variety for autumn cultivation; evenly shaped flowers of heavy weight; quite robust in culture.
- Gitano (F1): new variety suitable for autumn cultivation; compact growth and good yield; high resistance to downy mildew.
If you want to know more about the different Romanesco varieties If you want to know, take a look at this article.
diseases and pests
Romanesco is a bit more compact and forms smaller flowers than the common white one cauliflower. As a variety of cauliflower, it is not surprising that it suffers from the same diseases and pests as cauliflower.
When planting out, young seedlings should precede snails to be protected. The common cabbage diseases can also cause problems for the Romanesco, such as the dreaded fungal disease Clubroot, flea beetles (punch leaves), Cabbage Whites (leaf damage) and cabbage flies.
If you are interested in other types of cabbage, this article will give you an overview of them Varieties of cabbage.
Special thanks to the photographers: aimee rivers, timquijano, Valleybrook Gardens and graibeard.
