All You Need To Know About Growing Collard

You want to grow collard greens at home as best as possible? Great!

Make sure to check out all the information I provide for you in the following FAQ section!

Time & Duration

When to grow collard greens from seed?

The optimal time to grow collard greens is in spring since collard is a cool-weather plant and likes the cold as long as temperatures don’t fall below the freezing mark.

Hence, make sure to grow collard early in the year to get the best results.

Does collard grow year-round?

While you could grow collard greens year-round, the best time to do so is still in spring so that collard is ready to harvest before hot summer months arrive.

If you want to harvest a second batch of collard greens per year, you might also want to start growing the second batch in fall to harvest it right before winter frost arrives.

Do collard greens grow fast?

You will be able to grow collard greens within two months and this is faster than with many other garden vegetables like tomatoes, cucumbers, melons or pumpkins.

However, there are also some garden vegetables that are faster to grow, for example carrots, lettuce or spinach.

How long does it take to grow collard greens?

It will take you between 50 and 70 days to grow collard greens from seed to harvest.

How long it really takes you to grow collard greatly depends on the climatic conditions and also on how well you care for your plants.

The better growing conditions are, the faster you will be able to grow collard.

Do collard greens grow back every year?

Once you harvest the whole plant, collard will no longer grow back.

Consequently, if you want to get new yields for future years, you will also have to sow new seeds every time and start your growing project right from the beginning.

How long do collard green plants live?

If you harvest collard greens in time, your plants will live between 2 and 3 months.

However, if you just let collard grow and don’t remove the plant from the ground, collard can live up to 7 months until the first strong winter frost arrives and your plants eventually decay.

How long does it take until collard greens flower?

Bolting of your plants usually happens when you plant collard greens too early in the year when it is still too cold outside.

In such a case, it will take your plants around one month until you see flowers on collard.

However, please note that you don’t want to see flowers on your collard plants unless you want to save seeds from them since those flowers would take away lots of energy from your plants and the quality of the plant material you harvest may suffer.

Can you grow collard greens in fall?

You can grow collard greens in fall in a decent manner as long as you wait long enough until temperatures outside are no longer too hot but also make sure that you start your gardening project in time so that you can harvest collard before winter frost arrives.

Can you grow collard greens in winter?

You should not try to grow collard in winter since it will just be too cold outdoors and your plants may just decay if you don’t protect them from frost.

Consequently, you would have to grow collard greens indoors where you would just not be able to provide decent growing conditions to your plants.

Location & Climate

Will collard greens grow in shade?

While collard greens grow well with cool climatic conditions, you should still not grow them in complete shade since collard needs at least a few hours of direct sunlight per day on average to grow well.

Will collard greens grow in partial shade?

Growing collard greens in partial shade is perfectly fine since your plants will get a decent mix of sun and shade and will therefore get sufficient sunlight while they are still being protected from excessive sun exposure and heat at the same time.

Do collard greens grow best in full sun?

Collard is not one of the plants that grow well in full sun. In fact, collard greens also need a certain amount of shade to grow well.

Hence, instead of growing collard in full sun, you should rather grow collard greens with a healthy mix of sun and shade to get the best results.

Will collard greens tolerate frost?

While collard is quite resistant to the cold, too much of it can greatly damage your plants and you should therefore not expose your collard plants to strong frost.

Instead, make sure to wait with growing collard outdoors until you don’t expect that temperatures fall below the freezing mark anymore.

Do you have to protect collard greens from the sun?

You should not actively try to protect collard greens from the sun.

However, since collard doesn’t like the heat, you should choose a spot where your plants get a good mix of sun and shade so that collard greens are protected from the sun in a completely natural manner.

How much space do you need to grow collard greens?

Since collard greens can grow relatively bushy, you should plan at least 2 square feet of space per plant.

Of course, if you have a big garden, you can provide your plants with even more space since more space also means higher yields on average since your plants will not have to compete for sunlight and nutrients with each other.

Will collard greens grow indoors?

Growing collard indoors is not a good idea since collard likes cool weather and you will just not be able to provide those cool conditions indoors.

Moreover, your plants would also take away lots of space from you.

You would also have to clean your home more often and I therefore recommend you rather grow collard outdoors instead of inside your four walls.

Can you grow collard greens without a garden or balcony?

In case you don’t have access to a garden or balcony, you would have to grow collard indoors.

However, there are many issues related to it and you would also not be able to provide natural conditions to your plants.

In turn, chances are that your yields would also be much lower compared to growing collard outdoors.

Can you grow collard greens in small flats?

Growing garden vegetables like collard in small flats is not a good idea since your plants would just take away too much precious space from you.

Consequently, I suggest you wait with growing collard greens at home until you move to a bigger place where you are no longer space-constrained.

Can you grow collard greens in an aquarium?

Some people also try growing collard in aquariums.

However, this is usually not a good idea since water will often not be able to run off and waterlogging may become an issue.

Thus, the roots of collard plants may start to rot and your plants may not grow well in the long run.

Can you grow collard greens in a terrarium?

You should also not try to grow collard greens in a terrarium since you would be quite inflexible when it comes to moving the terrarium since it will get quite heavy once it is filled with potting soil.

Moreover, waterlogging will also become an issue and you should therefore rely on conventional flower pots instead.

Can you grow collard greens in buckets?

Buckets are great alternatives to conventional flower pots when it comes to growing collard.

Just make sure that water will be able to run off properly and also that you use big buckets so that collard greens get sufficient nutrients and sunlight.

Can you grow collard greens in bags?

You might also want to grow collard greens in bags.

This is perfectly doable as long as you choose stable fabric bags where water can run off properly at the same time.

Also make sure to fill those bags with high-quality potting soil from the store to get the best results.

Can you grow collard greens in hanging baskets?

Since collard greens don’t produce heavy crops, you will also be able to grow them in hanging baskets in a decent manner and don’t have to fear that those hanging baskets or your plants may get destabilized in the long run.

Can you grow collard greens in rainy climatic zones?

Collard is a cool-weather plant and you will be able to grow it in rainy climatic zones.

However, still make sure that you provide a sunny spot for your plants so that they can use the rare occasions the sun comes out as well as possible.

Can you grow collard greens in tropical climatic zones?

The tropics are not a great place to grow collard since collard greens don’t like the heat at all.

Consequently, instead of growing collard, you should rather grow plants like bananas or tomatoes that are more used to the heat.

Can you grow collard greens in regions with permafrost?

You should not try growing collard in regions with permafrost since it would just be too cold outdoors and you would have to grow it in a heated greenhouse, which would cost lots of energy and money and growing collard at home would just not be worth it under those conditions.

Do collard greens grow on vines?

Collard doesn’t grow on vines but rather grows on rather compact plants.

You will also not be able to harvest collard crops at the end of the growing season but you will rather harvest the plant material that you can use for salads or other dishes.

Do collard greens grow underground?

Collard greens don’t grow underground. Instead, in contrast to garlic, potatoes or onions, the whole collard plant will grow above the soil surface and this will also make it quite easy for you to harvest your plants since you can see the progress your plants make every day.

What is the best orientation for growing collard greens?

While you could grow collard in south orientation, it would be even better to grow it in west or east orientation where collard greens are better protected from excessive sun exposure.

However, never try growing collard in north orientation since your plants would just not get sufficient sunlight.

Can you grow collard greens with indirect sunlight?

While you could also grow collard with indirect sunlight in greenhouses, you will get much better results by just growing it outdoors in your garden or on your balcony from my experience and I therefore recommend you just go for the most natural form of gardening.

Where do collard greens grow best?

Collard grows best if you provide a spot where your plants get a healthy mix of sun and shade while they are still being protected from heavy storms and other adverse conditions outdoors.

Consequently, growing collard greens in your garden or in raised beds is perfectly fine.

Where to grow collard greens in pots?

Growing collard greens in pots is perfectly doable as long as you use big pots and also place those pots in a half-shady environment where your plants get a good mix of sun and shade while they are still protected from harsh conditions and also from animals outdoors.

Where to grow collard greens indoors?

If you really want to grow collard indoors, you should choose a cool room while still making sure that your plants get sufficient levels of natural sunlight so that collard greens can grow in a decent manner.

Can you grow collard greens in water?

You should not try growing collard greens in water since your plants would just not get sufficient nutrients.

Instead, make sure to grow collard in high-quality soil so that your plants get everything they need to prosper and to deliver great yields.

Can you grow collard greens with LED lights?

You could also use LEDs to improve growing conditions for collard indoors.

However, from my experience, LEDs are not a suitable substitute for natural sunlight and the use of artificial lighting will also consume lots of energy.

Consequently, instead of relying on artificial lighting, make sure to use natural sunlight for your gardening projects as best as possible.

Can you grow collard greens in dark rooms?

Growing collard greens in dark rooms is not a good idea at all since your plants would just not get sufficient levels of sunlight and would not deliver great results.

Hence, instead of growing collard in dark rooms, grow it in bright rooms or, even better, outdoors.

Soil Requirements

Can you reuse soil for growing collard greens the next year?

You can reuse soil for growing collard multiple times as long as you make sure that you loosen the soil after each growing season and also make sure that you add some fertilizer to the soil so that every new generation of collard gets sufficient nutrients.

Do collard greens grow well in waterlogged soil?

Collard greens don’t grow well in waterlogged soil. In fact, it is crucial that you loosen the soil so that excess water will be able to run off properly so that the roots of your plants stay healthy in the long run and pest infestation and plant diseases become less likely.

Do collard greens grow best in acidic, neutral or alkaline soil?

Collard grows well in slightly acidic to neutral soil with an optimal soil pH of 6.4 – 7.

However, while this may sound complicated, you will be perfectly fine in this regard as long as you rely on a decent soil mix from the garden center.

Will collard greens grow in sandy soil?

Sandy soil is not a great medium to grow collard since it often doesn’t contain lots of precious nutrients.

Consequently, if the fraction in the soil is too big, you may want to add some high-quality soil from the garden center to provide better conditions for collard plants.

Will collard greens grow well in clay soil?

You should not grow collard greens in clay soil since it is just too solid and water will not be able to run off properly.

Consequently, waterlogging may become an issue and the roots of your plants may start to rot.

Will collard greens grow in compost?

While you should not grow collard greens in pure compost since it will just not have the right soil pH most of the time, you could mix compost and soil from the garden center and you will create a perfect soil environment to grow collard and many other plants.

Plant Care

Do collard green plants need a lot of water?

Collard greens don’t need lots of water while they are still young.

However, once they grow bigger, the water demand of collard greens grows exponentially and watering collard greens can turn into real work.

Do you have to water collard greens on a regular basis?

If you grow collard greens outdoors in your garden, you will not have to water them during rainy periods of the year since your plants would just get sufficient rainwater from the soil.

However, during dry periods, you should water collard greens on a regular basis so that your plants don’t dry up.

Should you use filtered or unfiltered water to water collard greens?

You don’t have to spend any time filtering tap water for collard greens.

Instead, unfiltered water is perfectly fine to water collard as long as you don’t live in one of those regions where the fraction of lime in the water is too high.

Should you use rainwater to water collard greens?

Rainwater is great to water collard and many other garden vegetables.

Hence, if you want to rely on rainwater in this regard, make sure to install a rainwater barrel in your garden to collect water during rainy periods that you can use during dry periods of the year.

When to stake collard green plants?

While there is no real need for staking collard plants, you may still want to do so to stabilize your plants in a perfect manner.

However, you should still wait with staking collard plants until they reach a height of at least 3 inches.

What to stake collard greens with?

A simple but yet effective way to stake and stabilize collard greens is to just place sticks next to each plant and tie collard plants with cord to those sticks.

This will make your plants more resistant to winds and other adverse conditions outdoors.

What to do when collard greens turn yellow?

If collard greens turn yellow, this usually indicates that you should alter your watering schedule.

Also make sure to add some fertilizer and also check your plants for pest infestation or plant diseases and take measures to remove those issues.

How to protect collard greens against wind?

You can just tie your plants with cord to sticks to protect them from heavy winds or storms.

In fact, tying collard greens to those sticks can increase the chances that your plants survive in the long run, even though it is often not urgently necessary.

How to protect collard greens against heavy rain?

Heavy rain will not be a problem for collard greens and you should just let your plants deal with it on their own.

Hence, no action is required from you in this regard and you should rather let nature do its work.

How to protect collard greens against hail?

If you grow collard in pots or containers, you should just move those pots to safe locations around your home if you expect hail.

If you grow collard greens directly in your garden and don’t have the option of moving your plants, try to protect them with foil cover you can get from the garden center.

Should you pinch out collard greens?

Pinching out collard green is not a good idea at all since you would just remove precious plant material which you would have harvested later in the year.

Consequently, pinching collard would greatly reduce your yields and I am sure you don’t want to do anything that harms the overall outcome of your gardening project ;).

Where to pinch collard greens?

If you still want to pinch collard greens for some reason, at least make sure that you don’t do it indoors but rather pinch your plants outdoors to avoid introducing pests inside your home and also to avoid a mess inside your four walls.

Can you grow collard greens without fertilizer?

There is no need to add additional fertilizer to collard plants as long as you use high-quality soil right from the beginning and also make sure that your plants have enough space so that they don’t have to compete for nutrients.

Should you cover collard green plants to protect them against frost?

There is no need to cover collard plants to protect them from frost.

Instead, wait with growing collard greens outdoors until you don’t expect frost anymore and you will be perfectly fine in this regard.

How to get rid of moss when growing collard greens?

If you see moss on your plants, you should slow down your watering schedule a little bit so that the soil can dry up and the roots of your plants will not start to rot but rather stay healthy in the long run.

Pests & Diseases

Can you grow collard greens without using pesticides?

There is often no need to use pesticides when growing collard greens if you provide good growing conditions to your plants.

The better growing conditions are, the stronger your plants will grow and the more resistant they will get to pests and plant diseases.

Should you use natural or chemical pesticides for collard greens?

Instead of chemical pesticides, you should rather use natural pesticides for growing collard greens since it would just make your gardening project much more organic and would also protect our environment at the same time.

What are the most common collard pests?

Cabbage worms, bugs, aphids and slugs are just some of the hungry intruders you might have to keep away from your plants.

However, don’t be discouraged since there are many easy ways how you can control those annoying little friends.

How to protect collard greens against pests?

If you want to get further information on pest control, make sure to have a look at how to get rid of collard pests and diseases and also on my pest prevention articles on how to get rid of garden pests.

Growing Difficulty

Should you grow collard greens with children?

While you could grow collard greens with children, there are just many more exciting garden vegetables out there to grow with kids.

In my opinion, you should rather grow carrots, tomatoes or other veggies that provide actual crops since it just makes gardening more interesting for kids.

Are collard greens good plants for a school project?

Collard greens are perfect plants for a school garden since they are rather resistant to harsh conditions outdoors and you can also teach school kids about how much work it takes to produce our food.

In turn, those kids will appreciate their food much more and will also be more likely to protect our environment.

Is growing collard greens difficult?

While growing collard is not difficult at all, you should still make sure to read all the information in this article carefully so that you avoid mistakes many new gardeners make when they grow collard greens at home for the first time.

Harvest

What color do ripe collard greens have?

The leaves of collard greens are ready to harvest when they have a deep green color and are also big enough to provide you with a decent salad.

However, how big you want to grow collard depends on your personal preferences and if you want to get tender leaves instead of maximizing your yields, you might also want to harvest leaves while they are still small and young.

Can you save seeds from collard green plants?

Since collard greens will often not flower for many months, you will often harvest the plant material before it had any chance to flower.

Consequently, if you want to save seeds from collard, make sure to start your gardening project early in the year and also let your plants grow until you see flowers to save seeds from.

Can collard greens get overripe?

While collard will not get overripe anytime soon, collard leaves may start to rot when you leave them on the plant for too long and you may also lose lots of nutrients and flavor.

Hence, make sure to harvest collard leaves in time to avoid any issues in this regard.

What parts of a collard plant can you eat?

While most people only harvest collard leaves, you can eat the whole plant and use the stems for soups or pestos if you want to make your gardening project as economical as possible and don’t want to throw anything away.

Additional Questions

Is growing collard greens expensive?

You can grow collard at home at virtually no cost since all you need to get are some seeds which will be pretty cheap.

Consequently, almost everyone will be able to afford to grow collard at home and you should definitely give it a try if you are uncertain yet.

Is growing collard greens fun?

Growing collard greens at home is not only quite a lot of fun, but it can be fascinating to see your plants make progress every day.

Moreover, growing collard and other plants at home can also help you reduce stress since plants create a peaceful atmosphere to relax.

Do collard greens grow on trees?

Collard greens don’t grow on trees, but rather grow on compact plants.

You will also not be able to harvest collard crops but you will harvest the plant material instead.

Hence, don’t expect to get any crops since you would just get disappointed by your collard plants 100% ;).

Do collard greens grow from flowers?

Collard greens don’t grow from flowers.

In fact, bolding is not necessary to get great collard yields at all since you will only harvest the plant material instead of actual crops and you will therefore not have to worry about flowers on collard plants at all as long as you don’t want to save seeds.

How many collard plants should you grow per pot?

Since collard plants grow quite bushy, it is not a good idea to grow more than one collard plant per pot since your plants would just take away too much sunlight and nutrients from each other and this would greatly slow down the growth of your plants.

Which animals feed on collard greens?

Rabbits, mice and other rodents are well-known to feed on collard greens.

Hence, it is crucial to install a fence or other protective measures to keep away those hungry intruders from your plants as best as possible.

Will pets eat collard plants?

If you keep rodents as pets, you should watch your pets closely and don’t let them get near collard plants.

Otherwise, your pets will likely feed on collard plants and may leave nothing for you at all.

Are collard greens toxic for pets?

Dogs and some other pets often have problems digesting collard and you should therefore keep away your pets from your plants, not only to protect your pets but also to protect your plants at the same time.

Why collard greens grow small?

Collard greens usually grow small if you grow them in too warm climates or if you don’t provide sufficient nutrients to your plants.

Hence, make sure to provide your plants with high-quality soil and also to grow them in early spring if you want to get really great collard yields.

What to grow with collard greens?

If you want to get more information about good collard companion plants, make sure to check out my articles on what to grow with collard and what you should never grow with collard at all.

Can you grow collard greens from collard?

You could also try growing collard from collard by producing cuttings. Once those cuttings develop roots, you could plant them into the soil and get many plants from just one collard plant.

However, this is not that easy and you should not try to grow collard from collard if you are new to gardening yet but rather rely on seeds instead.

Can you grow collard greens without seeds?

In case you don’t want to grow collard greens from seed, you could also get some collard seedlings from the garden center.

Not only would this make your life easier, but you would also be able to grow collard faster compared to growing it from seed.

Do you have to pollinate collard greens by hand?

There is no need to pollinate collard plants by hand.

In fact, you don’t have to worry about the bolding of collard plants at all since your plants will not produce crops anyway but you will rather harvest the leaves instead.

How to grow big collard greens?

The bigger collard yields should be, the better you have to care for your plants.

Hence, if you want to grow big collard, you need to provide high-quality soil to your plants and also choose a perfect spot in your garden where your plants get sufficient sunlight and don’t have to compete for nutrients with each other.

Also make sure to add some fertilizer to optimize your yields as best as possible.

Can you grow collard greens commercially?

In my opinion, you should not grow collard greens commercially since you would just have to spend lots of money on machinery and land and you would likely also fail to compete in this fierce market.

Instead, just grow collard for fun rather than making a real business out of it.

Can you grow collard greens from fresh seeds?

While growing collard greens from fresh seeds works great, you will still often not have access to fresh collard seeds at all and this means that you will rather have to rely on packaged seeds from the garden center instead.

Can you grow collard greens from dried seeds?

Growing collard from dried seeds is the standard in the gardening world since it is just pretty effective and also quite convenient since you can store those dried seeds for many years and still use them once you want to start a new gardening project.

Can you grow collard greens from cuttings?

Growing collard greens from cuttings will only work if you exactly know what you are doing.

In fact, there are many pitfalls in this regard and you should therefore rather rely on seeds instead of cuttings if you are not an experienced gardener yet.

Should you use a collard greens growing kit for growing collard?

Growing kits are great to grow collard for beginners.

However, if you plan to grow many different plants at home in the long run, I suggest you spend your money on proper equipment rather than on those low-quality growing kits.

Do collard greens grow in the wild?

While some collard species grow in the wild, you will often have problems identifying those plants as collard since they often look quite different from what you know from the store.

Consequently, you should also not pick those collard varieties in the wild unless you are 100% percent sure not to confuse them with toxic plants that may look quite similar.

Should you talk to collard plants?

You should also not talk to collard plants unless you have too much time and need some activity since talking to collard plants will not help your plants at all.

Consequently, you should rather use your time for things that can really bring your gardening project to the next level instead of talking to your plants.

Should you plant collard greens at half moon or full moon?

The moon phase you start growing collard will also not matter for your yields at all.

Hence, don’t worry about whether you grow collard at half moon, new moon or full moon but rather do what’s best from a climatic standpoint.

As you can see, there are many things you need to consider when growing collard at home. If you want to get a detailed plan on how to grow collard from seed to harvest step-by-step, also have a look at my collard grower’s guide.

Sources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collard_(plant)

Own research and experience.

About the Author

My name is Andreas and I’m really passionate about our environment and also about growing plants. In fact, I have grown several different plants over many years. I love to see my plants grow and also always try new things to improve my overall conditions at home.

In my blog posts, I want to share my experiences with you so that you can become successful in growing various different plants and improving your home as well, even though you might still be a beginner right now.