Monday 9 May 2011

Growing Radishes

Some more "Words of wisdom" about Radishes. I posted about these a few days ago, but I just wanted to help beginners with some of the important aspects of growing them. Here's one such beginner taking a close interest in the subject...


Ideally, Radishes should be grown very rapidly (they can be ready in about a month from sowing), which means putting them in full sun, but also providing them with lots of water. I find that at the slightest excuse (lack of water being the most prevalent) they will bolt. A bolting plant puts all its energy into a tall, thick woody stem  - which will produce flowers, soon followed by seed-pods, like this:


And this:


The red part will be tough, fibrous and probably very peppery - most unattractive! Sometimes you don't get a "bulb" bit at all, only stem - like this:


On the other hand, if you are meticulous with watering, this is what you can get - crisp, succulent, spicy yet sweet at the same time:


Notice: no visible stems at all; the leaves seem to grow directly out of the top of the red "bulb" bit.


The soil in my garden is very sandy, and dries out quickly, so not really ideal for growing radishes, but if you are prepared to put in the effort you can grow radishes practically anywhere. I do have to admit though that I have never been successful with growing them in containers, in which they ought to do well.

Another thing to be careful with is to sow the seeds thinly (maybe an inch apart), or failing that, thin them out soon after they germinate. If they are overcrowded they will compete with each other for the available light and moisture and will be very likely to bolt before producing any worthwhile crop.

Hope this is helpful! Radishes are often touted as a beginner's veg, but unless they are given the right treatment, they can easily disappoint.

11 comments:

  1. What a little cutie your under gardener is. I've grown radish in seed trays before now and they've done well, they don't need a deep container. That reminds me, I haven't sown any at all yet this year.

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  2. Have you tried any of the coloured (Iother than red) varieties? We need to get some radishes sown too.

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  3. Sue, I have grown plenty of the bi-colour red and white ones (French Breakfast etc), and did once try the Black Spanish variety (I found it visually unappealing!). Had a mixture once that included plain white too.

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  4. Funny, I had never realised that the skinny ones had bolted, or paid much attention to the girth of their stalks, just assumed it was the way it went! Must pay more attention to watering them!

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  5. The best radishes I have ever eaten were in France and we put a bit of butter on each bite - as if they were crackers.

    Lucy

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  6. Love the radishes... Still waiting for mine to show up (germinate)

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  7. Now I know what I am doing wrong. Thanks Mark for a very informative post.

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  8. Easy to grow but bolt easily too;-). I don't have much success with the small ball ones. But the long roots ones, sometimes I get lucky. Hmmm...thanks might be because water problem since the small ones have shorter roots and top soil dry out easily.

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  9. Your radishes look great! they are one of the first plants I sowed all by myself back when I was a kid. I got lucky and had a very nice batch, but I think it was all the sunny Mexico. I should try one more time here and see how it goes.

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  10. I see you have a few little slug nibbles on your radishes, but nothing major. Mine were DEVOURED last year. Don't you have trouble with pests?

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  11. Hi Linda; slugs are not a major problem in my garden. Yes, I do get some, but not a plague of them. I have noticed that most of them reside resolutely inside my compost bins, where there are rich pickings delivered frequently to their door without the need to risk travelling. I tolerate this!

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