Zone 9B FL: This is my documentary for growing lacinato kale, also known as dinosaur kale.

I cook mainly Vietnamese and other Asian cuisines. Growing kale for cooking is definiteIy not the reason why I planted kale. My kids when they were toddlers hated vegetables. A mom recommended me to blend some kale leaves into fruity popsicles. To my surprise, my kids enjoy fruity popsicles with kale! This sparks my quest to plant lacinato kale.

My little man would literally go outside to harvest kale leaves and bring it in to me and ask to make him popsicles since he was three-years-old. Little Ethan once asked me to blend the leaves and add it into rice congee. It made the rice soup green and unattractive but he sure ate a lot of kale congee soup that day. Little Grace did not like the green color of her favorite congee and got so upset. 😂

I have tried planting lacinato kale from store bought seedling and planted kale from seeds. From my experiences growing lacinato kale, it’s better to grow from seed and planted in a raised bed. There were many pest issues when planted in the ground versus no pest issue when kale is planted in a raised bed.

Companion plants for kale: The list is based off from Garden Know How article.

• Beets
• Celery
• Cucumber
• Garlic
• Lettuce
• Onions
• Potato
• Radish (daikons)
• Spinach
• Basil
• Mint
• Rosemary

Note: My mighty lacinato kale strived in my 12-inch high raised bed among my Taiwanese bunching scallions.

Avoid planting kale with the brassicas family. This list is from Epic Gardening article.

• bok choy (pak choi)
• broccoli
• kohlrabi
• cauliflower
• brussels sprouts
• Swiss chard
• collards

Soil: I started my seeds in a raised bed with my grass jelly vine. When the seedlings grew to six inches tall, I transferred them directly into the ground three feet away from my young Pickering mango tree. It did well for a few months until the peak summer. I took six out and relocated the strongest kale into a 12-inch high raised box with my bunching scallions and this mighty kale grew and grew. I used my Potting Mix #1 recipe for this raised box.

Sun requirement: My kale gets about 4-6 hours of sun.

Seeds for sale! I sell a packet of lacinato kale seeds for $1.50. Each seed packet contains 1/2-teaspoon full of seeds. Postage would be $1 without tracking number. It’s $5 postage with tracking number. Message me if you would like to purchase a lacinato kale seed packet.

Well, that’s all folks!