How to Grow Radishes? A Detailed Guide to Scientific Cultivation Techniques

Although radishes, as a vegetable, are not very often stir-fried, and stir-fried radishes taste quite ordinary, apart from stir-frying, radishes can also be stewed, served as a cold dressed dish, or made into pickled vegetables and so on, and in this way, radish sales are by no means small.

Scientific Radish Cultivation Techniques

1. Land preparation and fertilisation: radish cultivation should not be continuous cropping with cruciferous vegetables; plough deeply and turn the soil several times, and at the same time apply sufficient base fertiliser, applying 37,000 to 45,000 kg of decomposed organic fertiliser, 1,200 kg of plant ash, 375 to 450 kg of superphosphate and 750 kg of diammonium phosphate per hectare.

2. Timely sowing: the sowing time for radishes depends on the characteristics of the variety and market demand. The suitable sowing time for autumn-winter radishes is from late July to early August, and spring radishes can be sown from late February to early April. The sowing rate varies with planting density, generally 3 to 6 kg per hectare.

3. Timely thinning: radish cultivation generally involves the first thinning when the first true leaf unfolds, and by the time of the great root swelling, one healthy seedling with the characteristics of the variety is selected and kept, while other weak plants can be thinned out.

4. Reasonable watering: during the germination stage the soil moisture content should be above 90%, during the seedling stage the soil moisture content should be around 60%, the leaf growth stage requires a lot of water, during the root growth stage the soil moisture should be maintained at 70 to 80%, and in the late root growth stage watering should still be appropriate to prevent hollow heart.

Radish Varieties

1. Autumn-winter radish type: a commonly cultivated type in China. Sown in late summer and early autumn, harvested in late autumn and early winter, with a growing period of 60-100 days. According to skin colour and use, it can be divided into different variety groups such as red-skinned, green, white-skinned, and green-skinned with red heart. Representative varieties include Xuecheng Changhong, Jinan Qingyuancui, Shijiazhuang White Radish, Beijing Xinlimei and Chenghai Baisha Huochetou.

2. Winter-spring radish type: grown in areas south of the Yangtze River in China and in Sichuan Province and other regions where winters are not too cold. Cold-resistant, strongly winter-hardy, and not prone to pithiness. Representative varieties include Chengdu Chunbulao Radish, Hangzhou Jianqiao Dahongying Radish and Chenghai Nanpanzhou Wan Radish.

3. Spring-summer radish type: commonly grown in China. Relatively cold-resistant, with strong winter hardiness and a relatively short growing period, generally 45-60 days. Improper sowing time or cultivation management can easily lead to premature bolting. Representative varieties include Beijing Paozhutong, Penglai Spring Radish and Nanjing Wuyuehong.

4. Summer-autumn radish type: cultivated more in areas south of the Yellow River basin in China, often grown as an off-season vegetable in summer and autumn. Relatively moisture-tolerant and heat-tolerant, with a growing period of 50-70 days. Representative varieties include Hangzhou Xiaogoubai and Guangzhou Lazhu Dun.

5. Four-season radish: small leaves, thin leaf stalks, much fuzz, a relatively small fleshy root and extremely early maturing, suitable for eating raw and for pickling. Mainly distributed in Europe, especially commonly cultivated in western Europe; the United States and other countries have introduced it for cultivation, and China and Japan also grow small amounts. Four-season radish varieties cultivated in China include Nanjing Yanghua Radish, Shanghai Xiao Hong Radish and Yantai Hongding.

Radish Harvesting Techniques

I. Harvesting standards

1. When the leaf colour turns pale and the underground stem has fully expanded, harvest in good time;

2. Require uniform size, no fibrous roots, no mud, no forking, no deformities, no pithiness, no wounds and no grey heart;

3. Because consumer markets in different regions have different requirements for radish size, harvesting standards also differ. Some regions want radishes of more than two jin, while others want radishes of less than two jin, so the size standard for harvesting should be determined according to market demand.

II. Pre-cooling and transport: pre-cool in a cold store (2-4°C) for about 10 hours, then load with insulation for transport to market.

Radish Storage Methods

1. Soil pit storage method: cut off the tops of fresh radishes, remove the fibrous roots, and strictly discard radishes with insect damage, mechanical injury, cracks, or those that are too small. Dig a soil pit 1 m square, place the radishes with roots up and tops down, leaning diagonally against the pit wall and packed tightly in order. After arranging one layer of radishes, sprinkle a layer of clean soil about 10 cm thick, and alternate the layers in this way for a total of four layers. If the pit soil is too dry, spray a suitable amount of water to moisten it. After the last layer is arranged, gradually thicken the soil layer according to weather changes: cover with less soil when the weather is warm, and cover with more soil when a strong cold wave comes. Finish covering with soil around Minor Cold, with a total soil thickness of 1 m. Good-quality radishes that are not exposed to heat before being put into the pit and are not frozen after being put in can be stored until early March of the following year.

2. Mud slurry storage method: cut off the tops of the radishes and roll them once in yellow mud slurry so that the radishes form a shell of mud, then simply pile them in a cool place. If a layer of wet soil is also added around the radish pile, the effect is even better. Storage method outside a water vat: place a water vat indoors, fill it with water, pile the radishes around the vat, and then add a 15 cm thick layer of wet soil on top.

Faced with good market sales, growing radishes is also a project for becoming prosperous. Although the market price of radishes is not high, once radish cultivation reaches a certain scale, and at the same time the yield and quality of the radishes are reliable, the returns that small radishes can bring are also quite considerable.