Daikon cost a lot, but by growing daikon radish at home you can save yourself some money and improve your soil. Our guide shares how!Want a vegetable that is good for you and your garden? Growing daikon radish is the answer. Known for its long, icicle-like appearance and large flourishing leaves, a crop of daikon not only provides you and yours with healthy nutrients in a mild flavor profile but also breaks up compacted ground in your garden.
Daikon radishes, or Raphanus sativus var. longipinnatus, were first cultivated in East Asia — specifically Northern China. There are varieties native to Japan, India, Malaysia, and even Singapore. Today, Chinese radishes are used across cultures and continents as a comestible, and also as a cover crop to improve garden health. The taproot can dive deep into compacted soil and break it up for future crops.
Generally, daikon radishes are 1-2 pounds each. The biggest recorded daikon to date was grown in Kagoshima City, Japan, and weighed about 73 pounds! It was also over two feet wide! This particular variety, called Sakurajima, grows copiously in the volcanic region.
What is thought of as a typical variety of daikon doesn’t have the same shape, however, as the Sakurajima. Most varieties are cylindrical and have white skin, although there are many varieties with completely different characteristics. Leaves grow from the top of the root and can be eaten as well. It is consumed fresh, pickled, or cooked into soups and other dishes.
Daikon radishes are not hard to produce. Grow daikon in almost any region at the right time. After they have been planted and have a chance to loosen your garden bed, find you can put many other nightshades in their place.