Growing Radishes

• They are an ideal vegetable for the amateur allotment gardener, suited to most soil types, rapidly reaching maturity and extremely happy growing amongst taller vegetables. 
• Radish seed is also very economical.
• Radishes are also an excellent way to introduce children to gardening - buy a pack of mixed radish seeds in April, sow them early in the month and radishes in a variety of shapes and sizes will be ready May.

• Radishes like sun, but at the same time like cool conditions. 
• If they are grown in full sun during the summer, they will run to seed or bolt very quickly. 
• For this reason they are ideally suited to as a growing companion to other vegetables such as peas or beans. 
• In spring and late autumn when radishes need the sun most, the peas or beans will be short or have been cut down, whereas in the hotter summer months, they will provide welcome shade for your radishes. 
• There is no need to restrict them to being vegetable companions - they will grow equally well amongst deciduous shrubs (such as roses) and annuals (such as sweet peas). 
• Soil conditions for radish are simple; a very well-dug soil to a depth of 15cm (6in) with no stones or fresh compost in it. 
• At the time of digging, add two handfuls of bonemeal per square metre (yard) and work it into the topsoil. The bonemeal will encourage good root growth.
• The soil preparation should ideally be complete a month before sowing, but it makes very little difference if it is done at sowing time.

• Use a rake to break up the soil, creating a fine "tilth" (surface soil that's ready to plant). 
• Mark out a row with garden twine and stakes, creating a channel (the correct gardening word is a "drill") around 1cm-1.5cm deep. 
• Sow your radish seeds thinly in this drill, cover with soil and firm.
• If you're planting more than one row, position them 15cm apart. Don't forget to label your rows. 
• Sow small amounts of radish seed but often to ensure a continuous supply rather than a glut at one time - radishes do not keep well in the soil once they are mature. 
• For summer varieties, begin sowing in mid-April and continue at three week intervals to September.
• Where cloche protection is available, sowing can commence in March. 
• For winter varieties, begin sowing at the end of July at three week intervals to September.
• Radish are very well suited to growing in containers. They can be sown between other crops which will protect them from the harsh summer sun. They will prefer a loam based compost such as John Innes. Ensure they are kept well-watered in dry conditions.

• Under normal conditions, the first seedlings appear in less than a week. After around 10 days, you should have a row of fair-sized seedlings.
• All young plants need room to breathe in order to develop properly. Once they're big enough to handle (usually 10-14 days), examine the row of seedlings and identify strong-looking plants around 2.5cms apart. 
• Remove the weaker ones, taking care not to disturb your target seedlings. Don't forget to water the young plants. 
• If you're experiencing wet weather, there's no need to get your watering can out. But, during dry spells, you'll need to water them at least once a week. 
• Attach a fine sprinkler head to your watering can, to avoid washing away the seedlings before you get a chance to eat them.
• Your radish plants require almost no attention once past the seedling stage - their main requirement is a reasonable supply of water. 
• If radishes don't like being crowded out by their own kind, they certainly don't take kindly to competing with weeds for precious resources. 
• Keeping weeds down is about more than just making your vegetable plot look tidy. Every weed in the ground is hogging nutrition that could be going towards making your veggies big and strong. 
• Use a hoe to chop up young weeds before they can take hold. 
• If you're confronted with a deep-rooted weed, use a trowel or hand fork to dig deep and remove the whole plant, including the root. 
• Don't put deep-rooted weeds into your own compost: they'll cause problems if you do.
• Do not apply any additional fertiliser to summer or winter radishes, their needs are minimal. 
• Sometimes birds take a liking to to radish seedlings, however once past the seedling stage, they leave them alone. 

• Summer radishes should be harvested when they are crisp and young, normally about five weeks after sowing - consult the seed packet. 
• If they are left in the ground past maturity they will go peppery and the texture will quickly loose its crispness. 
• If you have too many at any one, give them to friends because they do not freeze well and will only last five days or so in the fridge.
• The larger winter radish plant takes about 3 to 4 months to mature, but they have been bred to remain in good condition left in the soil for another three or four weeks past maturity. 
• Alternatively, they can be harvested, placed in sand and kept in a cool dark place for a month or so.