Why is my cauliflower yellow and soft?

[RobPat]

 

 some of my cauliflowers have a yellowing bloom to them. They continue to go soft & mushy after picking if not used straight away. Does anyone know what it is and how to avoid it. Some go like this on the plant if I don’t pick and use them when they look ready. Quite frustrating when they’re all growing so well and otherwise look really healthy until the yellow bloom appears just when they’re ready to pick. 

[EricL]

Hi @RobPat 

Thanks for sharing your question about your cauliflower. I'm not familiar with the symptoms you've described concerning your cauliflower. It could be a nutrient deficiency or a pathogen that has latched on to your plant.

Let me call on our experienced members @Noelle and @mich1972 for their recommendations.

Can please you tell us how long this has been happening and if you've recently added any fertilizer to the plants? Any other information you can share about the plant's history would be very much appreciated. 

Eric

[RobPat]

Hi Eric, I garden organically where possible. I like to use Neutrog products. I last used Whooflungdung mulch. I used an aged sheep & Alpaca manure tea. I soak it in a bath tub for a few months to rot any seeds that maybe in it. It also had some stinging nettles tossed into the bathtub too. I’m about to give my veggie patch another feed of Neutrog Bounce Back in next couple of days. A good soak and some lucerne mulch. 

[Noelle]

Hi @RobPat 

It looks like a bacterial rot of some sort - either that or the cauliflowers are past their best and are over-mature.  More likely the first, I think. Various websites say that plants should be watered with clean fresh water only, and that liquid fertilisers (particularly those made from manures and other organic materials) should be kept off plants.

Organic 'teas' made from untreated manures and composts often contain bacteria and other organisms that can carry or cause diseases. These are best applied direct to the soil around the plants, making sure to keep them off the leaves and developing heads.

Once infected, there is no cure and the disease/infection will continue to spread and destroy crops even after harvesting.

[RobPat]

Thank you @Noelle, 

The compost or manure teas are anaerobic, so they’re never applied directly to the plants themselves. Rather, they’re used as soil preparation to feed the microbiota prior to planting. It’s always well watered in as well. I think you’re correct with bacterial though. I picked another Cauli yesterday. I’ll try posting a pic. I can’t remember the variety of them. Yesterday’s Cauli had a purple tinge to part of it. And yes, looking at it, I could’ve picked it a day or to earlier. Part of it was on last nights dinner plate, we’re all alive n well this morning. Tasted lovely!! LOL 

 

[Noelle]

@RobPat - the colour tinge may be due to sun exposure or it could just be a characteristic of the variety you're growing.

[RobPat]

Thanks Noelle, yes think it’s a genetic thing too. Plenty of wind here of late. Not much sun. They’re all growing in a  tunnel and covered with an insect proof fabric. It also protects from sunburn in readiness for my tomatoes.