Editing Cauliflower (section)

== Description ==
There are four major groups of cauliflower.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Crisp, P. |year=1982 |title=The use of an evolutionary scheme for cauliflowers in screening of genetic resources |journal=Euphytica |volume=31 |issue=3 |page=725 |doi=10.1007/BF00039211 |s2cid=37686274}}</ref>

# Italian: This specimen is diverse in appearance, biennial, and annual in type. This group includes white, [[Romanesco broccoli|Romanesco]], and various brown, green, purple, and yellow cultivars. This type is the ancestral form from which the others were derived.
# Northern European annuals: These are used in Europe and North America for summer and fall harvests. They were developed in Germany in the 18th century and include the old cultivars Erfurt and Snowball.
# Northwest biennial: Used in Europe for winter and early spring harvest, developed in France in the 19th century and includes the old cultivars Angers and Roscoff.
# Asian: A tropical cauliflower used in China and India, it was developed in India during the 19th century from the now-abandoned Cornish type<ref>{{cite journal |author1=Swarup, V. |author2=Chatterjee, S.S. |year=1972 |title=Origin and genetic improvement of Indian cauliflower |journal=Economic Botany |volume=26 |issue=4 |pages=381–393 |doi=10.1007/BF02860710 |bibcode=1972EcBot..26..381S |s2cid=37487958}}</ref> and includes old varieties Early Benaras and Early Patna.

=== Domestication ===
Cauliflowers are an "arrested inflorescence" subspecies of ''B. oleracea'' that arose around 2,500 years ago.<ref name="y693" /> Genomic analysis finds initially evolved from broccoli with three MADS-box genes, playing roles in its curd formation. Nine loci and candidate genes are linked with morphological and biological characters.<ref name="y693">{{cite journal |last1=Chen |first1=Rui |last2=Chen |first2=Ke |last3=Yao |first3=Xingwei |last4=Zhang |first4=Xiaoli |last5=Yang |first5=Yingxia |last6=Su |first6=Xiao |last7=Lyu |first7=Mingjie |last8=Wang |first8=Qian |last9=Zhang |first9=Guan |last10=Wang |first10=Mengmeng |last11=Li |first11=Yanhao |last12=Duan |first12=Lijin |last13=Xie |first13=Tianyu |last14=Li |first14=Haichao |last15=Yang |first15=Yuyao |date=2024 |title=Genomic analyses reveal the stepwise domestication and genetic mechanism of curd biogenesis in cauliflower |journal=Nature Genetics |volume=56 |issue=6 |pages=1235–1244 |doi=10.1038/s41588-024-01744-4 |issn=1061-4036 |pmc=11176064 |pmid=38714866 |doi-access=free |last16=Zhang |first16=Hong |last17=Guo |first17=Yutong |last18=Jia |first18=Guiying |last19=Ge |first19=Xianhong |last20=Sarris |first20=Panagiotis F. |last21=Lin |first21=Tao |last22=Sun |first22=Deling}}</ref>

=== Varieties ===
There are hundreds of historic and current commercial varieties used around the world. A comprehensive list of about 80 North American varieties is maintained at [[North Carolina State University]].<ref>{{cite web |author=Farnham, M. |year=2007 |title=Vegetable Cultivar Descriptions for North America:Cauliflower |url=http://cuke.hort.ncsu.edu/cucurbit/wehner/vegcult/cauliflower.html |access-date=2007-09-19}}</ref>

=== Colors ===
*White cauliflower is the most common color of cauliflower, having a contrasting white head (also called "curd", having a similar appearance to [[cheese curd]]),<ref name="ume">{{cite web |author=Vincent A. Fritz |author2=Carl J. Rosen |author3=Michelle A. Grabowski |author4=William D. Hutchison |author5=Roger L. Becker |author6=Cindy Tong |author7=Jerry A. Wright |author8=Terry T. Nennich |date=2017 |title=Growing broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower in Minnesota |url=http://www.extension.umn.edu/garden/yard-garden/vegetables/growing-broccoli-cabbage-and-cauliflower-in-minnesota/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170227153004/http://www.extension.umn.edu/garden/yard-garden/vegetables/growing-broccoli-cabbage-and-cauliflower-in-minnesota/ |archive-date=27 February 2017 |access-date=26 February 2017 |publisher=University of Minnesota Extension, Garden – Growing Vegetables}}</ref> surrounded by green leaves.<ref name="ume" />
*Orange cauliflower contains [[beta-carotene]] as the orange pigment, a [[provitamin A]] compound. This orange trait originated from a natural [[mutant]] found in a cauliflower field in Canada.<ref>{{cite journal |author=Dickson, M.H. |author2=Lee C.Y. |author3=Blamble A.E. |year=1988 |title=Orange-curd high carotene cauliflower inbreds, NY 156, NY 163, and NY 165 |journal=HortScience |volume=23 |issue=4 |pages=778–779 |doi=10.21273/HORTSCI.23.4.778 |s2cid=88716744 |doi-access=free}}</ref> Cultivars include 'Cheddar' and 'Orange Bouquet'.
*Green cauliflower in the'' B. oleracea'' Botrytis Group is sometimes called [[broccoflower]]. It is available in the normal curd (head) shape and with a [[fractal]] spiral curd called [[Romanesco broccoli]]. Both have been commercially available in the U.S. and Europe since the early 1990s. Green-headed varieties include 'Alverda, 'Green Goddess', and 'Vorda'. Romanesco varieties include 'Minaret' and 'Veronica'.
*The purple color is caused by the presence of [[anthocyanin]]s, water-soluble pigments that are found in many other plants and plant-based products, such as [[red cabbage]] and [[red wine]].<ref>{{cite web |author=Chiu, L. |author2=Prior, R.L. |author3=Wu, X. |author4=Li, L. |date=16 July 2005 |title=Toward Identification of the Candidate Gene Controlling Anthocyanin Accumulation in Purple Cauliflower (''Brassica oleracea L.'' var. ''botrytis'') |url=http://www.ars.usda.gov/research/publications/publications.htm?SEQ_NO_115=179842 |publisher=American Society of Plant Biologists Annual Meeting |page=628}}</ref> Varieties include 'Graffiti' and 'Purple Cape'.

<gallery mode="packed">
File:Cauliflower broccoflower.jpg|White and green cauliflower
File:Cauliflower romanesco.JPG|Green [[Romanesco cauliflower]]
File:7367-Brassica oleracea var. botrytis.JPG|Orange cauliflower
File:Purplec.png|Purple cauliflower
</gallery>

=== Phytochemicals ===
Cauliflower contains several non-nutrient [[phytochemical]]s common in the [[brassicaceae|cabbage family]] that are under preliminary research for their potential properties, including [[isothiocyanate]]s and [[glucosinolate]]s.<ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Ishida M, Hara M, Fukino N, Kakizaki T, Morimitsu Y |year=2014 |title=Glucosinolate metabolism, functionality, and breeding for the improvement of Brassicaceae vegetables |journal=Breeding Science |volume=64 |issue=1 |pages=48–59 |doi=10.1270/jsbbs.64.48 |pmc=4031110 |pmid=24987290 |doi-access=free}}</ref> Boiling reduces the levels of cauliflower glucosinolates, while other cooking methods, such as [[steaming]], [[Microwave oven|microwaving]], and [[stir frying]], have no significant effect on glucosinolate levels.<ref name="Nugrahedi">{{cite journal |last1=Nugrahedi |first1=Probo Y. |last2=Verkerk |first2=Ruud |last3=Widianarko |first3=Budi |last4=Dekker |first4=Matthijs |year=2015 |title=A Mechanistic Perspective on Process-Induced Changes in Glucosinolate Content in Brassica Vegetables: A Review |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/262977227 |journal=Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition |volume=55 |issue=6 |pages=823–838 |doi=10.1080/10408398.2012.688076 |issn=1040-8398 |pmid=24915330 |s2cid=25728864}}</ref>