Radish
Vegetable · cool season
When to plant
- Sow seeds outdoors about 5 weeks before your average last spring frost.
- It can also be grown as a fall crop, timed back from your first fall frost.
- Ready to harvest about 25 days after planting.
- Sow again every 1 week for a steady harvest.
Fast crop; great for marking slow-germinating rows.
Frost dates depend on where you live. Enter your ZIP code to get exact dates.
Dates by zone: 3a 3b 4a 4b 5a 5b 6a 6b 7a 7b 8a 8b 9a 9b 10a 10b
Growing basics
- Sun
- Part sun (4–6 hours)
- Spacing
- 1–2 in
- Soil temperature
- At least 45°F
- Time to harvest
- About 25 days
- Containers
- At least 1 gallons
- Plant family
- Cabbage family (brassicas)
- Harvest per plant
- About 0.05 lb
- Seeds keep
- About 5 years
Companions
Good neighbors: Carrot, Cucumber, Lettuce, Peas
Keep apart: the tomato family (nightshades). Cabbage-family crops and tomatoes compete and can stunt each other.
Keep apart: Horseradish. Horseradish spreads aggressively. Give it its own spot.
Keep apart: Strawberry (June-bearing), Strawberry (everbearing). Cabbage-family crops can stunt strawberries.
Keep apart: Mint. Mint spreads aggressively into neighbors. Keep it in a pot.
Keep apart: Fennel (bulb). Fennel slows the growth of most garden plants. Grow it on its own.
Keep apart: Sunchoke (Jerusalem artichoke). Sunchokes spread aggressively and shade neighbors.
Varieties to try
- Cherry Belle 22 days: classic round red
- French Breakfast 25 days: oblong, mild
- Easter Egg 30 days: mixed colors
Pests and problems
Grow it well
Tips
- Tuck quick crops between slow ones. Radishes, lettuce, and spinach are ready in 4 to 8 weeks, before young tomatoes, squash, or broccoli grow big enough to need the space around them.
- Sow a little every 2 to 3 weeks. Lettuce, radishes, bush beans, carrots, and cilantro all come ready at once. Sow a short row every few weeks for a steady harvest instead of one big glut.
- Plant a fall garden. Kale, spinach, lettuce, carrots, and radishes sown in late summer grow well in cool weather, and many taste sweeter after a light frost.
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