Purple haze:I can still remember my mother's surprise when I asked for a second helping of purple sprouting broccoli. This was the first member of the brassica or cabbage family that appealed to my finicky taste buds, and I had resisted any encouragement to try it until I was well into my teens. Now I grow a couple of dozen PSB plants, as I like to call them, and the first harvest has just been picked.
PSB is by far the most delicate of the cabbage tribe, at least in terms of taste. It's as hardy as old boots and grows itself if unmolested by clubroot or the dreaded root fly, which had a field day last year. As a result, organic PSB may be a little scarce this year, so grab it while you can.
In our family PSB is seen as being in much the same league as asparagus and seakale, and we prepare it simply, usually steaming until tender and tossing in a little butter with a twist or two of black pepper. Occasionally, we might consider anointing it with some hollandaise sauce or a smidgen of grated Parmesan.
At this stage in the season, when we are eating the early variety known as Rudolph, we tend to consume it as a starter. When it is more bountiful we relegate it to a supporting role, but it remains a favourite.
If you want to grow your own, make a start in mid-March. I sow mine in modules, thinning to the strongest seedlings and planting out in May, when the plants are five or six centimetres tall. Ideally they need about a metre between plants and a firm soil. Squish any caterpillars as they appear or your broccoli plants will be reduced to skeletons in a matter of days.
In the meantime, sow broad beans, which, weather permitting, should give you a crop in May. Sow seeds singly in double, staggered rows, with about 25cm between them each way, and sow a few spares for filling in any gaps. By the time the flowers appear they may be attacked by black aphids, which you can remove by hand (not a pleasant task) or spray with Ecover washing-up liquid, diluted as if you were doing the dishes. Using an unregistered pesticide like this is illegal, but you may be able to square it with your conscience.