Horseradish is a multi-purpose edible perennial that is absolutely ideal for a natural garden. It is cold tolerant and is planted in late fall or early spring.
This plant belongs to the cruciferous family and is thus related to cruciferous vegetables. An interesting fact is that the horseradish root grows in cold weather, and the best-tasting roots have experienced several frosts.
Above the ground, horseradish sends out coarse, oblong, dark green leaves that can be up to 1 meter in height. However, its greatest strength is underground. In loose and nutritious soil, its thick root can be up to three meters long.
Tip: If you put a flat stone under the horseradish plant to a depth of about 50 cm, it will quickly develop a thick root suitable for harvesting.
Young horseradish leaves are edible, the root is a great spice, rooting horseradish under fruit trees can reduce the incidence of fungal diseases.
How to get it in the garden?
You can find horseradish seedlings quite commonly in better garden centers among the herbs. But in terms of price, seedlings cost around 120 CZK, which is quite a lot. So let’s look at growing horseradish from store-bought root. Although it is the last option, it is very accessible and interesting in terms of price.
Own horseradish step by step:
- Get horseradish root from the store. Most often you can find it wrapped in foil between vegetables. In terms of price, you can buy a fairly large root for around 20 CZK. You can often find roots that are already sprouting their first leaves. As a seed, these horseradish are absolutely ideal.
- Prepare a garden substrate and a planter, or a deeper flower pot. Horseradish needs soil rich in nutrients. If you mix the substrate, use 50% compost and 50% garden soil.
- Carefully remove the plastic from the root, cut it into approximately 5 centimeter pieces and plant it vertically in the planter so that it is completely hidden in the soil.
- Water and, if necessary, add the substrate so that the root is under the ground.
- Lightly submerge the planter prepared in this way into the soil in the flower bed and leave it outside over the winter. Natural rain will suffice as far as moisture is concerned, and frost will not damage the roots.
Feel free to do it!
About the author
The road from the city led Tomáš Trejbal to the natural garden. He builds his, beautiful and sustainable, with great passion.
You could find this article in the magazine Recipe No. 01/26.
