Broccoli bolts

Anyone grow good broccoli? Can you tell me why the last two year (the only 2 I have tried to grow it) our broccoli bolted? Did I wait to long to pick it? Last week we had nice looking, but TINY florettes. This week we have this:
Last week:

Don't worry- just cut that and enjoy it! It is not going to grow into perfect heads like you buy in the store. Once you cut that, it will keep growing side shoots-eat those too! I cut mine and eat it even if it has a few flowers on it. Taste so incredible, compared to the grocery.

I guess I have the advantage here. I plant broccoli in the fall and it grows all winter. Ice, cold, even snow (go ahead and laugh, our snow isn't the same as your snow, but it's still snow) and it keeps on producing. Once spring warms up a little, it reaches for the sky. I can cut the first big head (like you get at the grocery store) and then the plant sends out side shoots all the rest of the winter. Some plants take all winter to form the first head, some pound us to death with broccoli.

I am so glad to hear there is hope. I will cut it tomorrow. I really wanted *trees* for Grandson's

@baymule, I just think that is so darn cute that you think your "snow" is "still snow"...

Carol Dee, You may not have big "trees" on your broccoli but it still looks very tasty. I haven't grown broccoli before, so you're way ahead of me.

Some types are more prone to bolting than others and I've found from personal experience that some are better cool season broccoli and some are better for the warmer months.
Choice of cultivar is important and some are better for repeat harvesting after the main head has been removed as some do not produce side shoots.
Either way if your buying plants rather than starting your own, the younger the better as they often perform poorly and end up amounting to little if they have spent too long before planting out.
I used to get in trouble at the nursery I worked in for stopping people buying plants that were just beyond redemption.

I don't find the Brassica group to be heavy feeders like pumpkins but they still like a good feed. I usually plant them somewhere that has had old manure dug through and some bone meal as well.
It is important to keep up the water as too little moisture and/or sudden changes in temperature are the main causes of bolting.

Anyhow I hope there is something useful in there for you.

Broccoli is the vegetable of choice in the winter produce aisle. I don't know why we want to grow it in the garden every year but we do.

I've learned to check it carefully for bugs and what to do to get rid of them if they show up. I've studied the buds to better know when to harvest. I've figured out just about how much good "broccoli weather" we are likely to have and matched that with an appropriate variety - Premium Crop can take a little too long, Packman is just about right.

Usually, the broccoli is real nice. The wild card is the rabbit. Bunnies ate all the plants to naked stems last year. I have saved plants when only leaf tips were eaten and had nice plants later. It just took fertilizer, hilling and water.

This year, most of the plants formed buds 2 or 3 weeks early. Everything is tiny! I have no idea why this happened. There hasn't been any hot weather. They look healthy ... Anyway, I'm planning on being there today with more fertilizer and a hoe to hill them. All buds have been cut off. Maybe we will get some nice broccoli yet, Carol Dee!

Steve

The lady at the Mom 'n Pop local gardening store suggested I try Packman for a fall crop here. I plan to start the seeds about the first of July, a couple of weeks.

For two years in a row Green Comet has failed as a spring crop, some very small heads and not many of it. Green Comet does send out side shoots and I've gotten some of them this year, but last year even that did not happen. In previous years Green Comet did pretty good but those side shoots do get pretty wormy. I cut the florets into pretty small pieces to find the worms and the cocoons. Soaking in salty water brings some worms to the top but not all. And soaking does absolutely nothing for those cocoons.

Thanks everyone for the helpful advice. So far I have just picked up 6 packs at the local nursery. And paid no attention to the variety. I did wonder if they did better as a cool weather crop. (Thankfully this spring has been cooler after a brief early HOT week.) I will pick up a packet of seed per your instructions and start a fall crop. Thanks again everyone. I LOVE my TEG friends.