Chinese cabbage

Chinese cabbage: plant 30 cm (12 in) apart in the row and 45 cm (18 in) between rows, 1 per square. Good neighbours: Dill, Onion, Celery.

Key facts

Spacing in the row	30 cm (12 in)
Between rows	45 cm (18 in)
In a 30 cm (1 ft) square	1 per square
Sun	Part sun, 4–6 hours a day
Root depth	25 cm (10 in)
Height when grown	35 cm (14 in)
Crop rotation group	Cabbage family
Support	None needed

Sowing and germination

How it is started	Sown straight into the bed, started in trays
Seeds per hole	2
Plants kept after thinning	1
Seeds per metre of row	7
Sowing depth	1.5 cm (0.6 in)
Soil temperature	from 7 °C, best 18–25 °C
Days to emerge	5–10 days
Light while germinating	Light makes no difference
Before sowing	nothing needed
When to sow	Indoors 5 weeks before the last frost; outdoors before the last frost; soil at least 10 °C

From seedling to plant

After emergence	14–20 °C; take the cover off as soon as they show
Pricking out	at 2 true leaves
Takes transplanting	Easily
Hardening off	7–10 days
Life cycle	Annual
Cold tolerance	Takes a light frost → hardy, takes hard frost
Soil	Rich, with compost, stays moist, pH 6.5–7.5
In a pot	15 L, 30 cm (11.8 in)
Watering	Water when the soil is dry two fingers down; while heads form
Feeding	Hungry; at planting, while growing
Support and training	None needed

Harvest and planning

Days to first harvest	60–80 days, from sowing
Ready when	The head feels firm
Harvest window	All at once, 2–4 weeks
Typical yield	0.8–1.5 kg per plant
Botanical family	Brassicaceae
Watch out for	Cabbage white caterpillars, flea beetles, clubroot, aphids

Good neighbours

Why, with the sources →

Plan Chinese cabbage in your garden

Open the free planner, drop Chinese cabbage onto a bed and see how many plants fit.

Start Planning Your Garden

Sowing and harvest

Sow outdoors	Jul–Aug
Harvest	Oct–Nov

My dates for this crop

My country Last spring frost where I live

Give the date once and this page, the sowing calendar and the planner all follow it.

Months for a temperate climate: about a month later in the north and a month earlier in the south. Give your own last frost date for exact dates.

What to plant next to Chinese cabbage →

From the same family

Plants of the Brassicaceae family share diseases and pests, so they follow each other in the rotation only after a break.

Sources

The values on this page marked as checked come from these sources: spacing, sowing depth, germination, soil, timing and safety notes, each against the source named here.

Chinese Cabbage and Related Oriental Crops (Circular 809, archived) — University of Georgia Cooperative Extension for: between rows, spacing in the row; checked 2026-10-30

More in Cabbage family

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