Tree collards and kale

[castanea]

Can anyone tell me how tree collards differ from walking stick kale, palm tree kale, and Chou Moellier kale?

And how do yellow cabbage collards fit into the picture?

Thanks very much.

[castanea]

I figure most who are interested have read this by now, but in case someone has missed it,

bump

[toad]

Well, I'm not familiar with the Tree Collards or yellow cabbage collards, but know the rest.

I will refer to Plants for a Future for the Tree Collards:
"'Tree Collards'
This is a perennial form of cabbage that is said to live for 20 years or more. The leaves are a very dark green and look somewhat like the leaves of savoy cabbages, though the plant does not form a heart. The flavour is very good and the leaves can be eaten raw or cooked. The plant can be harvested all year round. The shoot tips are removed when about 15 - 20cm long, making sure that there is plenty of stem left. The plant then forms new sideshoots along the stem and these can also be harvested in their turn."

Walking stick kale is only shortlived, living 2-3 years. Sown from seeds, originates in the channel islands in northwest europe. Growing very tall, stem used for walking stick, after proper curing.

In northwest Germany they have a somewhat similar very tall kale, East Friesian Palm Kale, in a curly and a not curly leaved varity.

Palm tree kale is just one of the many names of a very dark Italian kale. Other names are: Tuscan Kale, Black Kale, Lacinato Kale, Nero di Toscana, Black Palm Tree Kale, and Dinosaur Kale. It is very decorative but not very tall.

Chou Moellier kale, also known as marrow stem kale, is a field grown kale to feed cattle. It is characterised by a fat stem.
Hope this could help you a bit.

[rockguy]

Very informative. I was wondering about those too. Thanks.

[castanea]

Thanks, Toad. That's more than I knew coming in.

Now which is best to eat?

[Alan]

Sorry I mised this 'till now.

To answer your question about Yellow Cabbage Collards:

Yellow Cabbage Collards are a loose head forming version of collard greens/cabbage. Making huge greenish-yellow leaves of exceptional quality throughout the season and afterword growing a small, loose type, cabbage head. There is also another cabbage collard that I think rare seeds offers which is a more traditional color. Both were popular in the south.

My stock came from Hayne (CFF) who got them from the Collard Shack in Ayden North Carolina which specializes in selling collard leaves, mature plants, seedlings, and seeds, but none of them by mail order. Luckily Hayne got ahold of these for us and I am slowly increasing seed for offer here and through the future seed company.

[toad]

Aren't brassicas just fabulous?
Great to read about Yellow Cabbage Collards too!


Palm tree kale from Tuscany is definitely more delicious than walking stick kale and Chou Moellier kale, both used feeding livestock. But I'm sure you will find recipes, where the two latter are performing better. And all three taste sweeter after first frost.

[castanea]

I just planted some tree collards. The cuttings had already started to leaf out. They appear to be a very vigorous plant.

[atash]

>>Can anyone tell me how tree collards differ from walking stick kale, palm tree kale, and Chou Moellier kale?

Tree collards seem to be a semi-sterile hybrid. They rarely bloom or set seed, which is probably how they manage to live so long. No seed-setting to trigger senescence. They look suspiciously intermediate between a Collard and a Kale. Because people in some parts of the world use those words differently than I do, I should elaborate: to Americans a "Collard" is a non-heading cabbage (B. oleracea var acephala) while Kale is B. napa, a more "salady" looking plant with thinner leaves. Collards are significantly more heat-tolerant than either cabbage or Kale. In some countries, they refer to what I call a "Collard" as a Kale, which gets confusing.

Tree Collards' productivity in a cool-temperate climate is amazing. I can harvest leaves as needed, a few at a time, for most of the year, except for particularly hot and dry or cold weather.

I don't think they are extremely coldhardy, and they are not built for heavy snow, having their crowns up on the air on the ends of stalks that will not support the weight of a lot of snow. Mine did survive around 19F though.

"Walking stick Kale" looks like a Collard to me. It was bred as animal fodder, being a tad fibrous and strong-tasting for humans, but mostly is only grown as a curiosity anymore, or to make walking-sticks out of (after heavily shellac'ing them to stiffen the canes). It's probably the same plant as "Palm Tree Kale" as the plant looks vaguely "palm-like", with big leaves on top of a long stem. It might be one of the ancestors of the Tree Collard.

[eastex]

I just got my very first tree collard cuttings today! I am super excited since I live in a 8/7 zone and they should do well here. I was just curious if anyone else had tips or experience with these guys?

[rangardener]

Congrats, eastex,

Info here: bountifulgardens.org/products/VCO-3250

They will do well in zone 7/8, but I'd emphasize the importance of taking cuttings as backups when the plants grow up. Once I lost all of mine in my zone 8 garden when the temperature dipped down to 10F.

[castanea]

After growing tree collards for awhile, my experience is that the leaves are tougher than other types of collards and not as tasty. Fun to grow though.

[eastex]

Thanks rangardener! That's good to know! Castaneda, are they more bitter in your experience? Or just bland?

[rangardener]

I don’t use tree collard as a replacement of other vegetables (“real” collard or so), I use/view it as, well … , “tree collard”.

No bitterness at all. Sweeter in cold seasons like other Brassicas. The texture is much tougher than most Brassica greens. To me, lacto ferment with it is nice (then stir fried, the usual Asian way of using lacto ferments). I also like it well chopped for a very chewy omelet for breakfast (that sounds weird??). I plan try it for kimchi. A friend of mine likes it for salad, obviously we all have different tastes and uses of the same plant.

(See here in the old HOS forum: www.homeorchardsociety.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=8544&sid=1540a4e2ec6f090b967182df51392cd9)

You might like it, or you might not. I like it. (And it is beautiful, too.)

[castanea]

Jan 17, 2016 13:23:01 GMT -5 eastex said:

Thanks rangardener! That's good to know! Castaneda, are they more bitter in your experience? Or just bland?

No bitterness, the leaves are just tough.