How Do Radish Seeds Germinate? Planting Methods and Sowing Times
Radish is a biennial or annual herbaceous plant of the genus Raphanus in the Brassicaceae family, mainly divided into Chinese radish and four-season radish, and is cultivated in all regions. So how do its seeds germinate? How do you plant it? When do you plant it? It is understood that different types of radish also have different sowing times. Autumn-winter radish type: the commonly cultivated type in China. Sown in late summer and early autumn, harvested in late autumn and early winter; 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. In northern Guangdong and western Guangdong, the best winter sowing time is early November, in central Guangdong mid-November, in the Pearl River Delta late November, and in coastal areas it can be at the end of November, no later than late December; spring-summer radish type: commonly grown in China. Relatively cold-tolerant, with strong winter habit, and a relatively short growing period, generally 45-60 days, sown in February to March, harvested from April to early June. In the Huang-Huai-Hai region, sown in March to April, harvested from early May to June. In high-latitude, high-altitude areas such as Northeast China, Northwest China and northern North China, sown in April to May, harvested in June to July; summer-autumn radish type: cultivated more in areas south of the Yellow River basin in China, often used as an off-season vegetable in summer and autumn. Sown in May to June, harvested in July to August.
How do radish seeds germinate?
Carrot seeds are different from ordinary vegetable seeds: their surface is covered with a layer of bristles, and soaking the seeds in hydrogen peroxide solution gives better results.
1. Soaking time: Put the prepared 25% hydrogen peroxide solution in a container, pour in carrot seeds with the bristles rubbed off, stirring with a wooden stick while pouring, and soak for 30~50 minutes.
2. Seed germination: After soaking, remove the seeds from the hydrogen peroxide solution, then rinse them with clean water 3~4 times, draining the water while rinsing. After draining, place them in a container, cover with a damp cloth and keep warm to germinate. If the seeds are moderately mature and plump, generally more than 85% of the seeds will germinate in 7~8 days, and full emergence can be achieved 5 days after sowing.
3. Precautions: First, before soaking the seeds, choose a sunny day to sun-dry the seeds.
Second, use a chlorothalonil solution to sterilize the seeds that have already been soaked and germinated. Third, seeds that have been soaked, germinated and sterilized should be sown promptly, and the soil is required to be moist. Fourth, after sowing, cover with 0.5~1 cm of soil and press lightly, then use a cover to shade the sun; when 10%~15% of the seedlings have emerged, remove the cover.
How do you plant radish seeds?
1. Land preparation and fertilization: Choose the cultivation plot according to the different varieties. Generally, large varieties of radish with deep-growing roots should be planted in relatively deep soil, while small and medium-sized varieties should be planted in plots with shallower soil layers. The land for planting radish must be deeply plowed and turned multiple times early on, with clods broken up and raked level, and the plowing depth should be more than 26—40cm. For bed making, use deep furrows and high beds to facilitate drainage.
While preparing the land, apply base fertilizer containing Jinbaobei microbial bacterial fertilizer. Radish fertilization should be mainly base fertilizer, with topdressing as a supplement. The base fertilizer should be mainly organic fertilizer, applying 3000~4000kg of decomposed barnyard manure per mu, or 150kg of rapeseed cake per mu plus 25kg of compound fertilizer, crushed and mixed, then applied in strips in the center of the bed.
2. Sowing: Large varieties use dibbling, medium varieties use drilling, and small varieties use broadcasting. For dibbling, the hole spacing is 15~30cm square, sowing 5~10 seeds per hole, with a sowing rate of 250~500g per mu; for drilling, the sowing rate is 500~750g per mu; for broadcasting, the sowing rate is about 1000~1500g per mu. After sowing, cover the seeds with decomposed residue fertilizer thoroughly mixed with garden soil at 1:1. If the soil is dry, irrigate promptly to facilitate emergence. Check and replant 4~5d after sowing to ensure full stands.
3. Thinning (that is, removing poor, mixed and weak seedlings): Thinning is carried out 2~3 times to gradually expand the growing space of the seedlings, and finally thin to the required spacing according to the different varieties.
4. Cultivation and weeding: During the seedling stage, cultivation should not be too deep; during the peak growth period of the fleshy root, loosen the soil as little as possible, and strictly avoid bruising the root crown and true root, which can cause forked roots, cracked roots and rot. For autumn-winter radish, carry out timely cultivation and weeding so that the soil is kept loose, clean and free of weeds, preventing soil compaction.
5. Irrigation: For autumn-winter radish, temperatures are high before and after emergence, so water lightly and frequently, giving a small watering once every evening. Control irrigation before final thinning to promote the elongation of the taproot.