Is Kale an Annual?

Kale Basics

• Kale is a full-sun plant. Edible kale is best planted with other companion vegetables such as lettuce, potato, cucumber, onions, celery, beets or bush beans. It has average water needs but requires well-draining soil that is rich in organic matter. Keep your ornamental or edible kale plants thriving with soil that is neutral to slightly acidic, with a pH range of 6.0 to 7.0.

  Edible kale reaches maturity and is ready for harvest within 55 to 60 days. Ornamental kale, which comes in many unique colors, requires cool nighttime temperatures below 60 degrees Fahrenheit and roughly three to four weeks to reach its full color potential.

Annual Plant

• A perennial plant is one that continues to sprout and bloom for consecutive growing seasons. Annual plants are those that needed to be planted each year or growing season. Both ornamental kale and edible kale are annual plants. Therefore, to achieve a crop of kale, you must replant kale each year. The same goes if you want colorful ornamental kale to decorate your fall garden.

  As a cool-season plant, kale does not do well in hot weather. Soil temperatures below 70 degrees are recommended; therefore, in some climate zones, kale is planted during the fall for harvest during the springtime.

Technically a Biennial

• Although treated like an annual plant and crop, kale is technically a biennial. The life cycle of a biennial plant spans two years. Vegetative growth occurs during the first year. Leafy greens are ready for harvest upon maturity and ornamental kale produces a colorful cabbage-like plant. If you left your kale plants in the garden unattended for a second year, reproductive flowers would emerge. However, because kale is valued for its vegetation, and not its flowers, it is treated as and considered an annual plant.

Ornamental Kale

• Belonging to the same genus and species, ornamental kale is also technically an edible plant. It is also closely related to Brussels sprouts, cauliflower and broccoli, as well as leafy greens such as spring greens and collard greens. However, due to its vibrant colors, ornamental kale is used for decorative purposes and occasionally as a garnish. Ornamental kale requires the same growing conditions and is planted and treated as an annual plant, just like edible kale.