If you buy a bunch of radishes with the tops on, you’ll get more greens than roots. Most people chop off the tops and throw them away, but they deserve a place at the table alongside other greens. They are delicious when prepared by wilting.
Radishes are some of the easiest vegetables to grow from seed out in the garden. They are one of the easiest and most rewarding vegetables to grow in a kitchen garden. They grow quickly and are naturally resistant to many common pests, making them a great crop for the first-time gardener and children. Plant during spring, and harvest when the roots are about 3cm in diameter. Then regrow the tops.
Radish greens are low in calories but are a good protein, iron, and potassium source. They are also rich in magnesium, vitamin C, and vitamin K.
To regrow radishes, you’ll follow the same steps used for regrowing other taproots, such as carrots and turnips. You’ll get young radish greens for eating raw or cooked, but not new radishes.
Steps to regrow radishes
Find a good spot for the radish
Radishes benefit from a bright and sunny spot. Water the soil so that it is evenly moist as the radish tops begin to sprout and grow.
Prepare the radish for regrowing
To prepare radish tops for regrowing, use a knife to make a clean cut through the radish leaving only 2cm, plus the top. If the radish has leaves on it, trim or cut off the leaves, being careful to leave to top intact, because otherwise, new ones won’t grow. you can cook and eat radish leaves the same way you’d cook turnip greens.
Plant the radish
Fill the pot with a soilless mix, a sterile potting mix that is less likely to have fungi or bacteria in it that will cause the radishes to rot. Leave about 3cm between the top of the soil and the edge of the pot so that when you water the soil, it does not float up and over the edge of the top. Water the mix so that it is damp.
Plant the cuttings by sticking the radish tops into the soilless mix with the top ends up. Bury the radish pieces about halfway, allowing the tops to stick out of the soil. You can plant radish tops fairly close together, leaving just 3cm or so between pieces.
Harvesting and use
The young leaves of radishes add a delicious peppery flavour to salads and sandwiches. Use as a fresh garnish on soups. When the radishes stop producing leaves, compost the tops.
Radish leaves also make delicious peppery sprouts and micro-greens.
Plants that are not harvested can be left to flower and go to seed, as the flowers attract beneficial insects to the garden.
Enjoy your regrown radishes with your loved ones. You can prepare lots of different dishes with them. Nothing beats the flavour of home-grown food.
