The Cracked Pot

Easter Egg Radishes

I’m about to break the number one cardinal sin of blogging: I’m going to tell you what I’m having for lunch, and I’m assuming you actually care.

This spring I planted a neat little row of Easter Egg radishes in my veg patch and >KABOOM< they are performing beautifully and practically jumping out of the ground right now.

Easter Egg radishes are a nice multi-coloured mix you can get from companies like West Coast Seeds, so you can grow purple, red, pink and white radishes all in the same row. When fully grown, they take on a slightly oblong shape, so you can see where they get they name.

Fresh home grown radishes are unlike any store bought variety I’ve ever tried. While still a bit spicy tasting, they are tender and sweet and you can pop them in your mouth and eat them straight out of the ground. With a little brush off, that is. If you’re one of those “radishes in a potato salad” types, they make a very attractive topping if you slice them and mix up the colours on top. Oooh, aaah.

Overall, radishes are one of the easiest and fastest crops to grow in the home garden. They are great for beginners and a must for the impatient gardener- they are our yearly reminder that yes, our gardens will grow if we just give them some time.

To grow, simply sprinkle your seeds in a row and cover loosely with soil. Weed, water, wait. They will germinate in about a week’s time, and they should be ready to eat in about 4-6 weeks, depending on your soil. If you’re tight on space, you can plant them in the same row with a slower growing root crop like carrots or parsnips. They will be ready to harvest before the other seeds start to take up any space, just be sure you plant them thinly enough that the other seeds still get some light through the leafy radish tops.

I’ve also got some other goodies growing nicely in my little veg boxes this year alongside the radishes: carrots, peas, parsnips, beans and mixed lettuces. I planted the Super Gourmet Salad Blend from West Coast seeds this year, along with Merlot a super dark and vibrant red variety of lettuce. I had a little sample tonight- they are all sweet, tender and brilliantly coloured at the moment.

And there just enough to use for lunch tomorrow, so I wandered around the garden at sunset tonight and pulled up just enough radishes, and snapped off just enough lettuce for a couple of salads for me and boyf for lunch tomorrow, and then shared some extras with my next door neighbour. Of course.

I would have to say though, this has been the best year for me with raddishes because I had the pleasure of starting with fresh new dirt that’s comprised of about 25% river sand in my veg patch. The soil is loose and rich- perfect for root crops.

Here’s to the spring crop harvest. Bon appetite!

Tags: easter egg, Radishes