Asian Greens / Mustards · Cool-season annual vegetable (leafy green); biennial-tending but grown as an annual

Southern Giant Curled Mustard New · Sep 2026

Brassica juncea 'Southern Giant Curled'· Southern Giant Curled mustard, Giant Southern Curled, curled mustard greens

SpringFall

Re-bought Sept 2026 for the fall/winter garden. Same variety as the spring "Southern Giant" strip in Bed B.

Southern Giant Curled Mustard — Young — Seedling / just planted
Young mustard plant (Brassica juncea) at the 6-leaf stage, about 3-4 weeks from sowing, on pine-straw mulch in Florida

Species-level photo (not this exact cultivar).

Photo: Ben Machado· CC BY

Southern Giant Curled Mustard — Growing — Established, filling in
Half-grown mustard rosette with wavy-edged leaves in December in Louisiana, about the stage for first outer-leaf picking

Species-level photo (not this exact cultivar).

Photo: Steven Mlodinow· CC BY-NC

Southern Giant Curled Mustard — Full grown — What you’re aiming for
Curled-leaf mustard at full harvest size (late November, Oregon), showing the frilled, crumpled leaf margins typical of Southern Giant Curled

Species-level photo (not this exact cultivar).

Photo: Meghan Bell· CC BY-NC

Planting window · Zone 8a, Decatur

Decatur GA Zone 8a: FALL direct-sow Aug 15 to about Oct 1 (UGA lists Aug 15-Sept 30 for middle Georgia; Clemson Piedmont July 15-Sept 30; Gwinnett Master Gardeners Aug 15-Sept 15);

Growing stages

What to look for, and what to do, at each point in its life

Southern Giant Curled Mustard, an open-pollinated heirloom prized for its bright green, deeply ruffled leaves, follows the fall-through-spring rhythm typical of mustards in Decatur's Zone 8a, sown in September for a winter harvest and again in February-March before spring heat pushes it to bolt.

1
Sowing
Early-mid September (fall crop) or mid-February to early March (spring crop)

You'll see Seeds are small and round, reddish-brown, showing nothing above ground for 4-7 days.

Do Direct sow 1/4 inch deep and keep the soil surface consistently moist until sprouting.
2
Seedling
Days 4-16 after sowing

You'll see Round seed leaves appear first, then bright green true leaves start showing the tightly curled, frilled edge this variety is named for.

Do Thin to 6-8 inches apart, and watch for flea beetle shot-holes.
3
Cut-and-come-again harvest
Young leaves at about 30 days after sowing, full size around 45-50 days

You'll see Leaves grow into a large, bushy clump 1-2 feet tall, bright green and heavily ruffled with a curled, frilly edge along the whole leaf margin.

Do Harvest outer leaves first, or shear the whole plant an inch above the crown for a quick regrow.
4
Bolting
Late spring, typically May into June, once daylength lengthens and temperatures push past 75-80°F

You'll see A central stalk shoots up, leaves become sparse, and small yellow four-petaled flowers cluster at the top.

Do Harvest what you can before leaves turn bitter, then pull the plant or leave a few to flower for pollinators and seed.
5
Seed saving
4-8 weeks after bolting, once seed pods dry from green to brown

You'll see Flower stalks turn from bright yellow blooms to slim, brown, brittle pods that rattle with seed when dry.

Do Cut dry seed stalks into a paper bag, finish drying, then crush and winnow to collect seed.

Techniques — transplant, prune, propagate, divide, seed

At a glance

Botanical name: Brassica juncea 'Southern Giant Curled'
Family: Brassicaceae (mustard family)
Type: Cool-season annual vegetable (leafy green); biennial-tending but grown as an annual
Native range: Brassica juncea originated in central Asia (the NC State Plant Toolbox gives Russia to central Asia;
Hardiness: Zones Grown as an annual in all zones; in Zone 8a it is a fall-through-spring crop and will overwinter most years
Height: 12-18 in leaves; plants 18-24 in tall and wide at full size, 3-4 ft when bolting

Sun

Full sun; tolerates part shade (4-6 hours) in fall, which slows growth but keeps leaves…

Water

Steady moisture, 1-2 in per week; drought stress makes leaves hot and tough.

Spacing

Sow 0.25-0.5 in deep, about 1 in apart, in rows 12-24 in apart;

Soil

Fertile, well-drained soil rich in organic matter, pH 6.0-7.5.

Care

Direct-sow now (mid-September) and again every 2-3 weeks until early October; the later sowings sit small through December and explode in February for a second harvest.
Work 2-3 in of compost into the bed and side-dress with a nitrogen source (blood meal, fish emulsion or 1 tablespoon 10-10-10 per 3 ft of row) 3 weeks after emergence; mustard is a leaf crop and wants nitrogen.
Thin early and eat the thinnings; crowded plants stay small and bolt sooner.

Good to know

Luke's tag read 'Mustard, Souther Giant Curled'; the cultivar is Southern Giant Curled, the standard curly mustard of the South.

Where it fits

Fits a fall greens bed with collards, kale, turnips, lettuce and spinach; good understory between rows of trellised peas or under taller brassicas;

Harvest

Cut-and-come-again: start on outer leaves at 3-6 in for salad and take 6-12 in leaves for cooking, always leaving the growing center;

In the kitchen

Classic Southern cooking green: pungent, peppery-hot raw, mellowing to a mild horseradish tang when simmered with smoked pork, onion and a splash of…

Watch for

Flea beetles (shot-holed leaves) and caterpillars (cabbage looper, imported cabbageworm, diamondback moth, cross-striped cabbageworm) in warm fall…

Wildlife & pollinators

Yellow spring flowers are a strong early nectar and pollen source for honey bees, native bees and hoverflies;

Toxicity

Safe for people; the NC State Plant Toolbox notes the species can be problematic for horses and livestock grazing it in quantity (glucosinolates).

Propagation

Direct-sown seed; transplants work if set out at 3-4 weeks old. Open-pollinated heirloom;

General Asian Greens / Mustards guide

Transplant in the evening; shade cloth the first 3–5 days if highs are above 85°F.
Row cover (AG-19) from day one keeps cabbage worms, flea beetles and harlequin bugs off — the #1 fall greens fix.
Sow a new short row every 2–3 weeks through October for a continuous harvest.
Harvest outer leaves and let the center keep producing (cut-and-come-again); or cut whole plants 1" above the crown and they'll regrow once.
Mustards and mizuna shrug off frost and freezes into the low 20s; pac choi needs row cover below ~28°F.
Let one plant bolt in spring — the yellow flowers feed bees and the seed comes true for open-pollinated types.

Sources (8)