Cora's Cottage

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links and I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you when a link is used.

Main sources for this blog include:

– The Encyclopedia of County Living by Carla Emery

– The Self-Sufficient Life and How to Live It by John Seymour

Radishes are one of the earliest and fastest growing vegetables. They are great to help mark rows of slower growing vegetables like carrots or parsnips, but they do best in the cooler months making their ideal season limited without the proper accommodations. Radishes originated in China, but spread to other parts of the world like Middle Asia, the Mediterranean, and Europe in very early times.

Most varieties will take 20 to 60 days to mature from the planting date. Radish varieties come in many sizes from small, about the size of a ping pong ball or less, to large weighing up to 50 pounds. Some varieties do not grow as well when days get short; however, there are special winter varieties that can be planted well into the fall.

Radishes are bee-pollinated and not self-compatible. However, they can cross with other varieties within 1/4 of a mile. While reds are annuals, winter varieties of radishes are biennials.

All parts of a radish are edible, though the leaves are not typically eaten. Most varieties are grown for the bulbous root including the most common variety, red radishes or cherry radishes. This variety has a small, round, red bulb and grows quickly and easily. These are the radishes most people in the United States are familiar with and they have a red skin with a white flesh. This particular variety is well suited to container growing.

Other common varieties include white radishes or winter radishes which are milder in flavor than the red radish, as well as, harder to grow with a longer time to maturity. Winter radishes can be stored through the winter in damp sand; however, they are better cooked. One such variety that falls into the winter radish category is the icicle radish which can grow to be 4 inches long and stores for weeks as opposed to only days like the red radish. Another winter radish is the Daikon, which is larger than an icicle radish, growing up to 20 inches long and 4 inches across. The Daikon variety has a peppery taste, but is more mild than the common red radish. Due to a starch digesting enzyme, diastase, Daikon radishes pair well with meals that are heavy in starch.

Additional varieties include Sakurajima, Lobak, Black Radishes, Rat-Tail Radishes, and Wasabi. Rat-Tail Radishes are grown for their seed pods which can grow to be 9 inches or longer. The seed pods look somewhat like beans but are wide on one end and taper down to nothing on the other end. Wasabi is another well know radish variety that is of Japanese origin and very hot. It is green in color and powdered before being mixed with water to create a smooth paste.

Red radishes can be planted as soon as the soil thaws, but if you want them with salad greens, wait to plant them until the lettuce is about half grown. The root of radishes does not grow as well in the hot months, but they can still be grown by planting them in the shade of another plant. For red varieties, it is best to plant them every 2 to 4 weeks if you wish to have a steady supply because they will only stay crisp for a couple of days once harvested unless refridgerated, and do not keep in-ground. For winter varieties, it is imperative to plant them when there will be cool weather for the root to mature. If the weather is too warm, all the energy will go to making leaves and seed instead of root. For winter varieties, frost at the end of the growing season is okay, and they should be planted about 8 weeks before the first frost date in the fall.

When planting radishes, they should be planted in light, loose, free-draining soil. Red radishes should be planted between 1/4 and 1/2 inch deep 2 inches apart in rows at least six inches apart. Winter radishes should be planted 3-4 inches apart in rows that are 18 inches apart. Summer radishes can also be planted in a container, as many as 12 to an 8-inch pot that has at least 6 inches of soil. They will be up in 3 to 6 days and should be thinned enough that they will not deform each other.

Water is important when growing radishes as poor soil or dryness can cause the roots to grow slowly and become hot. In winter varieties, dry soil can also cause the roots to become woody and tough. For the mildest radishes, keep them moist, but if water is scarce, plant radishes in a partly shady area.

Due to the fact that radishes are such a quick growing plant, it is best to plant them in nutrient-dense soil. Potassium, phosphorus, and nitrogen are all important for growing. It is best to have about half as much potassium and phosphorus as nitrogen.

Radishes have a handful of diseases and pests that can ail them. Diseases include blight, clubroot, downy mildew, wilt, white rust, dampening-off, scab, and black root. Many of these diseases can be avoided by rotating crops, watering in the mornings to allow enough time for the soil to dry out, planting resistant varieties, and spraying fungicides. Pests include root maggots, flea beetles, cutworms, aphids, cabbage loopers, and Harlequin bugs. Root maggots can be controlled by putting down wood ashes and rotating your crops. Flea beetles can usually be controlled by hosing down the radishes or applying insecticides. Most of the other pests can be handled similarly or by adding a collar around the base of the plant after planting.

It will depend on the variety of radish, but red radishes can be ready to harvest in 50 days. While they are quick to mature, they must be harvested, washed, and used quickly as they will mature past their prime. After harvesting, they should be stored in the refrigerator and can keep for up to 30 days. When harvesting red radishes, thinning and harvesting can be combined by pulling the large radishes first and leaving the smaller ones to continue to grow and mature.

Winter radishes are more forgiving, and can be harvested early to be used like red radishes. This is a good method to use for thinning. Once winter radishes are fully mature, they will stay good in the garden for about three weeks at which time they will begin to get tougher.

Red radishes, or non-winter varieties, should be stored in the refrigerator and used within 30 days, but winter radishes can be left in ground under a thick layer of mulch. However, they’re typically dug and stored in a root cellar between layers of moist sand. By digging the radishes and storing them, the toughening process is stopped which is a downfall to storing radishes in-ground over the winter. Winter radishes can also be frozen , dried, or canned.

To freeze winter radishes, wash, peel, and briefly stir-fry before packaging and freezing. Frozen radishes can be served with butter or in soups, stews, and casseroles. While most people do not bother with canning or drying, winter radishes can be dried by washing, peeling, and slicing 1/8 of an inch thick. Spread over a drying rack and dry until brittle. Dried radishes can be broken into pieces over a salad or used in soups and stews.

To can radishes, prepare them as if for freezing then bring them to a boil in a pot of water. Ladle radishes into jars and cover with boil water before pressuring canning. Jars should be hot before packing the radishes into them. Salt can be added to the jars, typically 1/2 teaspoon per pint and 1 teaspoon per quart. There should be an inch of headspace when packing the jars.

Radishes can be eaten raw, in fact this is my favorite way to eat red radishes. Raw radishes can be dipped in salt (my personal favorite), mayonnaise, or ranch dressing. Raw radishes can also be added to salads and sandwiches by slicing them thinly or grating them.

While radishes only have a small amount of many vitamins, they have several health benefits. In 1/2 cup of sliced red globe radishes, there are 12 calories, .35 grams of protein, 2 grams of carbohydrates, and 1 gram of fiber. The one vitamin that radishes do contain a lot of is vitamin C. In fact, 1/2 cup of radishes contains 14% of the daily recommended intake. Radishes also contain small amounts of potassium, folate, vitamin B-6, vitamin K, calcium, magnesium, zinc, phosphorus, copper, manganese, and sodium.

One of the health benefits of radishes is their anticancer properties. Cruciferous vegetables, like radishes, have been found to have compounds that will breakdown when combined with water into isothiocyanates which can help to rid the body of substances known to cause cancer. Due to the fiber they contain, radishes can help with digestion as well. Radishes also have antifungal properties that may help to prevent things like yeast infections and thrush.

Radishes are a great vegetable to grow if you want to see quick results or have limited room. Due to the their ease of growing in containers they are perfect for growing in town or even in an apartment. If you are looking for a good vegetable to grow and rotate through several times during your growing season, radishes might be the perfect crop for you!