Dinosaur horn-like things are appearing one after another in the fields! Enjoy a romantic winter with the delightful and delicious Romanesco!
Misha: This time we’ll try growing Romanesco!
Hachibee: Romanesco? To me it just looks like a horn on the back of a dinosaur.
Misha: It has a unique shape, isn’t it? Romanesco’s appearance is called a fractal form, meaning that the overall shape and the parts that make it up are the same shape.
Hachibee: Fractal… what’s that? I don’t really know, but it’s a very unusual shape.
Misha: But it tastes a lot like Paris flower and is very delicious. It would go well with stews and gratins.
Hachibee: Okay, can such a strange shape really form? And let’s try it out and see if it’s really delicious!
Romanesco “Almost Weekly” Cultivation Report
8/11 Planting
Hachibee: The seeds are surprisingly normal in color and shape.
Misha: Well, it’s like broccoli or cauliflower.
8/18 Germination
Hachibee: That was quick! And it looks just like the shape of a vegetable’s two leaves.
8/25 Leaves appear one after another
Hachibee: Oh, it’s growing, it’s growing! It’s doing well even in this heat.
9/1 Leaves appear
Hachibee: This leaf has clearly visible veins, which is also a common type of vegetable leaf. Up until now, it really looks like a normal vegetable.
9/8 The first leaves die
Hachibee: Withered…
Misha: There are some vegetables whose first leaves last for quite a long time, but Romanesco leaves grow back surprisingly quickly.
9/15 Moth-eaten suffering
Hachibee: Oh no! He’s been defeated!
9/22 The leaves grow, but the insect damage also increases.
Hachibee: Autumn is deepening… This is the time when there are the most insects. It’s hard on Romanesco too.
Misha: I guess the leaves are tasty. And they don’t grow very fast. It’s a race against the insects.
9/29 The leaves start to grow
Hachibee: Oh, the leaves have suddenly grown enormously!
10/6 Large leaves start to grow – time for planting
Hachibee: The leaves are getting bigger and more numerous, and it looks like the seedlings are starting to take shape.
Misha: It’s about time to transplant them into the field.
10/13 The leaves become larger and the stems become stronger.
Hachibee: It’s starting to look a bit like a vegetable!
10/20 More leaves
Hachibee: At this time of year, the leaves no longer come out from thin branches, but seem to gush out from within the plant like a spring.
10/27 The plant begins to spread sideways and grow upwards.
Hachibee: You’re starting to look more and more like a vegetable.
11/3 Fighting against insects
Hachibee: I’m sure these Romanesco leaves are incredibly tasty to insects.
Misha: Hachibee, weren’t you also an insect? For a vegetable, it doesn’t seem like it has leaves that come out one after the other.
11/10 New leaves grow slowly
Hachibee: Still, I feel the hardiness of Romanesco as it quietly grows leaves one by one, unnoticed by anyone.
11/17 The leaves start to grow again
Hachibee: Oh! The leaves have grown so thick!
Misha: Now that the wind is getting cooler, the Romanesco seems to be getting more motivated. Maybe it’s because it’s getting colder and the insects are less likely to attack?
11/24 More leaves emerge
Hachibee: I noticed that the leaves have grown so big that they now look like vegetables. Well, they are vegetables after all.
12/1 Leaves emerge one after another from the center of the plant.
Hachibee: They’re growing, they’re growing, the leaves are growing!
Misha: It seems like the colder it gets the more energetic I become.
12/8 More leaves to come
Hachibee: The gaps between the leaves have disappeared and they are starting to overlap!
12/15 Leaves grow thick
Hachibee: The leaves are growing so thick, it looks like an afro!
Misha: Hachibee, that’s a very good one (laughs)
12/22 The density of the center of the plant increases
Hachibee: Something’s starting to get noisy in the middle of the plant!
Misha: Even though it’s almost the end of the year, it seems so busy.
12/29 Increased density in the center of the plant
Hachibee: Hmmmm! What’s going on?!
1/5 Flower buds begin to form
Hachibee: There it is!
1/12 The flower buds grow
Hachibee: I can only see a small part of it again, but it feels like it’s growing really fast…!
Misha: But we can already see the geometric patterns that are characteristic of Romanesco.
1/19 The flower buds grow bigger and bigger
Hachibee: It’s getting bigger and bigger every day!
Misha: It’s impressive how the large leaves around it tightly encase the Romanesco flower buds.
1/26 The main body appears!
Hachibee: There it is!!
Misha: What a delicate and mysterious shape! It looks like a Buddhist sculpture.
2/2 The flower buds are still growing
Hachibee: It’s still going to grow.
Misha: It’s amazing how they keep their unique shape no matter how big they get.
2/9 Harvest
Hachibee: Harvest complete! But looking at it again, it really has a strange shape! And it’s huge!
Misha: It certainly has an impact. It feels more like I’m making a craft than growing vegetables. This divine shape is already a work of art. But even though Romanesco has such an impactful appearance, it tastes like cauliflower and is very delicious. Growing Romanesco, which is fun to look at and delicious to eat, will make the cold winter a little more enjoyable.
~ Tips on growing Romanesco ~
Difficulty of cultivation：★★★☆☆
Romanesco is delicious to eat
Insects love its leaves
Until the leaves grow thick, it is important to control and eradicate insects
Once the flower buds start to appear, it’s yours
It grows rapidly
And a mysterious piece of green art
covers the entire field
