Are you bolting your vegetables right now? Boltongs usually speaks of gardens for unattractive plants that sow seeds before we want them to.
This contrasts with fruitful plants such as tomatoes and cucumbers. However, when herbs and lush greens bolt with bolts, it usually means that the harvest season is over. (However, as explained below, you don’t need to do so.)
Why do plants tighten bolts?
When plants are stressed or unhappy with their growth conditions, the plants will flower and begin to set seeds prematurely.
The most common causes of bolting are:
Heat waves: Extreme heat or drought (and inconsistent watering) is the number one environmental stress in most plants, often responding with early blooming. Increased daily length: Cool season crops usually start in early spring and end in summer with longer days. If you start seeds or transplanted seedlings that are too late, even if the temperature is cool, plants that are sensitive to the length of the day (such as spinach and turnips) will be bolted in June. High soil temperature: As summer approaches and the air warms, the soil also warms. In fact, it is not uncommon for soil temperatures to become even hotter than air, especially when the soil is dry and loose. When the soil gets hot, this causes plants in the cool season and can begin seed production. Root Stress: If the plant does not recover from transplant shock, or because of its roots it can grow in a pot and fold out due to root stress. Cold Snap: Most often, hot temperatures are associated with boltongs most often, but during long periods of cool day or night (or wide temperature shaking) certain plants flower early after vernalization. (You’ll often see this happen when onions happen in bolts in the first season.)
If these types of stress last long enough, the plant shifts its energy to the survival of the species and begins to form flowers for reproduction.
So, what happens when a plant is a bolt and a bolt?
You’ll notice some Telltail signs…
Tall flowering stems
This is the most obvious sign that the plant is beginning to tighten the bolts. Suddenly, tall stems appear from the center, continuing to grow, growing, growing, normally exceeding the mature height of the plant. Eventually, the stems will turn thick, wood or fibrous.
Changes in size, shape and texture
Lush crops like cabbage and bokchoy begin to grow into loose, floppy heads, rather than nice, tight rosettes. The usually compact spinach and lettuce turn into towering giants.
Bolting also affects the texture of the plant, making the edible part rubbery and chewy, or sturdy and woody. For example, in root vegetables such as carrots and radish, the plant redirects all energy to seed production, resulting in a decline in root quality.
Changes in leaf shape
As vegetative growth slows, new leaves become smaller (often narrower and more pointed) and narrower as the main stem expands vertically.
For example, bolting arugula has a more serrated shape than the original leaves of the plant. The coriander leaves become thin and smaller, almost like dill. Spinach leaves are usually oval or spade-shaped leaves resemble arrows when plants are lined up with bolts.
Flower bud formation
When the plant ties the bolts with bolts, small florets begin to form from the edge of the stem. These small flowers bloom (which become pollinator magnets), then dry and reveal dozens or hundreds of seeds.
Some plants (such as arugula or coriander) will self-source the following year, but if you want to control their diffusion, make sure to block them off before drying the flower head or dropping seeds.
Changes in flavor
In most cases, bolting makes the vegetables become more and more bitter over time.
However, bolting can cause a change in flavor, but I have discovered from experience that it usually doesn’t happen immediately. I was happy to harvest (and ate) the leaves from bolting kale, broccoli and other nutritious greens for weeks (or months) after the flowers first appeared.
I sometimes eat flowers (kale buds and broccoli florets, someone?) or seed pods (my favorite radish pods, it’s definitely a fun raw or pickle).
The stems and flowers are all edible, but the older stems are a little tougher (so it is best to choose the stems of the flower when you are young). The rest of the plant is edible even after tightening the bolt, even if it’s not prime. This means it may be better to cook it (especially in soups and stews) rather than eating it raw.
The tender leaves were still tasty, so it’s a good way to drain lettuce with bolts in the summer, and its bitterness (similar to radicchio and mustard greens) is tamed by the heat, bringing an entirely new texture and flavor to the dish.
So don’t worry if the plant starts tightening the bolts. They are still suitable for recipes!
Worth reading: How to eat vegetable odds and endings all the time You’re always throwing away
And there is another incredible tip that can help improve plants’ resilience to environmental stresses such as heat and drought. You can find it in the above post.
