How to grow cabbage with the Paperpot Transplanter

Paperpot settings for cabbage

Use 6″ paper chain pots, drop one seed in every other cell with the Kwik Klik Slide, and transplant 3 rows on a 30″ bed, 10″ apart. Plan on about 3 trays per 100′ bed.

Paper chain pot	6″
In-row spacing	12″ (skip)
Rows per 30″ bed	3 (10″ apart)
Trays per 100′ bed	3
Kwik Klik top plate	Paperpot skip plate (132 holes), 2.5 mm thick, 1.5 mm holes
Seeds per cell	1 (every other cell)
Seed per 100′ bed	396 seeds (+/-)
Cultivars	Early types for 12″ spacing: Caraflex, Tiara, Omero
Germination	72 hours at 86°F
Days to transplant	28 days
Days to maturity	68 days
Harvest window	14 days
Harvest unit	Head
Yield per 100′ bed	285 heads

Bed figures are for a 100′ x 30″ bed. From the Paperpot Co. Growers Notes, developed with farmers Erich Schultz (Steadfast Farm) and Seth Davis. Adjust for your climate and conditions.

Bed preparation

• Broadfork the bed to aerate and loosen the soil.
• Smooth and shape the bed with a bed prep rake, removing any debris.
• Cabbage do best in a bed freshly amended. Layer on 1″ of compost (enough to mostly cover the native soil) or sprinkle on alfalfa meal and pelleted chicken manure.
• If you layer compost, don’t tilth it in, so surface weed seed stays smothered. If you add amendments, tilth the top 1-2″ to mix them in.
• Irrigate for 10 to 14 days* to germinate weed seed in the top layer of soil, then flame weed once the weed cotyledons are up.

Seeding

• Set a germination tray with 6″ paper chain pots and fill with potting mix.
• Set up the Kwik Klik Slide with the Paperpot bottom plate and the Paperpot skip plate (132 holes), 2.5 mm thick, 1.5 mm holes top plate.
• The skip plate drops seed in every other cell, for 12″ between plants in the row.
• Pour seed on the top plate and work it until one seed sits in each hole. Line the seeder up over the tray and slide the plate to drop seed into every cell at once.
• Water the tray, then germinate for 72 hours at 86°F.
• Move trays to greenhouse benches as soon as you see germination.

Transplanting

• Water the trays thoroughly before heading to the field.
• Plant three rows of cabbage with the Paperpot Transplanter: 10″ between rows, 5″ from the outer rows to the bed edge.
• New to the transplanter? See the how-to guide and videos.

Bed layout

Irrigation

• Water the bed in thoroughly with overhead irrigation or four lines of drip.
• Right after watering in, cover the bed with floating row cover (insect netting in warm weather) and weigh the edges down with sandbags every 5 feet. It only comes off to cultivate and harvest, which keeps cabbage moths off.
• Keep watering through hot days in the warm season.

Cultivation

• 14-16 days after transplanting, cultivate with a collinear hoe. A flex tine weeder also works while the plants are young.
• After that the heads close the canopy and shade out weeds.
• Side-dress with a nitrogen-rich fertilizer about halfway to maturity.

Harvest

• Cut heads when they’re solid and firm to hand pressure, using a freshly sharpened knife.
• Strip the large outer leaves so just the head remains.

Packing

• Cabbage doesn’t need washing.
• Get it into the cooler quickly and store at 35°F until market.

Cabbage in paper chain pots: FAQ

Other crops

basil · beets · bunching onions · cilantro · dill · fennel · garlic · head lettuce · kohlrabi · leeks · Little Gem lettuce · mesclun mix lettuce · onions · snap peas · salad turnips · spinach · storage radishes · summer crisp lettuce. All crops in one table: the Paperpot growers notes.