Lacinato Kale
Lacinato Kale: 60-90 days to harvest, 5-10 days to germinate, 12-18 inches between plants, pH 6.0-7.5, hardy in zones 6-9. Fruit runs to about Individual leaves 10-18 inches long. Give it full sun to partial shade (4-6+ hours) and 1 inch per week, drought tolerant once established water. It will crop in a container.
Sowing
Direct sow 2-3 weeks before last frost for spring crop, or late summer for fall/winter harvest. Succession plant every 2-3 weeks.
Cultivation
- Sun
- Full sun to partial shade (4-6+ hours)
- Water
- 1 inch per week, drought tolerant once established
- Soil
- Well-drained soil, tolerates poor soils
- Soil pH
- 6.0-7.5
- Spacing
- 12-18 inches
- Height
- 10-24 inches
- Season
- Cool season, extremely cold hardy
Appearance & flavour
- Colour
- Dark blue-green to black-green
- Size
- Individual leaves 10-18 inches long
- Shape
- Long, narrow strap-like leaves with pebbled texture
- Flavour
- Sweet, mild, and tender with less bitterness than curly kale
In the kitchen
Salads, smoothies, sautéing, soups, chips, massaged raw preparations. Excellent for juicing.
Pests, disease & resistance
- Pests
- Cabbage worms, aphids, flea beetles, leaf miners
- Diseases
- Clubroot, downy mildew, alternaria leaf spot
- Resistance
- Excellent cold tolerance, good disease resistance overall
Planting calendar by USDA zone
| Zone | Start indoors | Transplant | Direct sow | Harvest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | April – May | June – July | June – July | August – September |
| 2 | April – May | June – July | May – July | August – September |
| 3 | March – April | May – June | May – June | July – October |
| 4 | March – April | May – June | April – June | July – October |
| 5 | February – March | April – May | April – May | June – November |
| 6 | February – March | April – May | April – May | June – November |
| 7 | February – March | April – May | March – May | June – November |
| 8 | January – February | March – April | March – April | May – December |
| 9 | January | February – March | February – March | April – December |
| 10 | January | February – March | January – March | April – December |
| 11 | January | January – February | January – February | March – December |
| 12 | January | January – February | January – February | March – December |
| 13 | January | January – February | January – February | March – December |
Companion planting
8 beneficial pairings indexed for this variety, 3 to avoid.
Avoid
Nutrition (per 100 g)
- Calories (per 100 g)
- 35
- Protein (g)
- 2.92
- Fat (g)
- 1.49
- Carbohydrate (g)
- 4.42
- Fibre (g)
- 4.1
- Sugars (g)
- 0.99
- Vitamin A (µg)
- 241
- Vitamin C (mg)
- 93.4
- Vitamin E (mg)
- 0.66
- Vitamin K (µg)
- 390
- Vitamin B6 (mg)
- 0.147
- Folate (µg)
- 62
- Calcium (mg)
- 254
- Iron (mg)
- 1.6
- Magnesium (mg)
- 33
- Phosphorus (mg)
- 55
- Potassium (mg)
- 348
- Zinc (mg)
- 0.39
- Selenium (µg)
- 0.9
Where to buy seed and equipment
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Cultivar facts compiled from public horticultural references including USDA GRIN and NC State Extension. Descriptions are original to this catalogue.
Grown Lacinato Kale?
Post a crop report — day counts, reservoir readings, what worked. Variety-specific logs are the most useful thing on the forum.
Similar varieties
Other brassicas with a comparable time to harvest, so a season that suits Lacinato Kale suits these too.
- Red Trumpet 60 days
- Champion Collards 60 days
- Collard Greens 'Georgia Southern' 60 days
- Peppermint 60 days
- Calabrese Broccoli 60 days
- Synergy 60 days