Hello Mid-Ohio Valley farmers and gardeners! Summer is winding down here in the Valley as school reopen, it gets dark a little sooner every night and college football season begins. As you preserve this summer’s harvest you can also be planting fall crops to extend the growing season. Many gardeners and farmers with high tunnels with grow vegetable well into November and even up to Christmas time.

This week let’s talk about a cool season crop, the radish (Raphanus sativus). A great addition to the fall garden, they are a cool-season, fast-maturing, easy-to-grow vegetable. When I say fast growing, I mean it. Radishes will mature in 25-30 days depending on the variety.

Radishes are in the same vegetable family (Brassicaceae)as cabbage, kale, broccoli, and collards. They will thrive in cooler temperatures during spring and fall and have the ability to survive light frosts. Garden radishes can be grown wherever there is sun, moisture and fertile soil so seed them in gardens big and small, raised beds and containers.

All parts of the radish plant are edible. The roots are most commonly eaten, but the leaves can also be used fresh or in cooking. No need to worry about transplants, just sow these seeds directly in the soil.

As with all our vegetables, there are some cool things to learn about radishes. Marco Polo brought them back from his trip to China in the 13th century and introduced them to Europe.

Red Globe is the most popular variety here in the U.S. However, everyone has heard of the French Breakfast. Many French national dishes are prepared using root vegetables and radish leaves. It became so popular in France that in other countries this vegetable was called the French radish.

Radishes are a great source of vitamin C and they also contain rafanol, a compound which helps rid the body of toxins. Many people enjoy the spicy, pungent, sometimes bitter flavor of radishes. Most of the bitter flavor comes from the peel so for a milder flavor just cut it off. Essential oils give the radish its characteristic taste.

Due to their diuretic qualities, radish seed oil was prescribed for centuries to treat kidney stones. The seeds naturally flush and detoxify the kidneys while breaking down oxalic acid clumps and other hardened stones.

Radishes grow quickly under the proper conditions and do not take up much garden space. This makes it possible even in a small garden to experiment with different types and varieties.

Commercial seed companies offer many radish types, although selection may change from year to year. Radish types may have round or icicle shapes; red, pink, green, purple, or black skin; and taste from mild to spicy hot.

Early varieties usually grow best in the cool days of early spring, but some later-maturing varieties can be planted for summer use. The variety French Breakfast holds up and grows better than most early types in summer heat if water is supplied regularly.

Additional sowings of spring types can begin in late summer, to mature in the cooler, more moist days of fall. Winter radishes are sown in midsummer to late summer, similar to fall turnips.

Here a few varieties to try for spring and fall. Burpee White (25 days to harvest; round; smooth white skin), Champion (28 days, large, round, red) Cherry Belle (22 days, round, red), Cherry Queen Hybrid (24 days, deep red, round, slow to become pithy), Early Scarlet Globe (23 days; globe-shaped, small taproot, bright red), Easter Egg (25 days; large, oval; color mix includes reddish purple, lavender, pink, rose, scarlet, white) and Fuego (25 days; round, red; medium tops; resistant to fusarium, tolerant to blackroot/black scurf).

French Breakfast (23 days, oblong red with white tip) and Icicle (25 days, long, slim, tapered white) are good standard varieties as well.

There is quite a big difference if we are talking winter radish varieties. Winter or storage radishes take a lot longer to mature, are much larger, tend to have more spicy or pungent qualities and should be harvested at a considerably larger size. They also hold in the ground or store longer than spring/fall varieties.

China Rose (52 days, white), Chinese White (60 days; large, long, square-shouldered, blunt-tipped, creamy white roots) and Round Black Spanish (55 days; rough, black skin, white flesh) are just a few winter radishes to try.

Daikon are a type of winter oilseed radish that is becoming increasingly popular as a cover crop but is also edible. The word daikon means ‘great root’ in Japanese. Daikon are long, white radishes from Japan which can reach 16 inches or more while holding their texture and flavor.

Tama Hybrid (70 days; daikon type; roots as long as 18 inches, with 3 inch diameter; smooth, white; blunt tip) is a good variety. The long roots of this oilseed radish can penetrate and loosen compacted soils

A fully mature daikon can grow up to about 18 inches long and weighs 5 or 6 pounds. Most winter radishes can be pulled before the ground freezes and stored in moist cold storage for up to several months.

For radishes, sow seed 1/4 to 1/2 inch deep. Thin spring varieties to 1/2 to 1 inch between plants. Winter radishes must be thinned to 2 to 4 inches, or even farther apart to allow for proper development of their larger roots. On beds, radishes may be broadcast lightly and thinned to stand 2 to 3 inches apart in all directions. Similar to other root crops, radishes prefer loose-textured soil. Heavy clay soils tend to produce misshapen roots.

Spring and summer types can also be interplanted among other vegetables, to fill in gaps, as long as they are not shaded out by other plants. Winter types can be planted in garden areas that have already been completely harvested for the year.

Radishes grow well in almost any well-prepared soil that is fertilized before planting and has adequate moisture maintained. Radishes love cooler weather, so slow development makes radishes hot in taste and woody in texture. Root maggots can be a problem in radishes and other root crops and may tunnel into the bulbs.

When radishes are ready to harvest, the top of their pink, swollen stem will often emerge from the soil. Pull radishes when they are of usable size, usually staring when the roots are less than 1 inch in diameter). Smaller radishes are more tender and have a stronger flavor. If you wait too long, radishes begin to get pithy.

Daikon radishes take longer to mature and can snap off easily during harvest, so it’s a good idea to use a fork to loosen the soil before pulling. When stored at 32∂F and high humidity, radishes will keep about four weeks or longer.

Summer and winter radishes are most often eaten raw. If you want to preserve them, radishes are best pickled. Due to the high-water content, summer radishes do not freeze well, and they are not recommended for drying. Looking for more information? Contact me at the Wood County WVU Extension Office 304-424-1960 or my e-mail jj.barrett@mail.wvu.edu with questions. Good Luck and Happy Gardening!

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