Kohlrabi

Brassica oleracea var. gongylodes 'Early White Vienna'

vegetable

Early White Vienna is the standard pale-green kohlrabi, a brassica grown for the swollen, bulb-like stem that forms just above the soil, with crisp, sweet flesh tasting somewhere between a mild turnip and a broccoli stem. It matures quickly in 55 to 65 days and is good raw or cooked, at its best when grown fast in cool weather.

✅ Plant alongside

Good neighbors that attract beneficial insects or deter pests

• Beets — Shares cool-season beds without competing
• Onions — Scent helps deter pests
• Sweet Alyssum — Draws hoverflies that eat aphids
• Nasturtium — Trap crop for aphids

❌ Keep away from

🛡️ Pest & disease prevention

Proactive ways to stop trouble before it starts — tap a name with an arrow for its full guide

• Flea beetles →

  Row cover seedlings, which are most vulnerable young

• Cabbage worms →

  Handpick, cover, and use Bt if needed

• Cabbage root maggot →

  Use row cover and crop rotation to break the cycle

🌾 Harvest & storage

Harvest when the bulb is 2 to 3 inches across, between a golf ball and a tennis ball; once it grows much past 3 inches it develops woody fibers, so do not wait too long. Cut the bulb at the base and trim the stems.

🥗 Nutrition & benefits

Kohlrabi is low in calories and very high in vitamin C, with good fiber plus potassium, vitamin B6, and the minerals copper and manganese.