Cash Crop Collard is a Georgia-type F1 hybrid that reaches harvestable maturity in just 50 days, making it one of the fastest collards you can grow. This bush-habit variety thrives in cool-season gardens across both northern and southern climates, though it truly shines in fall, winter, and early spring plantings where cold weather actually deepens its flavor. The leaves improve noticeably with light frost, and the plant's exceptional cold tolerance means you can extend your harvest well into late fall or even winter with minimal protection.
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Moderate
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Fifty days from transplant to first harvest is remarkably fast for a collard, giving you fresh greens faster than most gardeners expect. This F1 hybrid combines the cold hardiness collards are famous for with genuine early productivity, and its flavor actually gets better as temperatures drop. You can begin harvesting individual leaves about two months after planting and continue clipping throughout the season, with the plant improving in eating quality straight through the late fall.
Collard leaves are cooked as a long-simmered green vegetable, traditionally braised with salt pork or smoked meats in Southern cuisine, though they work equally well with vegetable broths and modern preparations. The tender leaves are harvested individually as the plant grows, allowing for sustained harvests rather than a single cutting. Young leaves can also be eaten raw in salads when picked early.
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Start seeds indoors 4-6 weeks before your desired transplant date. Transplant rate is approximately 4,450 plants per ounce of seed.
Transplant seedlings outdoors when they have developed true leaves and soil conditions allow. In the South, time plantings for late summer through early fall to enable fall, winter, and early spring harvests. In the North, transplant in early to midsummer for fall and winter production.
Beginning about two months after planting, harvest by clipping individual leaves from the plant rather than cutting the entire head. The plant will continue producing new leaves as you harvest, extending your harvest window significantly. Eating quality improves into late fall as light frost touches the leaves. Plants can be protected with row covers to further extend the harvest period, or overwintered in cold frames, hoophouses, or outdoors in mild regions.
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“Cash Crop is a Georgia-type collard, rooted in the Southern collard tradition that has been central to American food culture for generations. As an F1 hybrid, it represents the deliberate crossing of two parent lines selected for early maturity and vigor, bringing together the cold tolerance and flavor depth of traditional collard genetics with the speed and uniformity that hybrid breeding offers.”