If you’re growing cabbage in your garden, you want to ensure that it gets enough sunlight. That’s because cabbage needs a lot of light to grow properly and produce good-sized heads.
In this article, we’ll look at how much sun cabbage needs and other tips for growing this vegetable successfully in your garden.
How Much Sun Does Cabbage Need?
Cabbage needs between 6 and 8 hours per day of full sun exposure to thrive. The actual amount varies depending on your location, however, because different regions have different amounts of sunlight available at different times of the year. It’s also important to note that even though cabbage plants need plenty of sunlight, too much heat can be detrimental to this vegetable.
Does Cabbage Prefer Full Sun?
Cabbage is a cool-season crop that prefers full sun.
Full sun is best for cabbage because it produces more food with less water than plants grown in partial shade or under trees or tall shrubs.
However, even though they prefer full sun, some varieties of cabbage can tolerate some shade if planted in early spring or late summer. For example, ‘Early Jersey Wakefield’ tolerates partial shade well once it’s established (about six weeks old). But for most varieties, too much shade can cause problems with bolting and splitting heads when temperatures rise above 95 degrees F (35 degrees C).
Can Cabbage Grow in Shades?
Cabbage is a cool-season crop that grows best when temperatures stay below 80 degrees Fahrenheit during the day and below 60 degrees at night. So if you’re growing cabbage in full sun, it’s unlikely that your plants will survive long enough to produce heads (or even leaves).
You may be able to grow some cabbage varieties in partial shade conditions, but they won’t perform as well as those grown in full sun or partial shade conditions. If you have access to an area where there is some shade but not direct sunlight, this may work for you.
Where Does Cabbage Grow Best?
Cabbage grows best in areas with cool weather and plenty of rain or irrigation. In fact, even though it can be grown year-round in some parts of the world, it’s best to plant cabbage in spring or fall because that’s when they thrive best.
When you’re choosing a spot for your cabbage patch, choose an area that gets at least 6 hours of sunlight each day. The soil should be rich and well-drained with good fertility. Plant your seeds about 12 inches apart from each other. If you’re planting seeds directly into your garden bed, cover them with 1/4 inch of soil once they’ve sprouted up through the earth.
Can Cabbage Get Too Much Sun?
Cabbage cannot tolerate too much sunlight at all because it will burn its leaves if exposed to too much light for too long of a period of time. If you find that your cabbages are getting burned by too much sunlight (especially during summer), then simply cover up your plants with row covers or shade cloths.
What Happens if Cabbage Doesn’t Get Enough Sun?
Cabbage is a cool-season vegetable that can be planted in spring and fall. When growing cabbage, you’ll want to make sure it gets enough sunlight.
If you live in an area with long periods of cloudy weather, this can be a problem for your cabbage plants.
When cabbages don’t get enough sun, there are several problems that can occur. These include:
Inadequate growth – If your plant doesn’t get enough light, it won’t grow as big or tall as it should. This will lead to smaller heads of cabbage on your plant, which means less yield for you at harvest time.
It may also mean that the leaves on your plant will start to turn yellow or pale green instead of remaining dark green throughout their lifespan. This happens when there isn’t enough chlorophyll produced by the leaf cells in order to create color through photosynthesis.
Stunted growth – Another problem that can occur when cabbages don’t get enough sunlight is stunted growth. If a plant doesn’t get enough light, its stem may not elongate properly, causing it to remain short and stocky looking instead of reaching its full potential height.
Conclusion
Cabbage requires at least six hours of sunlight per day to grow and produce good yields. In some areas of North America (such as Florida), cabbages can grow successfully with as little as four hours of direct sunlight per day.
In general, you should plant your cabbage seeds or transplants in full sun locations in your garden. If you have limited sunlight in your garden area because of shade from trees or buildings, try planting taller varieties of cabbage that need less light than dwarf varieties.
