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Post by brownrexx on Jan 13, 2018 11:16:05 GMT -5
I mentioned to spike about using radishes as a cover crop and she had not heard of this so I decided to start a thread.
Many farmers and home gardeners in my area have discovered using daikon radishes as a cover crop to help break up clay soil. I tried this myself two years ago and I liked it. There are varieties of daikon radishes that get especially long and big called tillage radishes. One variety is called Groundhog radish but there are others. If you are interested you can Google "tillage radishes"
The idea is that the radish drills down deep into the soil and brings up nutrients from deep in the soil and deposits them closer to the surface.
The way that the radishes break up clay is that they grow deep into the clay layer and then when the temperature drops below freezing the radishes die and leave channels in the clay which fill in with water. When the water freezes, it pushes the clay apart. The radish plant and the radishes rot away and add organic matter to the soil.
I sowed the radish seeds in my garden in late August when pretty much everything else was done. They grew nicely and covered the entire garden and choked out any weeds. They kept growing and the radishes got huge and started poking out of the soil where I could actually see them. As soon as the temperatures dropped below freezing the plants died and covered the soil with their dead leaves which kept winter and early spring weeds from growing which was an unexpected bonus.
In the spring I just did a little big of hoeing to mix in the plant and radish debris and then planted. I may do this again this year. I really think that it helps and I notice that a lot of farmers in my area have fields of radishes growing right now so they must like it too.
I didn't take a picture of them growing but here is a picture after a heavy frost.
DSC00633 by Brownrexx, on Flickr
DSC00641 by Brownrexx, on Flickr
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Post by hairymooseknuckles on Jan 13, 2018 11:35:56 GMT -5
Very Interesting! I haven't tried radishes, but I have used other cover crops like hairy vetch
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Post by paulf on Jan 13, 2018 13:35:07 GMT -5
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Post by meandtk on Jan 13, 2018 13:51:06 GMT -5
Daikons also taste relatively well, except I need them in small portions. They have an oily taste that is cumulative and becomes unbearble after a few bites.
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Post by brownrexx on Jan 13, 2018 14:48:55 GMT -5
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Post by Gianna on Jan 13, 2018 14:55:39 GMT -5
There are a lot of 'no till'/cover crop videos on YouTube. Tillage radishes are often mentioned, including that rotten egg smell. But if it improves the soil...
There are other varieties of daikon radishes that might be better for eating. I don't much like radishes (super taster strikes again) but have ordered one said to be more mild. And there is a gorgeous purple one I did not get. The eating types probably wont be as effective as a generic daikon in benefiting the soil, but it might do something good. ??
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Post by brownrexx on Jan 13, 2018 15:07:33 GMT -5
The eating type don't get as big and the taproots are not as long as the tillage ones but they still benefit the soil and they taste better.
I tasted the tillage ones and they didn't really have much taste.
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Post by Laura_in_FL on Jan 13, 2018 17:49:00 GMT -5
I am sort of a supertaster, and I like Minowase Daikons. They are mild (little heat) and don't have a strong taste. Minowases are summer/fall radishes, though. If planted when the days are getting longer they will bolt rather than making roots. Plant when the days are getting shorter and they'll do great. They tolerate heat really well, unlike many radishes - hot weather planting is fine, as long as they get enough water. The greens are pretty decent sauteed, especially if grown in cooler months. They (the greens) can be a little spicy, though.
Another trick with radishes is roasting them. When roasted all or nearly all of the heat goes away, and they taste more like turnip roots. So if you like turnip roots, try roasting radishes.
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Post by spacecase0 on Jan 13, 2018 19:32:44 GMT -5
I can't get your link to work is it just me ?
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aqua
Pro Member
Posts: 295
Zone:: 8b9a
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Post by aqua on Jan 14, 2018 9:56:14 GMT -5
This is a very interesting thread; I never thought of all the ways folks overcome soil problems. Just a really good idea.
I have one Cherry Belle radish that is about four inches in diameter, and about six inches out of the ground. It looks like a dark red ear of corn but bigger. I have no idea what it is doing to the soil, or how deep it goes. I am afraid to go near it.
A coworker boils my (normal) radishes in a delicious fish stew; they taste like potatoes.
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Post by paulf on Jan 14, 2018 11:28:39 GMT -5
Space: nope it didn't work when I tried it either. It did when it was posted...sorry.
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Post by hairymooseknuckles on Jan 14, 2018 12:16:34 GMT -5
A coworker boils my (normal) radishes in a delicious fish stew; they taste like potatoes. We pan fry ours with onions for a low Carb (potato like) treat.
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Post by brownrexx on Jan 14, 2018 13:45:24 GMT -5
I have stir fried radishes and they were pretty good.
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Post by Gianna on Jan 16, 2018 21:20:38 GMT -5
Minowases are summer/fall radishes, though. If planted when the days are getting longer they will bolt rather than making roots. Plant when the days are getting shorter and they'll do great. Interesting. So if one were to sow some now, they would bolt?... Do they put that information on the seed packets?
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Post by bestofour on Jan 16, 2018 22:10:47 GMT -5
I think the days are shorter now (maybe) so this would be the time to plant if the ground isn't frozen. If I remember I'm going to try this next year. I used red clover as a cover crop once and it still shows up in places. Big mistake for me.
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Post by Laura_in_FL on Jan 17, 2018 0:06:39 GMT -5
I have had mixed luck sowing Minowase Daikons in January. I've done it twice. The first time they made nice roots before bolting, and the second time they bolted when still tiny. It's possible that the second planting was a bit later in the month but my records aren't detailed enough to be sure.
What I can say for sure is that produce roots consistently for me if I plant them in summer or fall. They do seem to have trouble keeping up with moisture loss from transpiration when it's really hot, though - they need consistent water if planted when it's really hot. They might still wilt in the afternoone, but as long as they recover when the evening cools off, they should turn out okay.
In fact, one of the nicest specimens I ever grew was a volunteer from that first January planting that worked. After the radishes sized up they started to bolt. I harvested most at the first sign of bolting, but I left a few to go to seed. I harvested seeds, but I must have missed some, because in July I had some volunteers, including a sprout in the pathway between my raised beds and one of my rows of Earthboxes. I stepped around that plant for the rest of the summer. I finally dug it (had to dig rather than pull because the pathway dirt was packed) and it was a lovely specimen about 14" long!
All of this is specific to Minowase Daikons, though. Most radishes do well with a spring planting. Unfortunately, the planting information on many vendors' seed packets is pretty generic, so I recommend that you research whichever varieties you want to plant.
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