Cauliflower

About 480 acres of cauliflower are planted in New York annually. Cauliflower is a member of the Brassicaceae family which includes cabbage, broccoli and Brussels sprouts. All of these crops do well in the climate of New York, but cauliflower is produced as a fall crop to avoid summer heat which can cause heads to become soft and over-mature quickly. Heads maturing in hot weather (over 80 degrees F) can exhibit riciness, leafy heads, off color, loose heads or poor wrapper leaf development. Cauliflower is typically harvested from August through November in New York. Most cruciferous crops have similar cultural requirements and are susceptible to a common set of insects and diseases.
Recently, orange and purple varieties are becoming more common along with the traditional white forms.
Relevant Events
2025 Berry Twilight Meetings

July 2, 2025 : Berry Twilight Meeting at Dressel Farms
New Paltz, NY

July 16, 2025 : Berry Twilight Meeting at Samascott Orchards
Kinderhook, NY

August 6, 2025 : Berry Twilight Meeting at Fishkill Farms
Hopewell Junction, NY
Champlain Valley Orchard Field Afternoon

July 17, 2025 : Champlain Valley Orchard Field Afternoon
Chazy, NY
Mid Hudson Valley Hard Cider Tour
August 7, 2025
Hopewell Junction, NY
Organic Production Guides
Robert Hadad, Extension Vegetable Specialist
Cornell Vegetable Program

Organic Production Guides for fruits, vegetables and dairy are available through the NYS Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program. They outline general practices for growing vegetable and fruit crops using organic integrated pest management techniques.
Long Island Heat Tolerant Broccoli and Cauliflower Variety Trial
Natasha Field, Program Assistant
Eastern New York Commercial Horticulture
Report of the 2019 Long Island Heat Tolerant Broccoli and Cauliflower Variety Trial conducted by Sandra Menasha of CCE Suffolk.
Brassica Project 2018
Amy Ivy, Vegetable Specialist
Eastern New York Commercial Horticulture
Our New England colleagues have launched a regional project related Brassicas, and New York growers and colleagues are welcome and encouraged to join in.
The Brassica Pest Collaborative is intended as a place where growers and extension folks can talk to each other and share observations and questions throughout the season so feel welcome to join and contribute all things Brassica! They are also looking for more growers to join that list and to sign up as collaborators who will implement a practice and collect some scouting records to help them assess efficacy of given practices on real farms. Growers can sign up by emailing brassicapest@umass.edu and include information about your farm, pest issue and what strategy you would like to try to implement.
Can it be True?
Chuck Bornt, Team Leader, Extension Vegetable Specialist
Eastern New York Commercial Horticulture
A product called LandSpring was labeled in NY back in July of 2017 and may help reduce transplant shock of certain crops. Learn more about what it is and how it works.
2018 Eastern New York Fruit & Vegetable Conference Vegetable Presentations

Presentations from the 2018 ENYCHP Eastern New York Fruit & Vegetable Conference held February 20th and 21st for the vegetable sections.


Upcoming Events
Vegetable Field Meetings with Dr. Steve Reiners

July 14, 2025 : Herkimer County - Ivan Martin's Farm
Herkimer, NY
Topics: Tomato Fertility and Mitigating Physiological Disorders; Pest Scouting, ID, and IPM Field Walk.

July 15, 2025 : Washington County - Hand Melon Farm
Greenwich, NY
Topics: Tomato Fertility and Mitigating Physiological Disorders, Tomato and Sweet Corn IPM; FSMA Water Assessments and Postharvest Sanitation

July 16, 2025 : Ulster County - Wallkill View Farm
New Paultz, NY
Topics: Tomato Fertility and Mitigating Physiological Disorders; Veg Pest Update and Management; Cornell Tomato Breeding Program and Slicer Tomato Variety Trial Tour
2025 Berry Twilight Meetings

July 2, 2025 : Berry Twilight Meeting at Dressel Farms
New Paltz, NY
Join Heather Kase, CCE ENYCHP, and Anna Wallis, Cornell IPM, for seasonal updates on berry pest man-agement and IPM.

July 16, 2025 : Berry Twilight Meeting at Samascott Orchards
Kinderhook, NY
Join Heather Kase, CCE ENYCHP, and Anna Wallis, Cornell IPM, for seasonal updates on berry pest man-agement and IPM.

August 6, 2025 : Berry Twilight Meeting at Fishkill Farms
Hopewell Junction, NY
Join Heather Kase, CCE ENYCHP, and Anna Wallis, Cornell IPM, for seasonal updates on berry pest man-agement and IPM.
Champlain Valley Orchard Field Afternoon

July 17, 2025 : Champlain Valley Orchard Field Afternoon
Chazy, NY
This July ENYCHP will be hosting an orchard field afternoon highlighting Mike's research trials at Chazy Orchards.