How to Propagate Radishes From Grocery Store Radishes
The humble radish has an illustrious history. The ancient Greeks made offerings of radishes on golden plates to the god Apollo. In medieval Europe, the radish was believed to cure madness, remove warts, exorcise demons, and detect witches. The radish is a member of the Brassicaceae family, along with green-leaf vegetables such as cabbage and broccoli. Although the traditional method of propagating radishes is by planting commercial seeds, it is also possible to propagate them from young plants. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
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Fill a water-tight container two-thirds with fresh potting soil. Gently firm the soil with your hands to remove air pockets. Flatten the surface, and water the soil to make it moist.
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Purchase fresh, firm, healthy-looking, young radishes from the grocery store. Choose plants that were picked in the last 24 hours. Avoid old, dry specimens that have already reached maturity.
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Hold a radish upright on the surface of the soil, and add more soil around it until only the top third of the radish is visible. Remove all the leaves from the vegetable, taking care not to damage the rest of the plant.
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Place the container in a warm, bright location. Keep the soil moist, but not wet. Within a day or two, new leaves will start to emerge. If well cared for, the radish will increase in size until it matures. The radish may eventually produce a flowering shoot, in which case, you can save the seeds to grow more radishes.
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Tips & Warnings
Standard or heirloom varieties of radish are best because their seeds produce plants identical to the parent plant. Ask the grocery store staff for these, or non-hybrid varieties.
Damaged, dried-out, or withered radishes are unlikely to survive and produce seeds.
References
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Comstock/Getty Images
