Broccoli and Brussel Sprouts

My broccoli and brussel sprout bed has been somewhat of a sad experiment this year.  First I tried to start them in seed pots indoors.  I think the first round sprouted ok, but then I lost several seedlings shortly after they sprouted.  I started a second round indoors a couple weeks later, but many of those seeds simply never grew.  It was seed left overs from last year, so maybe the seeds just weren't viable anymore.

Luckily the seedlings that did survive started to grow quite nicely in their controlled environment of the seed trays under lights.

 

As we approached the last frost date I planted out the "cold hardy" broccoli and brussel sprout seedlings.

Unfortunately I miscalculated and we had temps that dipped into the lower 20's a couple nights in a row shortly after these went into the ground.  I did my best to mulch them in with straw, but most of them died. 

 

When I went to the garden nursery to buy more all they had were broccoli plants, so I filled in all the gaps with those.  We may still get some brussel sprouts because after close inspection I had a couple survivors.  They were damaged but still putting out new leaves so I left them alone. 

This is the bed after replanting (and badly in need of a good weeding).  You might be able to make out the single row of onions growing at the front of the bed.  I am hoping that they deter the pests that like to make meals out of my broccoli and brussel sprouts.

 

 This is the same bed a few days later.  Many of the broccoli from the nursery had small heads forming on them when I planted them in the garden.  Unfortunately I had to cut many of them off because they were starting to flower.  Once they do that, they stop making broccoli shoots, so off with thier heads it was.  I fed the cuttings to the chickens because there really wasn't even enough for a decent side dish for one person.  The plants that are left should go on to make dozens and dozens of florets if I can keep up with harvesting them, so they will not be wasted.