How to Grow Cabbage and Keep Rabbits Away

Planting Cabbage

• 1

  Choose a garden site that receives six to eight hours of sun each day and has well-draining soil. For cabbage grown in the spring, use a lighter, sandier soil, and for cabbage grown in the fall, use heavier, clay soil. The preferred pH range for the soil is between 6 and 6.8. Don't plant cabbage in an area where other Cruciferae members were planted in the past three years to avoid disease problems.

• 2

  Transplant cabbage into the garden when the temperature is consistently between 50 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit. Cabbage plants that grow in a long spike are exposed to prolonged temperatures that are either too cold or too hot.

• 3

  Water cabbage plants often and regularly because they have shallow root systems. When the top few inches of the soil become dry, add water. Spread mulch around the base, while avoiding the plant stem, to help balance and conserve water. Water the plants evenly and regularly to keep the cabbage heads from splitting.

• 4

  Fertilize cabbage plants with a high-nitrogen solution, one month after transplanting them, to encourage growth. Apply fertilizer 6 inches away from the side of the cabbage plant and water it in thoroughly. Discontinue feeding, when the cabbage heads begin to form, to avoid splitting and loose heads.

Keeping Rabbits Away

• 5

  Recognize rabbit damage by distinctive clean cuts on the cabbage plants made by the rabbits' sharp incisor teeth. Also, piles of small, round rabbit droppings also indicate the rabbits' presence.

• 6

  Erect a chicken wire fence around the cabbage plants to keep rabbits away. Set the fence deep in the soil, at least 6 inches, so that the rabbits cannot burrow under the fence. Placing stones around the fence's perimeter also prevents rabbits from digging under the fence.

• 7

  Apply deer repellent around the cabbage plants to deter rabbits. Use a commercial solution and follow the product's instructions or make a homemade solution. Mix together three raw eggs, three tablespoons each of minced garlic and hot sauce, then spray the mixture on the cabbage plants.