What are the causes of lettuce bolting and the control methods?

Cabbage is the most common vegetable in our daily lives. It prefers a cool climate and is a cold-tolerant vegetable, grown throughout the country. But quite a few growers experience early bolting when growing cabbage, leading to low yields. What is going on here? Let's take a look together.

1. Improper variety selection

There are many cabbage varieties, and different varieties differ in winter hardiness, so the bolting rate also differs. Generally, varieties with weaker winter hardiness tend to bolt easily; conversely, varieties with strong winter hardiness have a low bolting rate.

Control method: Based on the above, it is recommended to choose cabbage varieties with strong winter hardiness when planting, to reduce the early bolting rate.

2. Sowing too early

The sowing time of cabbage also affects its bolting to a certain extent. If sown too early, the seedlings remain in a low-temperature environment for a long time and will bolt very easily around spring.

Control method: Strictly control the sowing time. Cabbage is a low-temperature-induced vernalization plant; under prolonged low temperatures it bolts very easily. However, some growers sow blindly in order to increase yields, which backfires: sowing too early makes overwintering plants large and prone to bolting; sowing too late makes overwintering plants small with a low bolting rate, but the plants are spindly and weak and prone to freeze damage during overwintering, and harvest is also later. Generally, according to local climatic conditions, the most suitable sowing time is between late October and early November.

3. Improper temperature

Cabbage bolting is greatly related to the temperature during seedling management. If the seedbed temperature is relatively high when raising seedlings, even with late sowing, the seedlings will grow extremely fast, so that by the time they are transplanted they have already grown to a size that can perceive low temperatures, and bolting will occur.

Control method: Temperature must be well controlled. If sowing is normal and a warm winter occurs with vigorous seedling growth, fertilizer and water can be controlled to limit seedling growth rate, so as to prevent the seedlings from growing too large during overwintering.

4. Improper transplanting

If the seedlings are too large at transplanting, the bolting rate during overwintering will be higher. Transplanting time is also extremely important: transplanting too early exposes the seedlings to low temperatures for a longer time, causing bolting. If transplanting is too late, the seedlings cannot satisfy their low-temperature requirement, and bolting will also occur.

Control method: At transplanting, the size of the seedlings and the transplanting time must be controlled, and transplanting should be done at the right time according to climate changes. After transplanting, fertilizer and water should be reasonably regulated according to plant size, so that the plants overwinter safely without bolting.

The above is an introduction to the causes of lettuce bolting and the control methods. We hope it helps you. To learn more related knowledge, please follow us.