Radish – Vegetable garden

Radish is a vegetable that is consumed for its health benefits. Radish laves are also eaten. In fact, it is the leaves that are more nutritious than the radish itself. Radish leaves have lots of health benefits and consuming them protects your body from various illnesses.Radish leaves are rich in Vitamin C, B complex, zinc and phosphorous. All these are great for the skin. They can help in treating rashes and skin that is dry and chapped. It also reduces the signs of aging on the skin and keeps your skin young and glowing.Growing radishes is the perfect choice for a child’s first garden. They are very easy to grow and develop in just a few weeks. Once you know how to grow radishes, you’ll want to keep a bed of them in rotation all year round as weather permits in order to enjoy their crisp, spicy goodness.

Scientific Name: Raphanus sativus
Common Name: Radish

How to grow and maintain radish:

Sowing:
Radishes can be sown early, as soon as the ground conditions allow, usually in March. Because they develop so quickly, repeat sowings will be essential if a continuous supply is required. It is best to sow just a few seeds at a time. Sowing can continue into late summer, and the winter kinds are sown in July for winter use.

soil:
Being a quick-growing crop, radishes needs full open sunshine and good soil conditions. It was originally probably a seaside plant and it still likes light, open soil, fertile but not too rich. If the soil is too rich the centre of the radishes can be soft.

Planting:
Radish seeds are tiny, so you may scatter the seeds over the prepared soil or use a special seeding tool to individually place the seeds. After germination, you can thin seedlings to ½ to 2 inches apart, depending on the variety. For best results, brush ¼-inch soil over the surface of the seeds. Keep the pot evenly moist and place it where it is sheltered from high wind and gets at least six hours of sunlight.

Weeding and watering:
Be sure to control weeds as soon as the radish seedlings appear above ground, which can be within a few days of sowing. Watering may be needed, especially in summer, because drought and heat can cause ‘blasting’.

Harvesting:
Radishes should be used as soon as they are big enough, because they will come in a rush. The winter kinds stand outdoors except in a sharp frost and can be used as needed. Radish is a member of the cabbage family and can suffer form cabbage root flies, especially crops standing outdoors and this factor should be watched.

Pests & Diseases:
The worst invader of the radish patch is the root maggot. Luckily, this pest is easily avoided with a proper crop rotation. Never plant radishes in a bed that contained a cole crop in the last three years. If you incorporate plenty of wood ashes in the soil, the maggots shouldn’t present a problem.Radishes are virtually disease-free. Long radishes sometimes develop black root that produces dark spots at the bottom of the roots. If this is a persistent problem in your garden, grow only the round radish varietie