Collards

About it

Kind

Vegetables · Annual

Family

Brassicaceae

Sun

Full sun

Spacing

18 in apart

Soil depth in a pot

At least 12 in

Water

About every 7 days

ⓘ We don't know this plant's soil pH, feeding needs and mature size yet.

When to plant

Ready

About 60 days

Based on your last frost date. Outside the US, check local advice.

Planting partners

What has been claimed about growing Collards near other plants, grouped by how well it has been tested. Most companion planting advice has never been tested; the notes say which is which.

Tested in field trials

• With Chinese Cabbage Napa cabbage grown as a trap crop beside other brassicas draws flea beetles away from them; in trials only a mix of three trap-crop species improved the protected broccoli's yield. UMN Extension ↗Europe PMC ↗
• With Mustard Greens Mustard grown as a trap crop beside other brassicas draws flea beetles away from them; in trials only a mix of three trap-crop species improved the protected broccoli's yield. UMN Extension ↗Europe PMC ↗

Mixed evidence

• With Green Onion Green onions are often planted to keep flea beetles off brassicas, but little research supports it and some contradicts it. UMN Extension ↗
• With Marigold Marigolds are often planted to keep flea beetles off brassicas, but little research supports it and some contradicts it. UMN Extension ↗

Safety for pets and children

• Cats No information in our sources
• Dogs No information in our sources
• Horses Listed as a problem for horses (NC State Extension)
• Children No information in our sources

If a pet or child eats part of this plant, call your vet or poison control.

Read from NC State Extension ↗.

"No information" means our sources do not say, not that the plant is harmless. A non-toxic listing is not a reason to let anyone eat a plant.

Pests and diseases

No pest or disease notes for Collards yet.

Check the label and your local extension service before using any product.

Where this comes from

• category NC State Extension ↗ Listed in Table 16-4, "Garden Planting Calendar for Annual Vegetables, Fruits, and Herbs"
• climate requirement NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox: collards "tolerate frost and light freezes". No zones: an annual has no winter to survive (see the header)
• days to maturity NC State Extension ↗ Table 16-4: 32-73 from transplant, S=60-100; the from-seed low end. Ch. 18's calendar gives 90-120
• family npgsweb.ars-grin.gov ↗ GRIN page: Brassica oleracea L. var. viridis L. (the catalogue row is the Viridis Group)
• life cycle NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox Life Cycle: Biennial. Recorded as annual because that is how the planting behaves -- the leaves are picked in the first season -- the convention migration 0027 set for biennial roots and alliums
• life cycle NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox Life Cycle: Biennial. Recorded as annual because that is how the planting behaves -- the leaves are picked in the first season -- the convention migration 0027 set for biennial roots and alliums
• min soil depth in NC State Extension ↗ Table 18-1: Collards, minimum container depth 12 in. A group figure, as every ch. 18 depth is
• space requirement NC State Extension ↗ Table 16-4 distance between plants: 18 in. The table publishes no row distance, so rows equal plants -- the square spacing of an intensive bed
• species NC State Extension ↗
• sunlight NC State Extension ↗ Toolbox Light: Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
• toxicity NC State Extension ↗ toxic for horse from the page's "Problem for" listing.
• water frequency days NC State Extension ↗ NC State Gardener Handbook ch. 16, "Watering": "On average, vegetable gardens need 1 inch of water per week; provide only what is not supplied by rain." This is the handbook's general guidance for a vegetable garden, not a figure published for this crop.