CHINESE CABBAGE
Physiological Disorders
Chinese cabbage normally completes its life cycle during the first year of
growth. Bolting refers to the premature production of seeds on plants. When
plants of Chinese cabbage bolt, heads of undesirable size and/or quality
normally result. Studies have shown that the bolting response in Chinese
cabbage is under genetic control, with certain cultivars being more prone to
bolt than others. Several environmental factors have been associated with
bolting in Chinese cabbage. For example, young plants exposed to low
temperatures for extended periods during early spring have a high probability
of bolting during the higher temperatures and longer day lengths of midsummer.
Short days with near optimal growing temperatures will tend to keep plants in
the vegetative phase of development. Factors which cause a check in plant
growth, such as nutrient deficiencies, may also induce bolting.
It is not certain that tipburn in Chinese cabbage is similar to the tipburn
observed in lettuce and cabbage. The symptoms are brown and black necrotic
areas on the leaf margins of external and internal foliage. In lettuce this
disorder has been attributed to factors which affect the water status and the
calcium and/or boron nutrition of the plant. Chinese cabbage cultivars which
appear to possess tolerance to tipburn are available.
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