History Although cabbage has an extensive history, retaining water and nutrients in its slightly thickened, turgid leaves. However, genetic analysis is consistent with
feral origin of this population, deriving from plants escaped from field and gardens. According to the
triangle of U theory of the evolution and relationships between
Brassica species,
B. oleracea and other closely related kale vegetables (cabbages, kale, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and cauliflower) represent one of three ancestral lines from which all other brassicas originated. Cabbage was probably domesticated later in history than
Near Eastern crops such as
lentils and
summer wheat. Because of the wide range of crops developed from the wild
B. oleracea, multiple broadly contemporaneous domestications of cabbage may have occurred throughout Europe. Nonheading cabbages and kale were probably the first to be domesticated, before 1000 BC, perhaps by the
Celts of central and western Europe, While unidentified brassicas were part of the highly conservative unchanging
Mesopotamian garden repertory, it is believed that the ancient Egyptians did not cultivate cabbage, which is not native to the Nile valley, though the word ''shaw't'' in
Papyrus Harris of the time of
Ramesses III has been interpreted as "cabbage". The ancient Greeks had some varieties of cabbage, as mentioned by
Theophrastus, although whether they were more closely related to today's cabbage or to one of the other
Brassica crops is unknown. the open, leafy variety (kale) was known in Greek as
raphanos and in Latin as
caulis.
Chrysippus of Cnidos wrote a treatise on cabbage, which Pliny knew, but it has not survived. The Greeks were convinced that cabbages and
grapevines were inimical, and that cabbage planted too near the vine would impart its unwelcome odor to the grapes; this Mediterranean sense of antipathy survives today.
Brassica was considered by some Romans a table luxury, although
Lucullus considered it unfit for the senatorial table. The more traditionalist
Cato the Elder, espousing a simple Republican life, ate his cabbage cooked or raw and dressed with vinegar; he said it surpassed all other vegetables, and approvingly distinguished three varieties; he also gave directions for its medicinal use, which extended to the cabbage-eater's urine, in which infants might be rinsed.
Pliny the Elder listed seven varieties, including
Pompeii cabbage,
Cumae cabbage and
Sabellian cabbage. The antipathy towards the vine made it seem that eating cabbage would enable one to avoid drunkenness. and his opinions continued to be paraphrased in
herbals right through the 17th century. At the end of Antiquity cabbage is mentioned in
De observatione ciborum ("On the Observance of Foods") by
Anthimus, a Greek doctor at the court of
Theodoric the Great. Cabbage appears among vegetables directed to be cultivated in the
Capitulare de villis, composed in 771–800 AD, that guided the governance of the royal estates of
Charlemagne. In Britain, the Anglo-Saxons cultivated
cawel. When round-headed cabbages appeared in 14th-century England they were called
cabaches and
caboches, words drawn from
Old French and applied at first to refer to the ball of unopened leaves, the contemporaneous recipe that commences "Take cabbages and quarter them, and seethe them in good broth", also suggests the tightly headed cabbage. '', 15th century
Manuscript illuminations show the prominence of cabbage in the cuisine of the
High Middle Ages, and cabbage seeds feature among the seed list of purchases for the use of
King John II of France when captive in England in 1360, but cabbages were also a familiar staple of the poor: in the lean year of 1420 the "Bourgeois of Paris" noted that "poor people ate no bread, nothing but cabbages and turnips and such dishes, without any bread or salt". French naturalist
Jean Ruel made what is considered the first explicit mention of head cabbage in his 1536 botanical treatise
De Natura Stirpium, referring to it as
capucos coles ("head-coles"). In Istanbul, Sultan
Selim III penned a tongue-in-cheek ode to cabbage: without cabbage, the halva feast was not complete. In India, cabbage was one of several vegetable crops introduced by colonizing traders from Portugal, who established trade routes from the 14th to 17th centuries.
Carl Peter Thunberg reported that cabbage was not yet known in Japan in 1775. In
Brno, Czech Republic there is an open-air market named after cabbage which has been in operation since 1325, the
Zelný trh.
Modern cultivation Cabbage is generally grown for its densely leaved heads, produced during the first year of its biennial cycle. Plants perform best when grown in well-drained soil in a location that receives full sun. Different varieties prefer different soil types, ranging from lighter sand to heavier clay, but all prefer fertile ground with a
pH between 6.0 and 6.8. Temperatures between prompt the best growth, and extended periods of higher or lower temperatures may result in premature
bolting (flowering). Flowering induced by periods of low temperatures (a process called
vernalization) only occurs if the plant is past the juvenile period. The transition from a juvenile to adult state happens when the stem diameter is about . Vernalization allows the plant to grow to an adequate size before flowering. In certain climates, cabbage can be planted at the beginning of the cold period and survive until a later warm period without being induced to flower, a practice that was common in the eastern US. Plants are generally started in protected locations early in the growing season before being
transplanted outside, although some are seeded directly into the ground from which they will be harvested. Growers normally place plants apart. Some varieties of cabbage have been developed for ornamental use; these are generally called "flowering cabbage". They do not produce heads and feature purple or green outer leaves surrounding an inner grouping of smaller leaves in white, red, or pink. Cabbages are mature when they are firm and solid to the touch. They are harvested by cutting the stalk just below the bottom leaves with a blade. The outer leaves are trimmed, and any diseased, damaged, or necrotic leaves are removed. Delays in harvest can result in the head splitting as a result of expansion of the inner leaves and continued stem growth. When being grown for seed, cabbages must be isolated from other
B. oleracea subspecies, including the wild varieties, by to prevent cross-pollination. Other
Brassica species, such as
B. rapa,
B. juncea,
B. nigra,
B. napus and
Raphanus sativus, do not readily cross-pollinate.
Cultivars There are several
cultivar groups of cabbage, each including many cultivars: •
Savoy – Characterized by crimped or curly leaves, mild flavor and tender texture
Cultivation problems Due to its high level of nutrient requirements, cabbage is prone to
nutrient deficiencies, including
boron,
calcium,
phosphorus and
potassium. Fungal diseases include
wirestem, which causes weak or dying transplants;
Fusarium yellows, which result in stunted and twisted plants with yellow leaves; and
blackleg (see
Leptosphaeria maculans), which leads to sunken areas on stems and gray-brown spotted leaves. damage to a savoy cabbage One of the most common bacterial diseases to affect cabbage is
black rot, caused by
Xanthomonas campestris, which causes
chlorotic and
necrotic lesions that start at the leaf margins, and
wilting of plants.
Clubroot, caused by the soilborne
slime mold-like organism
Plasmodiophora brassicae, results in swollen, club-like roots.
Downy mildew, a parasitic disease caused by the
oomycete Peronospora parasitica, The caterpillar stage of the "small cabbage white butterfly" (
Pieris rapae), commonly known in the United States as the "imported cabbage worm", is a major cabbage pest in most countries. The mustard leaf beetle will often choose to feed on cabbage over their natural host plants as cabbage is more abundant in palatable compounds such as glucosinolates that encourage higher consumption. The cabbage looper (
Trichoplusia ni) is infamous in North America for its voracious appetite and for producing frass that contaminates plants. In India, the diamondback moth has caused losses up to 90 percent in crops that were not treated with insecticide. Destructive soil insects such as the cabbage root fly (
Delia radicum) has larvae can burrow into the part of plant consumed by humans. Planting near other members of the cabbage family, or where these plants have been placed in previous years, can prompt the spread of pests and disease. Excessive water and excessive heat can also cause cultivation problems. Factors that contribute to reduced head weight include: growth in the compacted soils that result from
no-till farming practices, drought,
waterlogging, insect and disease incidence, and shading and nutrient stress caused by weeds.
Production In 2023, world production of cabbages was 74 million
tonnes, led by China with 48% of the total (table). Other substantial producers were India, Russia, and South Korea. ==Toxicity==