How to Grow Cabbage from Seed in South Africa

Growing great cabbage starts with choosing the right variety, planting at the right time and giving each plant enough space. Our range includes a compact red baby cabbage, four traditional heading cabbages and an upright Michihili-type Chinese cabbage. Chinese cabbage grows differently, so be sure to follow the planting and spacing advice for your chosen variety.

Baby Red Omero cabbage

Baby Red Omero is a compact red head cabbage. Closer spacing favours smaller heads; about 30 cm between plants is a practical compact home-garden starting point. Allow more room for larger heads and harvest when the head feels firm when gently squeezed.

Standard head cabbages

Cape Spitz, Copenhagen Market, Drumhead and Glory of Enkhuizen are Brassica oleracea head cabbages. Cape Spitz forms a pointed head; Copenhagen Market and Glory of Enkhuizen form round heads; Drumhead forms a broad, firm head. Allow about 45 cm between plants and 60 cm between rows as a practical home layout, widening for larger heads, access and airflow.

Chinese Michilli - upright Michihili-type Chinese cabbage

The product sold as Cabbage Chinese Michilli is an upright Michihili-type Chinese cabbage in the Brassica rapa Pekinensis Group, not B. oleracea head cabbage. Space plants about 30 cm apart with 45-60 cm between rows. Maintain uninterrupted growth in cool weather: heat, drought, root disturbance or a prolonged cold check followed by warmth can cause bolting or loose heads.

Seed form, light and pretreatment

Every exact product in this guide is currently sold as raw seed. Raw describes the physical seed form; it does not prove that a particular lot is untreated. For the standard method, sow about 1 cm deep under fine mix; no routine soaking, chilling or scarification is needed. No special light trigger is required while the covered seed germinates, but provide bright light and airflow as soon as seedlings emerge.

Always check the physical packet received for a lot-specific treatment warning. Do not use seed for sprouts or microgreens unless that packet explicitly confirms that the seed is untreated and suitable for food-sprouting use.

When to sow in South Africa

Use these regional month ranges as planning windows, then adjust for altitude, frost dates, coastal humidity and the current season. Choose the window for your crop type and local climate; year-round planting is not suitable in every district.

Highveld

Baby and standard head cabbage: November to February, with a second July to August window. Chinese Michihili: February to March. Protect small seedlings from severe frost and avoid a cold check followed by rapid warming.

Middleveld

Baby and standard head cabbage: February to April and August to September. Chinese Michihili: February to March. In warmer districts, finish heads before sustained heat.

Lowveld

Baby and standard head cabbage: February to June. For Chinese cabbage in the Lowveld, trial a small sowing only through the coolest reliable local period and adjust timing to local conditions.

Northern Cape and Great Karoo

Baby and standard head cabbage: November to February. Chinese Michihili: February to March. Use mulch and steady irrigation after establishment, because a drought check followed by heavy watering can split heads.

KwaZulu-Natal Midlands

Baby and standard head cabbage: August to February. Chinese Michihili: February to March. Give generous airflow and avoid wetting foliage late in the day.

Eastern Cape and Little Karoo

Baby and standard head cabbage: August to April. Chinese Michihili: February to March. Narrow the window locally where frost, heat or dry winds are severe.

Western Cape and South Coast

Baby and standard head cabbage: November to April. Chinese Michihili: February to March. Use raised, free-draining beds during persistent winter rain and protect seedlings from slugs and snails.

KwaZulu-Natal coast

Baby and standard head cabbage: February to June. For Chinese cabbage on the coast, use only the coolest reliable local block as a small trial, with strong airflow and close pest and disease inspection.

How to sow and transplant

1. Fill clean cells or a seed tray with fine, free-draining seedling mix and moisten it before sowing.
2. Sow one raw seed per cell about 1 cm deep. For direct sowing, place seeds shallowly in a prepared seedbed and thin without disturbing the retained plant.
3. Keep the seed zone evenly moist, never saturated. Keep moderately warm; emergence often takes one to two weeks in suitable conditions. Home emergence varies with temperature, moisture and seed condition.
4. Move emerged seedlings into bright light with good airflow. Thin multi-sown cells to one strong seedling.
5. Transplant when seedlings are sturdy and have several true leaves. Harden them gradually for about a week.
6. Plant into damp soil late in the day or on a cool, overcast day. Set seedlings at the same depth as in the cell, firm gently and water immediately.
7. Use the spacing for the exact module. Do not apply Baby Red or standard head-cabbage spacing to Chinese Michihili.

Back to growing instructions

Ongoing care

Choose full sun and fertile, well-drained soil. Cabbage is a strong feeder; use a soil test to guide pH correction, aiming for a pH above 6. Add well-finished compost before planting and base additional fertiliser on a soil assessment where possible. Avoid excessive late nitrogen, which can delay firm heading.

Keep moisture steady while leaves and heads develop. Drought checks growth; a sudden heavy watering after a dry spell can split a firm head. Mulch without burying the stem. Rotate away from cabbage, kale, broccoli, cauliflower, radish and other brassicas, preferably for several seasons.

Inspect leaf undersides for diamondback moth larvae and other caterpillars, aphids, bagrada bugs, slugs and snails. Net young plants where practical. Use only controls registered for the exact edible crop, follow the label and observe the withholding period.

Head maturity, harvest basis and kitchen outcome

Harvest timing varies with cultivar, sowing date, temperature and transplant establishment. Judge readiness by a full, firm head rather than a fixed number of days.

Harvest Baby Red Omero and standard head cabbages when the head feels firm for its type. Cut with a clean knife, keeping only sound wrapper leaves. Temperature, transplant stress, fertility, water, spacing and desired head size can change the time needed for a useful harvest.

Harvest Chinese Michihili when the tall upright head is full and crisp, before heat or interrupted growth starts a flower stalk. Chill soon after cutting for best texture. All six products are edible vegetable crops, but seed itself is not food unless the received packet explicitly permits sprouting use.

Troubleshooting failed germination and establishment

• No emergence: the seed zone may have dried, become waterlogged, overheated or been buried too deeply. Re-sow about 1 cm deep in fresh mix and verify that the packet was stored cool and dry.
• Seedlings collapse at soil level: damping-off is favoured by dirty containers, saturated mix, poor airflow and overcrowding. Remove affected seedlings and restart cleanly.
• Pale, stretched seedlings: provide brighter light immediately after emergence and avoid warm, crowded indoor conditions.
• No firm head: likely causes include heat, the wrong spacing, low fertility, drought checks or root damage.
• Chinese cabbage bolts: heat, drought or a prolonged cold check followed by warming can initiate flowering. Use a steadier cool-season window.
• Head splits: rapid water uptake after drought or delayed harvest is common. Keep watering even and harvest promptly at firmness.
• Holes in leaves: inspect for brassica caterpillars, slugs and snails and intervene while pests are small.
• Wilting, blackened veins or recurring root swell: remove affected plants, do not compost diseased tissue, improve drainage and rotate the bed. Seek local diagnostic advice before applying a treatment.

Shop cabbage seed

• Cabbage Baby Red Omero Seeds
• Cabbage Cape Spitz Seed
• Cabbage Copenhagen Market Seeds
• Cabbage Drumhead Seeds
• Cabbage Glory Of Enkhuizen Seeds
• Cabbage Chinese Michilli Seeds