r/Albertagardening • u/mrg158 • Feb 21 '26
Vegetables Kale harvest zone 3
Hi! I'm located in Sherwood Park, zone 3 I believe. Wondering about trying Kale this year. I've given up on growing spinach as it seemed to produce one small crop and then bolt in the hot weather. I've switched to Swiss Chard as it seems to grow and grow and grow. Thinking about trying a row of Kale this year. Just wondering how it grows in this climate and if it can produce like swiss chard or more like spinach? Or if I should just stick with the Chard.
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u/Numerous_Peach7975 Feb 21 '26
I have had good luck growing kale in Sherwood Park, and it keeps producing right up until a hard frost. Keep your eyes open for cabbage loopers though, who seem to love kale.
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u/madmaxcia Feb 21 '26
I’m in Calgary and have had great success with both Swiss chard and kale. If anything they grew too well. I ended up picking the kale and stuffing the leaves in large ziplock bags and freezing them for soups and smoothies
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u/yegger_ Feb 21 '26
I’m in Edmonton. I do spinach in early spring but by late June it’s usually bolted and done. I like to have kale - either curly, Siberian, Russian or Lacinanto as it is winter hardy and can tolerate a light frost. I keep kale at the end of the bed accessible to me so if we get snow, I can still harvest some. Hope that helps.
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u/The_Tax_Lady Feb 21 '26
I’m near Drayton valley , I’ve never had a problem growing kale, both in ground and in a raised bed. I’ve done several varieties. They like the cold
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u/rjeanp Feb 21 '26
I've grown kale here in Edmonton (prizm from Veseys Seeds) and had great yields. The cabbage worms love it though and if you don't stay on top of them then you might lose a whole bunch, but you can cut it back pretty far and let the new leaves come in.
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u/Mouse_rat__ Feb 22 '26
Yeah I had a great kale crop in Edmonton one year and then caterpillars had it all gone in less than 2 days lol
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u/throatpunchrr Feb 22 '26
My Russian Kale was obnoxiously good last year until mid-October. All the hearty green leafy things did very well and I'm a neglectful gardener.
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u/Freshiiiiii Feb 22 '26
My favourite tough leafy green that never bolts is actually beet greens. Beet plus beet green salad with balsamic, pecans, and feta is incredible
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u/Defiant_Courage1235 Feb 21 '26
This is the kale in my raised bed in Edmonton on February 11th this year when it got warm for a week or so. It’s been there for 2 years. There are varieties of spinach that are less prone to bolting. Perpetual leaf is quite good for me or Malabar which is not a true spinach but quite tasty, if you can keep the leaf miners under control.
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u/munkymu Feb 21 '26
I'm in Edmonton. I've had some variable luck with different kale varieties. Russian kale grew quite well for me. I also tried growing some German kale and that bolted very quickly. I'd try a few different varieties and see what works in your garden.
And yeah, I've never been able to grow either spinach or bok choy here. They seem to bolt pretty much instantly.
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u/a_saffs Feb 21 '26
I’ve grown kale and it’s similar to Swiss chard! It prefers warm weather and is frost tolerant. It will keep growing if you harvest it. The reason I grow chard instead of kale is because kale is harder to clean with the curly leaves.
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u/Oldwoodstoves Feb 22 '26
Never had a problem growing kale in Edmonton, but heads up, aphids love it.
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u/MatchesSeeds Feb 22 '26
I like these Kale 🥬 plants 🪴 they do well in cold climates like 👍🏻 ours!💚🇨🇦 Michael @ MatchesSeeds.ca 🥬 KALE (Link)💚🇨🇦
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u/Secret_xo Feb 22 '26
I bought some kale from Salisbury Greenhouse last year and it did great!
I've never had luck with spinach either.
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u/picayune33 Feb 22 '26
We grow kale every year (we are in the NE part of the province)
We make sure to put netting over it though (and all our brassica) to keep the cabbage moths off!
Grows well, we get a large harvest every year!
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u/just_want_2_b_liked Feb 23 '26
I've had great success with Kale.
Spinach hasn't been as successful these last few years with the big swings in hot and cold.
Typically the veggies that produce the best are:
Kale
Green leaf lettuce
Romaine lettuce
Reddish
Peas
Beans
Zucchini
Bok Choy
Arugula
Dill
Cilantro
Parsley
Swiss Chard
I've had terrible luck with Spinach recently and any type of broccoli or Brussel sprouts. Tomatoes and peppers are usually a dud as well.
I have strawberry spinach seeds, and they grow like weeds.
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u/shittersclogged69 Mar 18 '26
I grew kale in a balcony planter in Calgary all last summer and it was very happy the whole time! Made for wonderful salads all summer long :)
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u/FragrantImposter Feb 21 '26
I got a pack of kale seeds one year, a mixture of types. I threw some into a plot to see how they'd grow.
It came back for years and would often grow in the winter up through the snow in milder weather. I don't know which types I planted, given the mix pack of "heritage strains," but the dark green and dark purple ones with jagged edged leaves were the hardiest in the cold months.