How to Fertilize Radishes? Detailed Guide to the Correct Methods and Techniques

The radish is one of the world's ancient cultivated crops and is widely grown throughout the world. So how should radishes be fertilized?

1. How to fertilize radishes?

1. Fertilizing white radishes

(1) Base fertilizer: The type and amount of base fertilizer often vary with the soil and variety. Generally, for every 667 sq m, 2500-3000 kg of rotted barnyard manure, 50 kg of plant ash, and 25-30 kg of superphosphate may be broadcast, then plowed into the soil; afterward, 2500-3000 kg of human feces and urine is applied, and once dried, it is plowed into the soil, raked level, and formed into beds. In many northern regions, when applying farmyard manure, adding a certain amount of cake fertilizer can make the fleshy root tissues more solid and reduce the tendency to become hollow during storage.

(2) Topdressing: The first topdressing for white radishes is applied when the seedlings grow 2 true leaves, by applying dilute human feces and urine between the rows. The second topdressing is applied at the second thinning, using 5 kg of potassium sulfate. When the plants enter the vigorous leaf growth stage, a quick-acting nitrogen fertilizer should be broadcast once; when they enter the peak stage of fleshy root enlargement, a compound fertilizer needs to be applied as topdressing. Within 20 days before harvest, broadcast once a week, and continuously spray 0.2% potassium dihydrogen phosphate 2 times for foliar topdressing.

2. Fertilizing carrots

(1) Base fertilizer: There are two application methods for carrot base fertilizer: broadcasting and trenching. All solid fertilizers should be mixed evenly with fine soil before application. Fertilization has a considerable effect on the shape of the fleshy root. When the amount of chemical fertilizer is high and organic fertilizer is low, the proportion of deformed roots increases significantly; applying more rotted organic fertilizer as base fertilizer can reduce the formation of deformed fleshy roots.

(2) Topdressing: In addition to base fertilizer, carrots also need 2-3 topdressings. The first is 20-25 days after emergence, after 3-4 true leaves have grown, applying 5-6 kg of ammonium sulfate and 3-4 kg of potassium fertilizer per 667 sq m. The second topdressing is carried out after the carrots are thinned to a stand, using 7-8 kg of ammonium sulfate and 4-5 kg of potassium fertilizer per 667 sq m. The third topdressing is at the peak stage of root enlargement, with the same amount as the second topdressing. Besides chemical fertilizers, rotted human feces and urine can also be used, at 1000-2000 kg per 667 sq m. The topdressing method can be either applying it with irrigation water or mixing human feces and urine with water and sprinkling it on.

When fertilizing radishes, the specific approach should mainly be based on factors such as the soil fertility of the planting site, the radish variety, and the production environment. The values above can only be used as a reference and should not be blindly applied.