Broccoli (Calabrese): Benefits and Effects, Dietary Taboos, and Cultivation Conditions

Broccoli is a fairly common vegetable in our daily lives, and many friends also call it calabrese. Broccoli is rich and comprehensive in nutrients, and its vitamin C content is even higher than that of chili peppers. So what are the benefits and effects of broccoli? What should broccoli not be eaten with? And what are the cultivation conditions for broccoli?

I. Benefits and Effects of Broccoli

Traditional Chinese medicine holds that broccoli is cool in nature and sweet in taste, with the benefits of tonifying the kidneys and replenishing essence, strengthening the brain and bones, and tonifying the spleen and harmonizing the stomach. Eating broccoli often can treat conditions such as prolonged illness with bodily weakness, flaccid limbs, tinnitus and forgetfulness, weakness of the spleen and stomach, and delayed development in children. Specifically, the benefits and effects of broccoli include the following aspects:

1. Broccoli contains trace elements that are antioxidant and anti-cancer; long-term consumption can prevent breast cancer, rectal cancer, and stomach cancer, among others.

2. Broccoli is one of the foods richest in flavonoids. Flavonoids can prevent infection, and can also prevent cholesterol oxidation and stop platelets from clumping into clots, reducing the risk of heart disease and stroke.

3. The abundant vitamin C content in broccoli enables it to enhance the liver's detoxification ability and boost the body's immunity, and it can prevent the occurrence of colds and scurvy.

4. Broccoli has the effect of killing Helicobacter pylori, which causes stomach cancer.

5. Broccoli is a high-fiber vegetable and can effectively control the condition of diabetes.

6. Young children who eat broccoli often can promote growth, maintain normal teeth and bones, protect eyesight, and improve memory.

7. According to research in cytology and molecular biology, foods such as broccoli, garlic, and tea have a protective effect on the optic nerve and can become a good dietary remedy for eye disease patients in addition to medical treatment.

8. Broccoli contains a chemical called sulforaphane, which can “activate” a protective protein in blood vessels, forming the body's own defense system and thereby preventing blood vessel blockage.

9. Sulforaphane extracted from broccoli helps people stay sharp in old age.

II. What Should Broccoli Not Be Eaten With?

1. Zucchini: Broccoli is rich in vitamin C, and when it meets the vitamin C-degrading enzyme contained in zucchini, it affects the body's absorption of vitamin C and lowers the nutritional value of broccoli.

2. Milk: After drinking milk, immediately eating broccoli will affect calcium absorption; eating the two foods together will lower their nutritional value.

3. Animal liver: such as pork liver and chicken liver. Broccoli is rich in dietary fiber, which will combine with copper, iron, zinc and other elements in animal liver to form substances that are hard to digest, thereby affecting the body's absorption.

III. Cultivation Conditions for Broccoli

1. Light: Broccoli is not very strict about light requirements, but during growth it likes sufficient light. When light is sufficient, the plant grows vigorously and can form a strong vegetative body, which is conducive to photosynthesis and the accumulation of nutrients, and makes the head firm and dense with a fresh green color and good quality. Excessive sunlight in midsummer is also unfavorable to the growth and development of broccoli.

2. Temperature: Within the range of 5—20°C, the higher the temperature, the faster broccoli grows and develops. The optimum germination temperature is 20—25°C, and the optimum growth temperature during the seedling stage is 15—20°C. Broccoli has strong cold and heat tolerance. The optimum growth temperature during the rosette stage is 20—22°C, and the optimum temperature for head development is 15—18°C. When the temperature is higher than 25°C, the quality of the head tends to deteriorate, but as long as it is not damaged by frost, the head can still grow slowly at low temperatures of 5°C or even below. Different varieties and different seedling ages differ considerably in the temperature required to complete vernalization, so the selection of varieties is very important for year-round cultivation.

3. Water: Broccoli requires a relatively large amount of water throughout its growth process, especially during vigorous leaf growth and head formation, when it must not lack water; even short-term drought will reduce yield. Rainy weather or excessively high soil moisture during the seedling stage easily causes diseases such as black rot and black spot. During head formation, the soil moisture needs to be about 70—80% of field capacity to meet growth needs.

4. Soil nutrients: Broccoli is not strict about soil conditions, but if the soil is too barren, the plant develops poorly, and yield and quality are low; while excessively fertile soil will lead to loose flower buds and hollow flower stalks. Broccoli is suitable for planting in loam and sandy loam with good drainage and irrigation, deep plow layer, loose and fertile soil, and strong water and fertilizer retention capacity. It adapts to a soil pH range of 5.5—8, but 6 is best. Broccoli needs sufficient fertilizer throughout its growth process, with an N, P, K ratio of 14:5:8. During the seedling stage, the need for nitrogen is relatively greater, and after flower bud differentiation begins, the need for P and K increases relatively. Note that during head development, broccoli also needs relatively more trace elements such as boron, molybdenum, and magnesium, so applying an appropriate trace-element foliar fertilizer before budding will significantly increase yield and quality.