Another 5 weeks? Are you sure that's right? That puts you at first week of June. That seems very late. Nonetheless, broccoli is a member of the brassica family and they grow best in cool/cold weather. They can even handle a lite frost. They look leggy because they need more sun. As long as you can work the ground, go ahead and plant the broccoli.

In Dorset I would have thought it unlikely you would get a hard frost now.

Yeah! I put my cabbages out this week. I put a tall plastic tube around them...gives them protection from pigeons, but also from extreme cold snaps. I use pop bottles with their tops and bottoms cut off. Good luck! :)

I've sowed my cabbage seeds last week and they've already sprouted up. I can't wait to make cabbage rolls.

Thanks all- read the packet again last night and says to plant out may or June if they were started indoors but harden off and avoid frosts.... Iv taken them out the greenhouse to start hardening them off this morning but I have been collecting loads of pop bottles so will take your advice and plant them tomorrow with the bottles and some fleece over

I had another thread on cauliflower... Can I treat them the same way?

Yes exactly the same way

I planted the cauliflower and broccoli out in the beds on Saturday and been to check tonight and the cauliflower leaves have continued to go brown and die. There are new shoots coming through the middle... Will they be ok? I dug compost into each hole and really watered the holes well before I put the plants in and put cut plastic bottles round them and have put some fleece over... I am hoping they will start to perk up soon... We did have some very light sleet/ snow today which was very unusual for late April in Bournemouth !

Gosh, I am surprised. Could it just be seed leaves dying Martin? If the new growth is healthy they should be ok. You didnt scorch them with liquid feed did you?

My cabbages are doing fine and we've had some chilly nights; below 50F. I directly sowed the seeds into the raised garden bed. However, the cold doesn't hurt them at all. Cabbage & Broccoli are cousins.

I have just added another photo of what they looked like before I planted them out, those are the leaves which have continued to die... And no I haven't used any feed on them. My kohl rabi did do the same thing a few weeks back but not as bad as this, and the kohl rabi is now going strong in the ground... I suppose I will just have to give it more time. It was -1 here over night!

Ddid you water them from thee top whilst the sun was on them?

When they were in the conservatory my mum was responsible for watering them so I am not sure on that :)

Then I suspect this is what happened Snoop. don't be rude!

Haha- 3 frosts in a row now, -1 again.... I took another photo last night of one in the ground and have attached it

If they were my broccoli I'd compost and start again... brassicas really don't do well started indoors!

Today, yesterday... lots of days - blooming cold with the wind but we are getting sunshine! And hail and snow showers!