Rapini

Pests & beneficial insects

🐛 Prone to: Aphids

Aphids

Aphididae

Curled leaves, sticky honeydew and ants on patrol — usually with something already eating them.

, Flea beetles

Flea beetles

Chrysomelidae (Alticini)

Shot-holes in seedling leaves, and a beetle that jumps when you lean in.

.

Attract Hoverflies

Hoverflies

Syrphidae

The adults only drink nectar. It is the larvae that eat the aphids.

, Lacewings

Lacewings

Chrysopidae

Golden-eyed adults that mostly drink; larvae that hunt like small alligators.

, Ladybugs

Ladybugs

Coccinellidae

The one predator here where the adults hunt as hard as the larvae do.

, Parasitic wasps

Parasitic wasps

Braconidae, Ichneumonidae and relatives

Pinhead-sized, stingless, and lethal to aphids and caterpillars from the inside.

, Ground beetles

Ground beetles

Carabidae

Night-active ground hunters, taking slugs, cutworms and leatherjackets at soil level.

to keep them in check — plant African MarigoldGreat, French MarigoldGreat and BuglossGood nearby.

Growing from seed

Start Rapini indoors about 4 weeks before your last frost, keeping seeds in cooler soil (around 10–18 °C). Seeds usually come up in around 7 days. Move seedlings out once the danger of frost has passed, in full sun, spaced about 15 cm apart. Expect to harvest in roughly 50 days.

Keep track of the seeds you own.

Companion Planting

• 
  Buchii Lavender
  

  Buchii LavenderGreat pair

  • ❧Buchii Lavender attracts Hoverflies and Parasitic wasps, which prey on the Aphids and Flea beetles that attack Rapini
  • ❧Rapini draws Bees and Butterflies that improve pollination for both
  • ❧Rapini acts as living mulch, keeping soil moist and weeds down around Buchii Lavender
• 
  round leaf lavender
  

  round leaf lavenderGreat pair

  • ❧round leaf lavender attracts Hoverflies and Parasitic wasps, which prey on the Aphids and Flea beetles that attack Rapini
  • ❧Rapini draws Bees and Butterflies that improve pollination for both
  • ❧Rapini acts as living mulch, keeping soil moist and weeds down around round leaf lavender
• 
  African Marigold
  

  African MarigoldGreat pair

  • ❧African Marigold attracts Hoverflies and Lacewings and more, which prey on the Aphids that attack Rapini
  • ❧African Marigold suppresses pests that trouble Rapini
  • ❧Rapini draws Bees and Butterflies that improve pollination for both

How to grow Rapini

1. Sow4 weeks before frost
2. Germinates7 days
3. Space15 cm apart
4. GrowFull sun
5. Harvest~50 days

Water: Medium · Height: 50 cm · Soil: Well-draining soil rich in organic matter; prefers slightly alkaline to neutral pH