Red cabbage is colorful and jazzes up salads and other
dishes, but it also has unique nutritional value thanks to its deep purple
color. A great hybrid variety to try is the Integro red cabbage. This medium
sized cabbage
has a stunning color, good flavor, and is great for eating fresh.
About the Integro Cabbage Variety
Integro is a hybrid variety of red, ballhead cabbage. Ballhead
varieties are the classic shapes you think of when imagining cabbage – compact,
round balls of tightly packed leaves. This is the most common type of cabbage
and all ballheads are great for eating fresh, pickling, making sauerkraut,
sautéing, and roasting.
Integro cabbage plants are medium in size, with heads that
grow to about three or four pounds (around 2 kg.) and five to seven inches
(13-18 cm.) high and wide. The color is a deep purple red with a silvery sheen.
The leaves are thick and shiny. Integro’s flavor is described as sweeter than
average.
Growing Integro Cabbages
Whether starting indoors or out, sow these red cabbage seeds
to a depth of just a half inch (a little over 1 cm.). If starting
seeds inside, start four to six weeks before you plan to transplant
outdoors. For starting outdoors, wait until the soil is at least 75 F. (24 C.).
Integro matures in about 85 days. Space transplants outdoors about 12 to 18
inches (30-46 cm.) apart.
Choose a sunny spot for transplanting and growing cabbages.
Make sure the soil is fertile and add in compost before planting if necessary.
The spot should also drain well to avoid excess moisture in the ground.
Cabbage needs to be watered regularly, but water on the
leaves can lead to disease. Water plants at the base only. Typical pests you
may see include slugs,
cabbageworms,
cabbage
loopers, and aphids.
Integro is a later variety of cabbage, which means it can
stay in the field a while. In other words, you don’t have to harvest
the heads as soon as they are ready. The heads will also store well indoors
after harvesting.
