Growing cabbage
Brassica oleracea var. capitata · also called Band gobhi
Temperate Himalaya: Kashmir valley, Shimla, Kullu, Uttarakhand hills
At a glance
Cabbage in the Temperate Himalaya
Spring to autumn: nursery from February in the mid hills and April to June higher up3,1
About 4 to 5 and a half months from nursery sowing, depending on variety and altitude.
No published guide covers this for the Temperate Himalaya, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.55 to 130 days after sowing3
Across India
When to sow it
Twelve growing regions, January to December. Your region comes first.
Too late this season
The window here was August to September. The next one opens in February.
- Nursery
- Transplant
- Harvest
- Under cover
- Today
Compare all 12 regionsShow fewer regions
See the dates as a table
| Region | Sow | Nursery | Transplant | Harvest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Temperate Himalaya | February to MarchAugust to SeptemberApril to MayMay to June | |||
| Cold desert | Under cover: April, under polythene | Early May | July to September | |
| Sub-tropical foothills | August to SeptemberJuly to August | |||
| North-west plains | September to October | |||
| Gangetic plains | July to November (early cabbage, plains) | October to January | ||
| North-east hills and valleys | Early September to late November | |||
| Arid west | July to November (early cabbage, plains) | |||
| Central plateau | July to November (early cabbage, plains) | |||
| Deccan plateau | July to November (early cabbage, plains) | |||
| South interior | August to NovemberJanuary to FebruaryJuly to AugustSeptember to October | |||
| West coast | August to November | |||
| East coast | August to November |
From seed to harvest
One season, day by day
Days from sowing
Before sowing
Field preparation
Farmyard manure
200 to 250 quintals per hectare
Mix it in thoroughly while preparing the field.
Day 0
Sow
Day 110 to 170
Last picking
No published guide covers this for the Temperate Himalaya, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
Before sowing
Farmyard manure3
200 to 250 quintals per hectare · Mix it in thoroughly while preparing the field. · Field preparation
Day 0
Sow
Day 5 to 8
Seeds come up4,8Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.
Day 28 to 42
Day 55 to 130
First picking3
Day 110 to 170
Last pickingNo published guide covers this for the Temperate Himalaya, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
Water every 10 to 15 days, more at head formation.3
What it needs
Soil, sun and warmth
Soil pH1,5,6
6 to 6.5
Grows on sandy to heavy soils rich in organic matter. Light, sandy loam soils suit an early crop; clay loam and silty soils, which hold moisture, suit a late crop and give firmer heads that keep longer.
SunlightNo published guide covers this for the Temperate Himalaya, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
At least 6 hours a day
Full sun in an open spot. Heads form poorly in shade.
Temperature5,1,2,3
Grows best at 15 to 21 °C
Takes hard frost.
Monthly temperatures for the Temperate Himalaya aren't in the library yet.
Water and feeding
Watering3
Cabbage is very sensitive to soil moisture. Water just after transplanting, then every 10 to 15 days by season and soil, keeping the soil moist. Avoid heavy watering once heads have formed, as it cracks them.
Weeding3
The roots are shallow, so hoe lightly to remove weeds and let air into the soil, and break any crust on heavy soils. Weeds compete most between 30 and 50 days after transplanting. Earth up 4 to 5 weeks after transplanting, more so in the rainy season.
| When | What | How much | How |
|---|---|---|---|
| Field preparation | Farmyard manure | 200 to 250 quintals per hectare | Mix it in thoroughly while preparing the field. |
Varieties and yield
250 to 300 quintals a hectare
Yields vary with the plot, the seed and the season.
Golden Acre
Early
Pride of India
Early
Copenhagen Market
Early
Pusa Ageti
Early
Pusa Mukta
Early
Pusa Cabbage Hybrid-1 (KGMR-1)
Early hybrid
September
Mid season
Pusa Drum Head
Mid season
Late Large Drum Head
Late
Pests and diseases1
Organic and cultural controls only.
Cutworm (Agrotis species)
Signs
Caterpillars cut young plants at the base, mostly at night.
What to do
- Plough deep before planting to expose the caterpillars.
Cabbage butterfly (Pieris brassicae)
Signs
Caterpillars feed in groups and eat the leaves from the edges inwards.
What to do
- Release the egg parasitoid Trichogramma chilonis, 20,000 an acre, six times at weekly intervals from mid-January.
- Spray Bacillus thuringiensis, 200 g an acre.
Prevention
- Plant border rows of mustard and coriander; their flowers bring in Cotesia wasps that parasitise the caterpillars.
White grubs
Signs
Grubs in the soil feed on roots; plants wilt and die.
What to do
- Plough deep before planting.
Tobacco caterpillar (Spodoptera litura)
Signs
Caterpillars eat the leaves, often in groups.
What to do
- Put up 5 to 6 pheromone traps an acre to catch the moths.
- Spray Spodoptera NPV in the evening.
Black rot (Xanthomonas campestris)
Signs
V-shaped yellow patches at the leaf edges turn dark brown; the veins blacken.
What to do
- Destroy diseased plant remains after harvest.
Prevention
- Take seed only from healthy plants grown where the disease is absent.
Damping off
Signs
Seedlings die before or just after they come up.
Prevention
- Use healthy seed.
- Transplant only healthy seedlings.
Stalk rot
Signs
Leaves droop and the stalk rots and turns hollow inside, with black specks.
What to do
- Pull out and destroy diseased plants.
Prevention
- Rotate with paddy.
Seed and the season's end
Saving seed1
Seed forms only where winters are cold: the plants need 0 to 4 °C for 8 to 10 weeks after the head forms. Pull out off-types while the plants grow, when heads form and at flowering. Keep seed fields 1,600 m from other cabbage, cauliflower, knol-khol, Brussels sprouts and kale.
When the seed is ready
Cut the seed branches as the pods ripen.
Where winters are mild, heads can stay in the field over winter, or be stored in trenches about 2 x 1 x 1 m with the outer leaves removed, laid in one layer and covered with air holes on both sides. Replant them in March and April before the heads burst. Stack the cut branches to dry for 4 to 5 days.
After the last picking1Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.
Destroy diseased plant remains after harvest. Clear the stumps before the ground freezes and follow with peas, garlic or a cereal.
Destroy diseased plant remains after harvest.
Rotation
Where club root has appeared, keep cabbage and other crucifers off the land for three years. SKUAST-Jammu advises rotating cole crops with paddy against stalk rot.
Growing under cover1
Plastic low tunnels suit nursery raising in the mid and high hills, where they cut damage from hail, cold, frost and strong wind.
Sources
Where this comes from
Our team has checked this guide against the sources at the end of the page.Reviewed by our team on 13 November 2026.
These published guides are the sources. Where none of them covers a detail for this region, the page shows an AI suggestion and labels it.
- Package of Practices for Vegetable Crops 2020 (Cabbage; insect-pest and disease management in cole crops; protected cultivation)Directorate of Extension, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Jammu (SKUAST-Jammu)Read the source
- Production Technology of Vegetables and Flowers (VSF-231), Part I: Vegetable production (Cole crops: cabbage)CSK Himachal Pradesh Krishi Vishvavidyalaya, Palampur (Department of Vegetable Science and Floriculture)Read the source
- Cabbage: propagation (nursery, season of planting, raising of seedlings)National Horticulture Board, Government of IndiaRead the source
- Cabbage: soil and climateNational Horticulture Board, Government of IndiaRead the source
- Cabbage (Horticulture: vegetables), TNAU Agritech PortalTamil Nadu Agricultural UniversityRead the source
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