$Cauliflower breeding

1. Indranil Bhattacharjee
Scientist
Directorate of Research, SHUATS
Prayagraj

2. Cauliflower Family - Cruciferae
caulis (stem) + floris (flower)) Latin
Brassica oleracea L. var. botrytis L. (2n = 2x = 18)
Cauliflower was introduced in India in 1822 from England in 1822
by Dr. Jemson, In-charge of Company Bagh, Saharanpur,
U.P.(Swarup and Chatterjee, 1972).

3. Origin
•Cole crops have spread all over Europe from the
Mediterranean region, which is supposed to be the centre
of origin.
•B. cretica is the progenitor of cauliflower Schulz (1936)
Multiple origins and parents
The constituent crops within the B. oleracea group have
multiple origins derived from cross-breeding between
closely related Brassica species living in geographical
proximity to each other.

4. Biogeography of the origins and diversity of the major crop-
founding Brassica species

7. CAULIFLOWER AND BROCCOLI:
B. oleracea l. var. botrytis l. (Cauliflower),
B. oleracea l. var. italica plenck (broccoli)
A remarkable diversity of cauliflower and broccoli-like
vegetables developed in Europe, probably emanating from
original highly localized crops in Italy and possibly evolved
from germplasm introduced in Roman times from the
eastern Mediterranean.

9. Hybridization between taxa
•Crossings occur between distant taxa of the Brassicaceae giving semi-fertile
hybrids.
•This may be analogous to the means by which genetic mixing between wild
forms led to the horticultural types grown commercially today.
•Meiotic pairing is normal and indicates close identity particularly throughout
the 2n = 18 forms.
•Pollen fertility and seed set are variable, there is usually enough to provide for
the survival of further generations.
•Where races, varieties or species are cultivated in close proximity, crossings
occurred.
•Self-sterility is found in many of the taxa but not absolute, though sufficiently
robust to ensure high proportions of out-breeding.
•Out-breeding normally results from a high frequency of similar S genes between
individuals belonging to the same population
•Present-day cultivars include much introgressed genetic material derived from
other cultivated or wild forms.
•Therefore, is important to understand and use the historical literature that
describes crops derived from B. oleracea alongside that derived from genetic and
taxonomic sources in order to interpret the status of modern forms and hybrids.

10. Cauliflower[B. oleracea var. botrytis]
2n = 2x = 18.
In meiosis, pairing of homologous
chromosomes occurs. Sometimes
bivalents show a secondary pairing. In
B. oleracea, for example, three groups
of two bivalents and three groups of
one bivalent each have been found like
this.
From this secondary pairing of mono-
genomic Brassica species it has been
concluded that they have a basic
chromosome number of six i.e. B.
oleracea can be indicated as AA BB CC
DEF, B. campestris as AA BB CC DD EF
and B. nigra as AB CD EE FF.

11. Botanical Description
•Cauliflower is a biennial or annual herb,
•50–80 cm tall at the mature vegetative stage
•90–150 cm at flowering stage.
•The root system is strongly ramified, concentrating in the
top 30 cm of soil, with thick laterals penetrating to deeper
layers.
•The stem is unbranched, 20–30 cm long and thickened
upwards.
•The leaves are in a rosette (frame) of 15–25 large oblong
more or less erect leaves surrounding the compact
terminal flower head (curd).
•Usually lateral buds do not develop in the leaf axils.
•The glabrous leaves are almost sessile and coated with a
layer of wax;

12. Floral Biology
•4 sepals, 4 petals, 6 stamens, and 2 carpels.
•The carpels form a superior ovary with false
septum and two rows of campylotropous
ovules.
•The androecium is tetradynamous, i.e. there
are two short and four long stamens.
•The pollen grains are 30-40 µ in diameter and
have three germination pores.
•The bright yellow petals become 15-25 mm
long and about 10 mm wide.
•The sepals are erect.
•The buds open under the pressure of the
rapidly growing petals. This process starts in the
afternoon, and usually the flowers become fully
expanded during the following morning.
•The anthers open a few hours later, the flowers
being slightly protogynous.

13. •The flowers are pollinated by insects, particularly bees, which
collect pollen and nectar.
•The nectar is secreted by two nectaries situated between the basis
of the short stamens and the ovary.
•Situated outside the basis of the pairs of long stamens are also two
nectaries, but these are not active.
•Flowers are borne in racemes on the main stem and its branches.
•The inflorescence may attain a length of 1-2 m, but the slender
pedicels are only 1.5-2 cm long.
•The fruits are glabrous siliques, 4-5 mm wide and sometimes over
10 cm long, with two rows of seeds lying along the edges of the
replum (false septum, an outgrowth of the placentae). A silique
contains from 10-30 seeds.
•Three to four weeks after the opening of the flower from which it is
formed, the silique reaches its maximum length.
•When it is ripe, dehiscence takes place through the two valves
breaking away from below upwards, leaving the seeds attached to
the placentas.

14. •The leaf blade is grey to blue-green in colour with whitish
main and lateral veins.
•Leaves vary in shape from short and wide (40–50 cm 30–
40 cm) with curly edges to long and narrow (70–80 20–30
cm) with smooth edges.
•The curd consists of a dome of proliferated floral
meristems that are white to cream or yellow colour growing
on numerous short and fleshy peduncles.
•The curd varies from a rather loose to a very solid
structure, with a flattened to a deeply globular shape from
100 to 400 mm in diameter.
•Young leaves may envelop the curd until a very advanced
stage of development is reached.
•Bolting cauliflower plants often have several flower stalks

15. Pollination Technique of Cauliflower:
Selfing:
The self-compatible varieties of cauliflower can be selfed by simply
bagging the flowering stalk. Selfing is also done by caging some plants
with flies in cages or by isolation planting of lines having decreased level
of self-incompatibility. With self-incompatible plants, bud pollination
gives better results. In this system, the pollination is carried out in buds
before 2-4 days of opening, with emasculation or without emasculation.
Crossing:
The flowers may be emasculated by removing 6 stamens using a pair of
forceps. In self- compatible cauliflowers (European types), the stamens
are removed before the opening of the buds as the flowers are already
fertile in the bud stage, crossing can be done at the same time.
In self-incompatible types, emasculation may be omitted. When
pollination cages are available, crosses between self-incompatible
types can be made by insects such as honey bees, bumble bees
and flies.

16. Cultivar description of cauliflower
● There are open-pollinated and F1 hybrid cultivars.
● Season of production: suitability for overwintering, frost
resistance, low temperature requirement for curd
initiation.
● Leaf: attitude, shape, midrib and vein characters. Curd
protection by leaves.
● Curd: configuration, colour, relative size.
● Flower: colour; yellow or white.
● Resistance to race 1 of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp.
conglutinans.

17. Important Traits in Cauliflower Breeding

20. Plant type:
There are 4 distinct plant types viz.
Plant type 3 is considered the best as it has long
erect leaves with or without self-blanching habit
and has medium size curds. A lower plant type is
generally dominant over the higher one.

21. Stem Pigmentation:
Generally, the stem of Indian cauliflower seedlings is green
unlike the Snowball which is pigmented. However, in some
Indian cauliflowers, stem pigmentation is quite
pronounced, almost like Snowball. Stem pigmentation is a
dominant character and useful as a marker gene.
Stem Length:
Short – 15 cm
Medium – 16-20 cm
Long – > 20 cm
Predominant stem length in Group I and II is medium while
in group, III it is short. Short stem length is dominant over
long. Generally, shorter stem length is preferred for
selection.

22. Leaves:
Leaves may be long and narrow, long and broad and short
and broad. The margins are straight, broadly wavy or
sinuate. The colour varies from bluish green to waxy green
or glossy green.
Curd:
•Weight varies from 200 g to 1 kg or more.
•Earliest group curd size is smaller than later group.
•Shape of curd flat with even surface, hemispherical with
uneven surface, slightly conical.
•Hemispherical and conical curds are compact and may be
35-40% of total plant weight.

23. Breeding Objectives
•High yield
•Breeding for Curd Quality, head shape and size of head,
Core width and length, Frame size
•Non-ricey, compact, bract free protected curds with
retentive cream/white curd colour(orange colour -carotene pigments)
range >400 g/100 g in a deep orange curd to 3 g/100 g in a very white curd
• Branching
•Head splitting
•Plant height
•Storability
•Breeding for Optimum Leaf Geometry

24. Breeding Objectives
•Heat tolerance(Heat tolerance for producing curds in
August/September)
•Summer
•Suitable varieties for curd formation in summer (early and
late), autumn maturing genotypes and rainy seasons in the
hills
•Better seeding ability.
•Self-incompatible but cross-compatible inbreds to
produce hybrids of tropical type
•Resistance to diseases (black rot, sclerotinia rot, alternaria
blight, erwinia rot)

25. Curd Quality:
•Primarily determined by compactness and colour.
•It should be compact and retentive white.
•The curd colour of Indian cauliflower is yellowish to
creamish white while the Snowball is bright white.
•A major defect of curd is riceyness caused by precocious
and frequently uneven development of flower bud initials
over the curd surface.
•Ricey curds are regarded as undesirable for market, in
nature the precocious formation of flower buds is
advantageous because it assists the ultimate expansion
and development to flowering so that plants with ricey
curds set seed more easily than those with perfect curd.

26. Grading in Cauliflower
Grade 1 – Perfect:
Grade 2 – A few projections on each whorl but perfect
when held at arms length
Grade 3 – Clear patches but many elongated buds, furry
all over
Grade 4 – Well-formed buds over whole surface
Although this phenomenon has no effect on the taste, it
is nevertheless looked upon as a serious fault.
Little is known about the influence of the environment on
the incidence of riceyness, though its occurrence is
sometimes related to high temperature.

27. Disease Resistance:
•Cauliflower black rot [Xanthomonas campestris].
•It causes heavy losses in seed yield of Snowball varieties
which are produced in the hills.
•On screening the germplasm of Indian and exotic
cauliflower some Indian inbreds (MGS, Pusa Kea and S.
No. 445) were found to be resistant.
•Resistance to black rot is inherited in a quantitative
manner and dominant in expression.

28. Most desirable ideo-type of Cauliflower [Indian Market]
•Maturity – Specific group (75 to 80 percent uniformity)
•Stalk length – 12 to 15 cm
•Plant type – No. 3
•Frame – 35-15 cm
•Leaf number – 18-22
•Leaf length – 50-55 cm
•Curd shape – Hemispherical
•Curd size (diameter) – 15-18 cm
•Curd weight – 750 g-1 kg
•Curd colour – Retentive white
•Resistance to – Black rot, stump rot

29. Breeding Methods of Cauliflower
1. Population Improvement Methods
2. Development of Inbreds as Cultivars
3. Hybrid Breeding
4. Transgenic Cauliflower

30. Climatic Adaptation
Grows at latitude 11°N to 60°N with average temperature
ranging from 5-8°C to 25-28°C.
Vegetative growth period -10°C to 40°C
In India, cauliflower is grown both in hills and plains and
from 11°N to 35°N. Important cauliflower-growing states in
India are UP, Karnataka, West Bengal, Punjab, and Bihar. It
is also commonly grown in northern Himalayas and in
Nilgiri hills in south. Cauliflower is harvested from August
or early September to late February or early March in north
Indian plains and from March to November in the hills.

31. VERNALIZATION
•>25°C, summer cauliflower
•< 20°C, winter cauliflower
•Flowering may be accelerated by storage for a month at
5°C if dug with the curds
•Require 2–3 months of vernalization below 10°C.
•5°C is the most ideal temperature for vernalization.
Cauliflower curd initiation temperature
Optimum -15.5°C
Crop duration
Crop duration steadily declined from about 140 days
down to about 90 days as the sowing date advanced from
late February (calendar day 55) to early May (calendar
day 130).

32. Growth phases of cauliflower
0= vegetative state;
1= dome-forming stage;
2= early curd-forming stage (initiation of inflorescence primordia);
3= intermediate curd-forming stage (increase of inflorescence
primordia or flower buds);
4= late curd-forming stage (new initiation of inflorescence primordia
around the first-order inflorescence primordium);
5= sepal-forming stage (initiation of flower organs in the floret);
6= stamen- and pistil-forming stage;
7= petal-forming stage;
8= petal-elongation stage.

34. Crops Area
(IN 000 HA)
Production
(IN 000 MT)
Productivity
(IN MT/HA)
Cabbage 331.0 7281.4 22.0
Cauliflower 347.9 6569.0 18.9
• The productivity of vegetables can be increased
by using F1 hybrids along with improved qualities
& standardization of agro-techniques
• Area, production and productivity of major Cole crops
in India
(NHB, 2010) 34

35. • The cost of hybrid seeds is comparatively higher, which
is one of the major constraints in achieving more rapid
adoption of the hybrid vegetable technology
• With the use of genetic mechanisms i.e. male sterility,
self incompatibility etc., we can reduce the cost of hybrid
seed production
• And these mechanisms will be helpful in economic
hybrid seed production and availability of hybrid seed
within the reach of poor farmers
35

36. • Earliness
• Greater productivity
• Better adoptability to variable
environments
• Better tolerance against diseases
and pests
• Uniform produce
• Better market acceptability
• Better nutritional quality
36

37. Hybrid seed production
•Sporophytic self-incompatibility has been utilized for the
production of F1 hybrid cultivars in all types of B. oleracea
(Riggs, 1987).
•The ratio of female-to-male parent is usually 1:1 or 2:1
(Takahashi, 1987).
•Recommendations of maintenance breeders must be
strictly adhered to when producing seed of hybrid
cultivars.
•The incidence of sibs in the production of F1 hybrid seed
sometimes presents problems;
•Fitzgerald et al. (1997) have described a technique for
determining sib proportion and aberrant characterization
in hybrid seed using image analysis.

38. Self incompatibility:- SI refers to the inability of a plant
to set seed upon self pollination despite male and female
gamete is viable, there is no seed set in self pollination
 Lewis (1954) has suggested various classifications of self
incompatibility
 Heteromorphic system
• Pin type
• Thrum type
 Homomorphic system
• Sporophytic self incompatibility (SSI)
i.e. (Cole crops)
• Gametophytic self incompatibility (GSI)
38

39. This system was confirmed :-
 Kale ( Thompson 1957)
 Radish ( Sampson 1957)
 Broccoli ( Sampson 1957 and Odland 1962)
 Cabbage ( Adamson 1965)
 Cauliflower ( Hoser-krauze 1979)
39

40. Gametophytic SI Sporophytic SI
The stigma is smooth and wet The stigma is papilate ( hairy) and dry
Pollen tube inhibition in style Pollen tube inhibition take place on the
stigmatic surface itself
The pollen-pistil interaction govern by
haploid genome of each male gametes
and diploid genome of pistil tissue (
Haplo-Diplo)
The pollen-pistil interaction govern by
genome of the plant on which the male
and female gamete produced ( Diplo-
Diplo)
40

41. Gametophytic self incompatibilitySporophytic self incompatibility
41

42. • Bateman (1955) described the control of SI in family
Brassicaceae by a single Mendelian locus, the S (Sterility)
locus, which exists as multiple alleles
 The number of S-locus alleles is usually large:-
 22 in Iberis (Bateman 1955)
 34 in Raphanus (Sampson 1957)
 30 in B. rapa (Nou et al. 1993)
 50 in Brassica oleracea (Brace et al. 1994)
42

43. • A classical genetic analysis has grouped the Brassica
S-alleles into two categories based on their phenotypic
effect on self-incompatibility characteristics
First group of alleles
(high-activity)
Second group of alleles
(low-activity)
The first group of alleles (high-
activity) are placed relatively
high on the dominance scale
and exhibit a strong self-
incompatible phenotype in
which an average of 0 to 10
pollen tubes develop per self-
pollinated stigma
The second group of alleles
(low-activity) demonstrate a
weak or leaky self incompatible
phenotypic effect in which 10 to
30 pollen tubes develop per
self-pollinated stigma and they
are considered to be recessive
(Nasrallah et al. 1991) 43

44. • Genotypes (homozygous/heterozygous) of male
and female plant at S locus
 Interactions between the two S alleles
 Dominance (S1 > S2)
 Co-dominance (S1 = S2)
 Mutual wakening (no action by either allele)
 Intermediate gradation (1-100% activity by each
allele)
44

45.  SI recognition is controlled by a multiallelic gene
complex at a single locus, termed the S-locus
 The S-locus consists of three genes
 SRK (S-locus receptor kinase); (Stein et al.1991)
 SP11(S-locus protein 11)/SCR (S-locus cysteine rich);
(Suzuki et al.1999; Takayama et al. 2000)
 SLG (S-locus glycoproteins )
45

46. SLG and SRK exhibit a number of
characteristics that would be expected for the
female determinant of SI
 They are predominantly produced in the stigma papilla
cells, which come into direct contact with pollen
 Their expression occurs just prior to flower opening
 They exhibit allelic sequence diversity among all of the
S-haplotypes
46

47.  SP11/ SCR is the male determinant and is predominantly
expressed in the anther tapetum
 Immunohistochemical studies suggest that the SP11/SCR
protein is secreted in a cluster from the tapetal cells into the
anther locule and translocated to the pollen surface
 The cloning and sequencing of the S-locus region using
fluorescent differential display, succeeded in identifying the
male determinant genes, which were named SP11/ SCR
47

48. (Takayama and Isogai 2005)
48

49.  Upon pollination, SP11 penetrates the papilla cell wall and
binds SRK in an S-haplotype-specific manner
 This binding induces the autophosphorylation of SRK,
triggering a signaling cascade that results in the rejection of
self-pollen
 MLPK (M-locus protein kinase) localizes papilla cell
membrane and may form a signaling complex with SRK
 ARC1(Armadillo repeat-containing 1) identified through
protein interaction with SRK
 The proteasomal degradation of these substrates could
result in pollen rejection
49

50.  Number of seed set after each specific self- or cross-
pollination
 The fluorescent microscopic observations on pollen
ability to penetrate style (within 12-15 hr) (Dyki 1978)
50

51.  Sib-incompatibility is weak in certain inbreds
 Continuous inbreeding may lead to complete loss
of the inbred lines
 Pseudo-incompatibility
 Hybrid seeds would be expensive if the self-
incompatible lines are difficult to maintain
51

52.  Stable self incompatibility
 High seed set of self pollination at bud stage
 Favorable and uniform economic characters
 Desirable combination ability
52

53. Basic steps in the use of SSI
• Identification of self-incompatible plants in diverse
population/genotypes
• Development of homozygous self-incompatible lines
• Identification of S-alleles in the homozygous self-incompatible
lines
• Establishment of inter-allelic relationships among the S-alleles
• Identifying the best combining lines
• Maintenance of parental self-incompatible lines
• Commercial hybrid seed production
53

54. • Bud pollination / Sibmating
• Treatment with CO2 gas (CO2 enrichment) (Jirik 1985) or
sodium chloride ( Kucera 1990)
 Other methods:-
• Electronic aided pollination (EAP); (Roggen et al. 1972)
• Steel brush method ( Roggen and Dijik 1972 )
• The pollen washing ( Roggen 1974)
• Thermally aided pollination (TAP); (Roggen and Dijik 1976)
54

55. 55

56. 56

57. Crop Name of Hybrid Type of Genetic
Mechanism
(Parentage)
Developing
Institution
Cabbage KGMR-1, BRH-5 Self-Incompatibility
(KGMR-1=83-1-621 x GA-
111)
IARI regional station,
Katrain
Cabbage H-43, H-44 Self-Incompatibility
(H-43=S2S2 x Pusa
Mukta)
(H-44=S2S2 x Cornell 83-6
IARI regional station,
Katrain
Cauliflower Pusa Hybrid-2 (Nov
maturing, Group-II), Pusa
Kartik Sankar (group-I)
Self-Incompatibility
(Pusa Hybrid-2=CC x 18-
19)
(Pusa Kartik Sankar= CC
14 x 41-5)
IARI, New Delhi
Cauliflower Xiahua 6 ( heat-resistant ) self-incompatibility X iamen Agricultural
Research Institute of
Sciences, China, 2006
57

60. VARIETIES
• Seeds of early variety can be produce in plains of India like
Uttar Pradesh and Bihar . But late varieties i.e. snow ball are
produce in Kullu valley, Kashmir, Darjiling, Nilgiri Hills of
our country as late varieties require very cold climate during
its seed production.
Early
Early Kunwari, Pusa Katki, Early Patna, Pusa Deepali,
Late
Snowball 16, Pusa Snow ball 1, Pusa Snowball 2, PSK 1, Pusa
hybrid -2

61. VARIETIES
1. Early Kunwari,
2. Pusa Deepali,
3. Pusa Synthetic,
4. Improved Japanese,
5. Pusa Shubhra,
6. Pusa Hybrid-2,
7. Pusa Snowball-1,
8. Pusa Snowball-2,
9. Snowball-16,
10. Pusa Snowball K-1,
11. Pant Shubhra,
12. Pant Gobhi-2,
13. Pant Gobhi-3,
14. Pant Gobhi-4,
15. Punjab Giant-26,
16. Hisar-1,

63. Climate and Soil:-
• Cauliflower in general is very sensitive to its climatic requirements, particularly
temperature for seed production .
• An average temperature of 18-22°C is favourable for seed
production.
SOIL :-
• Well-drained fertile loamy soil with a high organic matter content.
• is suitable for cauliflower seed production.
• The soil pH should be in between 6.0-7.0.
SEEDLING RAISING :
Seeds may be sown on raised nursery beds 15 -20 cm height in rows with 10 cm
spacing.
Thin sowing should be done to avoid damping off.
Three tonnes/ha(25 nursery bed/ha) of FYM should be applied to nursery bed.
Seed rate
375-400 gm/ha

64. . In In plains, For early varieties (in plains) best season for sowing is the last
week of May and transplanting should be completed during first week of
July.
 In the hills, the last week of August is the optimum sowing time.
 The seed is sown in a nursery and transplanting should be completed by
the end of SeptemberThe
 Mean temperature of 6.5 to 11° C is very conducive to curd
formation
 For cauliflower seed crop 30-35 days old seedlings are planted on
raised beds.
A spacing of 60 x 45 cm is recommended.
Planting Time and Method
Isolation distance
 It is a cross pollinated crop ,for the production of seeds 1600 m for
foundation class and 1000 m for certified class seed production.
.

65. • The cauliflower seed crop requires heavy manuring as it removes
large quantities of major nutrients from the soil. The following
doses have been recommended for cauliflower seed crop.
• Famyard manure/compost -20-30 t/ha
• Urea -150 kg/ha
• MP -220 kg/ha
• Borax -10-15 kg / ha
• Sodium molybdate - 2.0 kg/ha
• If molybdenum and boron deficiency symptoms are observed
despite the basic doses being given, then do the foliar spray of 0.2
percent borax & sodium molybdate. may correct the deficiency.
Manures and Fertilizers

66. Irrigation
• Irrigation is given according to the soil requirements and climatic conditions.
• A crop after transplanting may need irrigation twice a week and later once a
week.
• Adequate moisture supply during flowering and seed development are necessary
to obtain high yield.
Roguing
• Careful roguing is essential for cauliflower seed production. off-type
• plants should be rogued out to bring uniformity in the variety.
• The characteristic of the curd, such as size, colour, compactness and uniformity are
considered while roguing .
Staking
• The flower stalks should be supported with stakes of about 1 m height to
individual flowering plants.

67. Cauliflower Seed Production
•The optimum pH for cole crops is 6.0–6.5
•N:P:K ratio at planting 1:2:2.
•High nitrogen levels result in ‘soft’ plants that are less able to
withstand frost
Micronutrient Deficiency
•Supplementation if deficiencies of available manganese,
boron or molybdenum is detected
•Molybdenum deficiency causes ‘whiptail’
•Boron deficiency causes ‘hollow-stem’ or corky patches on
the stems and browning of curds
Irrigation
•Supplementary irrigation 3 weeks before the market/
harvesting
•Water stress increases the thickness of the waxy cuticle and
produces plants with blue-green pigmentation.

68. Nursery Raising
Line sowing in raised beds
Transplanting
Spacing 20 X 30 cm
Pollination
Often cross-pollinated
Entomophily
•Bees and Diptera species are the main pollinating agents
•Can be supplemented by placing bee hives

69. Isolation distance
Up to 1500 m
Previous cropping
•Some of the common weeds of Cruciferae are
alternative hosts to important seed-borne pathogens
such as Alternaria brassicola and Phoma lingam,
therefore care must be taken to avoid sites where these
may present problems.
•Weed seed contamination in the harvested seed lot can
be created by the presence of some weed species if they
are allowed to go to seed within the scheduled seed crop,
these include Galium aparine (cleavers) and
Chenopodium album (fat-hen).

70. Roguing stages
1. Before normal curding period: reject precocious or
button curds that
develop before the normal maturity period of the cultivar.
Foliage; check that
pose and other characters of leaves are true to type.
2. Curd at market maturity: check that colour, absence of
bracts, absence of
riciness, solidity, shape and form of curd and leaf
protection are according to
the cultivar.

71. Harvesting
•Strong tendency to shattering of their seed pods.
•Population-based hydrotime and ABA-time models could
be used to assess physiological maturity in some B.
oleracea types (Still and Bradford, 1998)
•On seed ripening the plants start to dry out and the
orange-brown color of the plant is the best sign.
•The approaching maturity of the majority of seeds on a
plant can also be confirmed by opening a sample of the
oldest pods that will be the first to become brown.
•The ripening seeds will also be relatively firm in response
to pressing with finger and thumb.

72. Threshing
•Cut the ripening material by hand and place in
windrows or on sheets to continue drying before
extracting the seed with stationary threshers.
•Direct combining can only be done in dry conditions and
care must be taken to minimize the loss from shattering.
•Seeds having the most uniform, rapid and highest
germination and emergence were obtained from plants
cut at 30% seed moisture content.
•The seeds crack very easily and it is therefore important
to use a relatively slow cylinder speed, not exceeding 700
rpm.
•Split seeds can be separated out from a seed lot by a
spiral separator.

73.  Harvesting can be done when pods are brown.
• The harvesting may be done in two slots.
• Generally the early plants are harvested first, when the pod
colour of about 60 to 70 percent of the pods turn brown .
• After harvesting it is kept for curing, and allowed to cure for
another five to ten days in the same way. It is then threshed with
sticks .
• After thorough drying of seed in partial sun (up to 7 percent
moisture content) it is cleaned and stored.
Seed Yield
• Average seed yield of cauliflower is about 200-600 kg/ha
depending upon the variety, extent of pollination and
management practices. 400 kg/ha
• 1000 grain weight 2.8 to 3.0g
Harvesting and Threshing

74. Disease-Pests and Their Control
INSECTS
NATURE OF
DAMAGE
CONTROL
MEASURES
Aphids Swarms of insects
attack
leaves, flowers,
pods and
suck the ince
Spraying of
Chloropyriphos @2
ml/
litre water
Diamond back
moth
Small caterpillar
attack the
inner surface of the
leaves
and suck on them
Chloropyriphos /
Ripcord 50 EC@ 2
ml/litre
of water

75. Disease
• Club root
Dipping the seedlings in Carbendazim solution (1 – 2 g/lit)
for two minutes.
• Leaf Spot
Spraying of Carbendazim @ 1 g/lit.
Leaf Blight
Spray of Mancozeb @ 2.5 g/ litre.

76. • . Browning or brown rot
• This is caused by Boron deficiency. It appears as
water soaked areas and later changes into rusty
brown. Spray one kg of Borax in 500 lit of water
30 days after planting.
• Whip tail
• This results from the deficiency of Molybdenum.
It is more pronounced in acidic soil. The leaf
blades do not de and it can be corrected by
spraying 100 g of Sodium molybdate in 500 lit of
water 30 days after planting.
Physiological Disorders