Jagallo Nero will grow just as tall as regular black kale, but the leaves are long and thin.

This is my third year growing the kale variety Jagallo Nero. I didn't think much of it in the beginning. It took a good while before I gave it an honest try in the kitchen when my husband Philip was cooking. He told me that I just had to taste it. No regrets, it was delicious!

Learn more: Small black kale leaves

This is seventeen varieties of kale in one of my plantings this year:

Jagallo Nero is a black kale variety with leaves that look a bit different from the more common black kale varieties, like for example Nero di Toscana. The leaves are thin and lobed. They grow straight on the main stem but the kale develops side shoots from the stem too. Most black kale varieties are very thick with leathery leaves. This variety has a different feel to it though, since the leaves are so thin. It's a different culinary experience compared to the more regular kale varieties. The kale has a nice, mild taste. You can eat it fresh or cooked.

Regular black kale would of course produce a larger harvest than Jagallo Nero, but I just think that the leaves are so beautiful. And tasty too!

Jagallo Nero is just as easy to grow as most other kale varieties. You can sow it in winter (wintersowings), in spring or in summer and you can get great results from both large and small plants, depending on when you decide to sow your kale.

Read more about cabbage: How to grow napa cabbage

The only problem with the Jagallo Nero variety is the small and delicate leaves. My experience is that it's a lot harder to locate kale pests like cabbage moth larvae. The eggs are almost impossible to find. The upside is that many of these larvae are located in clusters, and since the leaves are thin and many, you can easily remove the leaves with the larvae without harming the plant as a whole.

I harvest the plants by cutting the tops and side shoots on the main stem. The plant keeps branching out the entire growing season.

What about the look then? Well, this kale variety is just sooo beautiful! It kind of makes you stop in your tracks and wonder what on earth you are looking at. Is it broccoli? Some kind of...what? It looks absolutely magical together with summer flowers. I had to remove the summer flowers from my bed this year before the kale was able to grow larger in late summer. After all, it was just so horribly dry this summer.

Learn more: Fast-growing mini Pak Choi

I haven't been able to find any Swedish garden shops that sell seeds of this variety, but I'm sure that you can find a good alternative somewhere close to where you live. The online store Camilla Plum might be a good option if you live in Denmark. The kale variety is categorized as green kale on this site, which is technically completely true since black kale is a type of green kale. Good luck growing Jagallo Nero in your garden at home!
/Sara Bäckmo