Walking stick cabbages (Brassica oleracea longata) originated in the 19th century in the Channel Islands. Also known as Jersey cabbage, long jack and grand chou a vacque, these edible ornamentals once served as both animal fodder and the basis of a thriving export business. At one point, Jersey exported up to 30,000 walking stick cabbages annually -- but not for their leaves. Their dense, fibrous stalks take to sanding and varnishing well after they dry, and they make sturdy walking sticks. Other than a few differences in cultural practices, you grow giant walking stick cabbages as you do most other cabbages.
Test the soil pH in a well-draining area that receives full sun about one year before planting and amend it to between 6.5 and 7.0 using elemental sulfur or dolomitic lime. Walking stick cabbage develops club root disease in acidic soil.
Plant walking stick cabbage seeds 1/2 inch deep in 6-inch containers filled with equal parts vermiculite and peat moss about five weeks before the last projected frost and keep them in a windowsill in a cool room -- ideally around 55 degrees Fahrenheit -- for one month. Transplant the cabbage outside into soil amended with 2 inches of compost after one month, spacing each plant 40 inches apart on all sides.
Water the walking stick cabbage seeds as needed to keep the growing medium moist while inside in containers. Water the walking stick cabbage with 1 to 2 inches of water after you plant it outside, and water it with 1 to 2 inches of water each week thereafter.
Insert a 7-foot-long, 2-by-2-inch wood stake 1 foot deep in the soil 8 to 10 inches away from each cabbage plant. Insert a second, temporary, 3-foot-long, 2-by-2-inch wood stake 6 inches deep in the soil a few inches from the seedling.
Tie the cabbage stem loosely to the temporary stake after it reaches about 6 inches tall with heavy twine. Continue tying the stem to the temporary stake after every 6 inches of vertical growth. Start tying the stem loosely to the larger, permanent stake after the cabbage outgrows the small stake. Untie the plant from the shorter stake after it reaches about 4 feet tall, and after you’ve tied it three times to the permanent stake. Tie the plant to the permanent stake in the same places it was tied to the shorter stake.
Sprinkle 1/2 cup of granular, continuous-release, 10-10-10 NPK fertilizer starting 6 inches from the plant stem and extending out to about 10 feet on all sides after you transplant the cabbage outside. Fertilize once a month thereafter during periods of active growth using the same side-dress method, except with 1/4 cup of 10-10-10 NPK. Water the fertilizer in with 1 to 2 inches of water.
Examine the leaves and stems regularly for aphids, slugs, thrips and caterpillars. Aphids that affect walking stick cabbage usually have green or white bodies and like to chew cabbage leaves. Cabbageworms measure about 1 inch long, have velvety green bodies and can decimate a cabbage plant. Slugs, which measure about 3/4 inch long and range from yellow to black, also like to feed on cabbage leaves. Thrips are about the width of a pencil lead, or less than 1/16 inch; they jump when disturbed.
Pick caterpillars off by hand if you see them and squash them. Mix together 2 1/2 tablespoons of insecticidal soap containing 49.52 percent potassium salts of fatty acids with 1 gallon of water in a spray bottle and spray the slugs, thrips and aphids until covered. Repeat every seven days as needed.
Trim off any side shoots as they emerge using pruning shears. Pull off the cabbage leaves that grow on the stalk as they emerge.
Examine the base of the stalks when the cabbage grows to about 3 feet tall and look for the beginnings of a bend near the base. As the stalk grows vertically, its weight causes it to bend and sink into the ground at the base; this forms the handle of the walking stick.
Dig a 1 to 2 foot long trench about twice the diameter of the stalk under the bend in the stalk using a trowel as it approaches the ground so it can continue bending and lowering unimpeded. Cover the stalk where it enters the soil with the excavated soil.
Insert a 1-foot-long wood dowel in the soil you covered the bent portion of the stalk with after the plant reaches between 5 and 6 feet tall. Pull the dowel out of the ground when it hits the stalk and check how far the soil reached on it to give you an idea how deep underground the bent portion of the stalk sits. Check once a week until the bent portion of the stalk sits 6 inches underground.
Pull the stalks from the ground about one month before the last frost of the season and scrape away the soil from the roots. Sever the roots where they meet the crown using pruning shears and slice off the top of the stalk with a serrated knife.
Tie a piece of heavy-duty twine around the hook portion of the stalk and hang it in a cool, airy place, such as a garage, until it dehydrates and hardens. The process takes about one year.
Remove the stalk after it hardens completely and process it as needed to use it as a walking stick.
Things You Will Need
- Soil pH test
- Elemental sulfur or dolomitic lime (optional)
- 6-inch containers
- Peat moss
- 7-foot-long, 2-by-2-inch wood stake
- 3-foot-long, 2-by-2-inch wood stake
- Heavy-duty twine
- Granular, continuous-release, 10-10-10 NPK fertilizer
- Insecticidal soap containing 49.52 percent potassium salts of fatty acids
- Spray bottle
- Pruning shears
- 1-foot-long wood dowel
- Serrated knife
- Always follow label instructions when using fertilizers, fungicides or pesticides.
- Walking stick cabbages grow in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 2 through 11.
- Wear chemical-proof gloves and goggles when using fertilizers, fungicides or pesticides.
- This is Jersey: Giant Cabbage
- Missouri Botanical Garden: Brassica Oleracea (Ornamental Cabbage and Kale Group)
- Tom Clothier's Garden Walk and Talk: How to Grow the Hook for the Walking Stick You Plan to Make From Your Walking Stick Kale.
- KEW: Walking Sticks as Seed Savers -- The Case of the Jersey Kale
- Organic Gardening: Cabbage and Company
- Fine Gardening: Brassica Oleracea (Ornamental cabbage, Ornamental kale)
- Utah State University Cooperative Extension: Kale in the Garden
- Grow Organic: Safer Brand Insect Killing Soap