Scottish growing tool

Cauliflower Variety Selector: Which One For Your Garden

Every recommendation below traces back to our full Cauliflower varieties comparison — this page is the fast route to one answer for your specific situation, no clicking through required.

If: My ground has a history of club root

ClaptonAGM

Clapton is the only variety here with a named resistance to club root, not just a susceptibility note. It shows excellent resistance to club root, with large, uniform, solid, deep white heads.

If: I've lost brassicas to a hard winter before, or I garden upland or well inland

JeromeAGM

Jerome carries an H5 hardiness rating, the only AGM variety rated for severe UK winters, versus H3 for most of the others. That's exactly where an upland or hard-winter garden earns the benefit more directly than a milder lowland one would. It's a vigorous spring variety producing medium-sized, deep white heads that stand well through winter. Non-AGM Aalsmeer shares the same H5 rating and a similar March-April harvest if Jerome isn't in stock.

If: I want the earliest possible harvest and have glasshouse or cold-frame space

TirzaAGM

Tirza is sown as early as October and stands under glass over winter, the earliest-cropping AGM type on the list, harvesting March-April. It's the earliest cauliflower of the season, heavy cropping and showing some disease resistance.

If: I'm short on space or growing in containers

Candid CharmAGM

Candid Charm is named as suited to close spacing and mini-cauli growing, a vigorous, quick-maturing cultivar good for growing at close spacing, the container-friendly pick alongside Tirza.

If: I want something different for the plate, not just white → Purple

GraffitiAGM

Graffiti grows exactly like white cauliflower, same sowing windows, spacing and care. The purple curd becomes darker the more it's exposed to sunlight, so a shadier or north-facing plot will produce a paler head, worth weighing before choosing it for colour alone.

If: I want something different for the plate, not just white → Romanesco, lime-green spirals

VeronicaAGM

Veronica is a romanesco type that grows under the same rules as white cauliflower. It has edible heads of pointed, lime-green florets densely arranged in whorls, with spacing slightly tighter than the standard range, 40-50cm between plants and 50-60cm between rows, worth checking against seed-packet instructions.

If: I want something different for the plate, not just white → Not sure, just give me the safest all-round choice or Not sure, just give me the safest all-round choice

ClaptonAGM

For most Scottish gardens, Clapton, autumn, club-root resistant, is the safest all-rounder. It shows excellent resistance to club root, with large, uniform, solid, deep white heads.

If: I want the least fussy type for an unsettled summer

RaleighAGM

Raleigh copes well in stressful conditions and is resistant to pinking, a cold-stress curd discolouration distinct from buttoning. That tolerance is a genuine trait none of the other summer varieties here claim, though it's still exposed to the general summer-type buttoning risk.

Answer these as a quick wizard instead →
Cauliflower growing guide →Full Cauliflower varieties comparison →

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