Buying Kale from the shops can be expensive. Fact is, kale is SUPER easy to grow yourself.    It is a highly tolerant plant so can be grown almost anywhere.  At HQ we love our kale and grow lots of it.

Here are our top 8 tips to get you growing yours (saving you a packet in the meantime):

1. Kale is best grown in the winter.
2. Kale needs full sun.
3. Kale is easiest grown from seedlings.
4. Try different varieties. Some varieties may thrive better in your soil to others. We found Siberian Kale to grow well in our beds
5. Water them in the mornings paying particular attention to young plants.
6. When the plant is ready to harvest, cut the larger outer leaves and the plant will keep producing leaves for you.
7. Avoid pesticides by getting the kids to pick off the caterpillars first thing in the morning and at the end of the day.
8. If you get plagued by Les Caterpillars, use Dipel which does the job without the nasty chemical factor.

And, if you don’t have garden beds, there’s no reason why you couldn’t plant up some old broccoli boxes from the supermarkets and pop them somewhere outside in the sun.

LOTS of Kale recipes, here (please note: some of these recipes may be member recipes).

Do you grow your own kale?  What tips can you add?

*Note:  MamaBake HQ is based on the East Coast of Australia so make allowances for your climate and conditions.