Kale plants (cavolo nero) (Hatfield AL10)

"Black Magic" is a variety of cavolo nero, or black Tuscan kale.

I have about three spares left after I planted out a row and potted on some plants. By now they're a bit more mature than in the picture.

Kale is a fairly strong growing plant and produces a lot of tasty leaves throughout the year if you can keep it happy. Main problems are pigeons and caterpillars at certain times of year. It will grow all through the summer and autumn, stand through the winter, start growing again in spring and then run to flower. It's fully frost hardy in the UK. You can eat the flower heads like purple sprouting broccoli and any you don't will open to masses of cheery yellow flowers loved by bees.

Typically people cook the mature leaves - they are tasty and don't collapse down to nothing like spinach does. You can soften them or crisp them up if you fry them. I ate one of the seedlings that wasn't healthy enough to pot up so I can tell you the young leaves and stems are tasty raw too.

If you believe in superfoods, then you may know kale is usually on the list of superfoods. Certainly it's very good for you - it's high in vitamins, iron and antioxidants. (Just like all leafy greens.)

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