Acephala Group

Acephala group
Species	Brassica oleracea
Cultivar group	Acephala Group
Origin	unknown
Cultivar group members	Many; see text.

The acephala group refers to any type of Brassica which grows without the central 'head' typical of many varieties of cabbage. These are included within the species Brassica oleracea. The name literally means "without a head" in contrast to those varieties known as capitata or "with a head". This group includes a number of species, both wild and cultivated, many of which are grown for their edible leafs and flowers.

Different sources break down the Brassica genus into different grouping as shown below:

Mabberley (q.v.) has these groups: Napobrassica Group / Pabularia Group / Acephala Group / Alboglabra Group / Botrytis Group / Capitata Group / Gemmifera Group / Gongylodes Group / Italica Group / Tronchuda Group / Chinensis Group / Japonica Group / Pekinensis Group / Perviridis Group / Rapifera Group

Royal Botanic Gardens Kew has eight groups: Acephala Group (kale, borecole, collards) / Alboglabra Group (Chinese kale, Chinese broccoli, gai laan, kai lan) / Botrytis Group (broccoli, cauliflower, broccoflower, calabrese) / Capitata Group (cabbage, savoy cabbage, red cabbage) / Gemmifera Group (sprouts, Brussels sprouts) / Gongylodes Group (kohlrabi, knol-kohl) / Italica Group (purple sprouting, sprouting broccoli) / Tronchuda Group (Portuguese cabbage, seakale cabbage)

The Acephala group of cultivars or variety for the species Brassica oleracea includes:

The Acephala means "no head" as the plants have leaves with no central head; the opposite arrangement of white cabbage, or Savoy cabbage. Each cultivar has a different genome owing to mutation, evolution, the ecological niche, and intentional plant-breeding by man. Mabberley (1997, p. 120) has the Acephala group in three sub-groups: kale, borecole, and collards.

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