Wednesday was another fabulous training for our MySci teachers with the Missouri Botanical Gardens education staff. During a lesson about the parts of plants, a question arose about how red cabbages and, in particular, radiccio photosynthesize. After all, lettuce, cabbage and radiccio are leaves. Yet, their leaves are red and we know that it takes green (chlorophyll) to change the energy from the sun into food for the plant.

In good inquiry form, instead of giving us the answer, the staff asked us how we thought it might occur. No one had any ideas.

The question stuck with me until I had time to look it up last night. I should have guessed. Since so many of our plants are altered to become the food that we are used to eating, it stands to reason that raddiccio would fall in to that category. (Did you know that carrots started off white, like turnips, but have been modified over time to become the orange we are used to eating? Another fascinating fact we learned yesterday.)

Here is the official answer regarding red cabbages:

"Forcing and blanching are essential and irreplaceable stages which bring out the organoleptic, commercial and aesthetic qualities of late-growing Radicchio Rosso di Treviso. It is achieved by allowing the heads to form new leaves under light-free conditions (i.e., leaves containing little to no chlorophyll pigment). This serves to highlight the bright red color of the foliage, reduce the fibrous consistency and develop a crunchy and pleasantly bitter taste."

It's a good day when we learn something new.

Wednesday was another fabulous training for our MySci teachers with the Missouri Botanical Gardens education staff. During a lesson about the parts of plants, a question arose about how red cabbages and, in particular, radiccio photosynthesize. After all, lettuce, cabbage and radiccio are leaves. Yet, their leaves are red and we know that it takes green (chlorophyll) to change the energy from the sun into food for the plant.

In good inquiry form, instead of giving us the answer, the staff asked us how we thought it might occur. No one had any ideas.

The question stuck with me until I had time to look it up last night. I should have guessed. Since so many of our plants are altered to become the food that we are used to eating, it stands to reason that raddiccio would fall in to that category. (Did you know that carrots started off white, like turnips, but have been modified over time to become the orange we are used to eating? Another fascinating fact we learned yesterday.)

Here is the official answer regarding red cabbages:

"Forcing and blanching are essential and irreplaceable stages which bring out the organoleptic, commercial and aesthetic qualities of late-growing Radicchio Rosso di Treviso. It is achieved by allowing the heads to form new leaves under light-free conditions (i.e., leaves containing little to no chlorophyll pigment). This serves to highlight the bright red color of the foliage, reduce the fibrous consistency and develop a crunchy and pleasantly bitter taste."

It's a good day when we learn something new.