Kale · heirloom · open-pollinated
Lacinato Kale (Cavolo Nero)
Brassica oleracea var. palmifolia · Tuscany, Italy
Jon Emery, RN
Trained in the Soil Food Web method · grows every variety in the trial bed
Updated Jul 2026
4 sources
Lacinato is a Tuscan heirloom kale grown for its narrow, blistered, blue-black leaves, ready in about 60 days and noticeably sweeter after frost. Cold-hardy, open-pollinated, and productive from one sowing into winter.
Quick facts
- Days to maturity
- 30 baby leaf · 60 full size
- Cold tolerance
- Hardy to ~20°F, sweeter after frost
- Spacing
- 12–18 in
- Sowing window
- Zones 3–6: Apr–Jul · Zones 7–9: Feb–Apr, Aug–Sep
- Type
- Open-pollinated heirloom
- Height
- 24–36 in
History
Eighteenth-century Tuscany
Lacinato appears in Italian garden records from the 1700s and remains the kale of ribollita and cavolo nero markets across Tuscany. Thomas Jefferson grew it at Monticello in 1777, which is as good an American paper trail as an heirloom gets. It has never been improved into blandness — the strain we sell is still the narrow, savoyed, nearly black leaf the name describes.
From the trial bed
Growing notes
In our own bed it germinated in five days at 65°F and shrugged off two unprotected hard frosts in November. Harvest from the bottom up and the plant builds a palm-tree silhouette that keeps producing; the leaves cut after frost were markedly sweeter than October pickings. Watch for cabbage worms in late summer — row cover from August on is cheaper than patience.
Nutrition
Dense, and documented
Kale ranks among the most nutrient-dense leafy greens in USDA FoodData Central — high in vitamin K, vitamin C, and lutein, with the glucosinolates characteristic of brassicas (USDA FDC #168421; Fahey et al., 2001). We cite the record, not health claims.
Kitchen
Strip the rib, then decide
The blistered leaf holds structure through braising, which is why it anchors ribollita. Raw, sliced fine and massaged with oil and salt, it loses its chew in five minutes. The classic move is the simplest: blanch, then finish in olive oil with garlic.
Grow this for real
Lacinato Kale · 200 seeds
97% germ · lot KL-2606-D · tested Jul 2026 · $4.49