Planting Lacinato Kale (Dinosaur)
Lacinato Kale (Dinosaur) is a cool season vegetable in the Brassicaceae family. Getting the timing right is the difference between a strong stand and a disappointing one, so the windows below are given relative to your own last spring frost and first fall frost rather than a generic calendar date. Look up your local frost dates and count back or forward from there.
Lacinato Kale (Dinosaur) is started indoors 4–6 weeks before your last spring frost date, giving seedlings a head start before they move outside.
Transplant young plants outdoors 0–2 weeks before your last frost — Lacinato Kale (Dinosaur) tolerates cool conditions and benefits from an early start.
You can sow Lacinato Kale (Dinosaur) directly into the garden 2–4 weeks before your last frost.
For a fall crop, sow 8–10 weeks before your first fall frost so plants mature as the weather cools.
Lacinato Kale (Dinosaur) can be grown by direct sowing, starting indoors, and transplanting. Starting indoors gives the longest, most controlled season, while direct sowing is simplest where the season is long enough.
Spacing and Planting Depth
Give Lacinato Kale (Dinosaur) room to mature. The figures below come from verified extension and seed-supplier data for typical varieties.
| Spacing in row | 12 inches |
|---|---|
| Row spacing | 18 inches |
| Plants per sq ft | 0.67 |
| Planting depth | 0.25 inches |
| Sun requirement | Full sun |
Days to Maturity
Lacinato Kale (Dinosaur) reaches maturity in 55–65 days from transplant. Once ready, plants continue producing for approximately 60 days.
For a continuous harvest, sow a new batch every 21 days. Use the succession planting scheduler →
Lacinato Kale (Dinosaur) is ready to harvest after about 60 days. Picking regularly over the roughly 60-day harvest window keeps plants productive and encourages a longer pick. Harvest before summer heat or, for fall crops, before a hard freeze, to keep quality high.
Conditions and Care
As a cool-season vegetable, Lacinato Kale (Dinosaur) does its best growing in the cooler weather of spring and fall and tends to bolt or turn bitter in summer heat. It is frost hardy and can shrug off light freezes, so it can stay in the ground later into the season than tender crops.
Lacinato Kale (Dinosaur) needs full sun — give it at least six hours of direct light a day for the best growth and flavor. Sow seed about 0.25 inches deep — small seed is sown shallow and barely covered, then keep the soil evenly moist until seedlings establish.
Lacinato Kale (Dinosaur) belongs to the Brassicaceae family; rotating where you grow members of this family each year helps limit the build-up of soil-borne pests and disease. Because it matures relatively quickly, Lacinato Kale (Dinosaur) rewards succession sowing: small, repeated plantings keep a steady supply coming rather than one short glut.
Companion Plants
Pairing Lacinato Kale (Dinosaur) with the right neighbors can improve growth and deter pests; a few combinations are best avoided.
Grows well with: Beets, Celery, Onion
Keep away from: Strawberry, Tomato