Daikon - Japanese guest
Often gardeners, having tried to grow daikon, are disappointed with the result. There is no need to blame the plant: it is very difficult for an overseas guest who comes to us from Japan to adapt to unfamiliar geographical and climatic conditions. Since you have decided to invite him to your site, be a hospitable host, try to help the stranger get comfortable in the new place.
Daikon is unpretentious to soil quality, you just need to choose the right variety.
Russian breeders have developed varieties adapted to long daylight hours, characteristic of most regions of our country. Daikon Sasha counts resistant to arrow formation, although in practice this quality does not always manifest itself. But the early ripening of this variety allows it to be grown without the longest days.
To avoid daikon bolting, Seeds should be planted either in early spring or late summer. If you live north of 55°, then when planting in spring, root crops will not form, the plant will bloom immediately. In central Russia, spring sowing of seedlings must be done in the beginning of April. In a month, the plants can be planted in a well-insulated greenhouse under film tunnels. If you are going to grow daikon in open ground, on warm days it is advisable to keep the boxes with seedlings on a glassed-in loggia.
When the spring frosts end, the seedlings can be planted in the beds. Daikon is a heat-loving plant, so at air temperature below +10° C plantings must be covered with film or covering material.
To get a good harvest, give root vegetables enough space for development. Both in the greenhouse and outside the distance between the rows there must be 60–70 cm, A between plants – 20–25 cm.
The daikon root goes deep into the ground, so the soil is dug up to a depth of at least 25 cm. When developing beds, add compost And complex fertilizers, and in acidic soils – lime. To help large root crops grow and develop, under each plant a drill makes a hole 50 cm deep, which is filled with fertile soil. Before planting, the bed needs to be well moisten.
If you are going to use individual specimens for seed, make sure that there were no other types of cruciferous plants nearby, otherwise they may cross-pollinate, and instead of daikon you will get an incomprehensible hybrid.
Autumn planting has its pros and cons. Such plants don't bloom, in addition, for their planting you can use the land freed up after harvesting other crops. The disadvantage of this method is that the root crops do not have time to reach their maximum size, therefore productivity decreases.
In central Russia, sowing of daikon needs to be completed at the beginning of August. The beds are prepared in the same way as for spring planting. The only difference: the land depleted by early crops needs to be added more nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizers.
When planting seeds in the garden 2-3 seeds are placed in each hole. When real leaves appear, the excess plants are removed, leaving one specimen in each nest. After thinning the planting, you need feed complex fertilizer.
Basic plant care is weeding, watering And loosening. If the soil is fertile, fertilizing may not be done. To allow more air to reach the root crops, the ground between them is pierced with a pitchfork. Daikon is demanding of moisture, you need to water it generously, But do not over-moisten to avoid mucous bacteriosis.
As they grow, the tops of the root crops begin to peek out of the ground; in some varieties, up to a third of the edible part is exposed to the air. So that the crop does not lose its nutritional and taste qualities, plants spud up.
The main pests of daikon:
If daikon grows in the fresh air, with the onset of cold weather you should cover him film and non-woven material.
40–70 days after planting, it’s time to harvest. You only need to do this work in dry weather so that the soil stuck to the root crops dries in the air and comes off easily.
The peculiarity of daikon is that even slightly damaged root vegetables cannot be stored. To harvest without loss, plants pulled out of the ground by the tops. If heavy soil holds the root firmly, you can use a pitchfork.
After cleaning you need separate damaged roots, which should be used first, from whole. Select plants intended for seeds, and cut off their tops, leaving petioles 10 cm long. It is better to use the harvest of spring sowing for this purpose, then in the fall you will receive new seed. Seed root vegetables are needed keep in the refrigerator for 10 days, and then plant it obliquely in the ground where the daikon will grow until the seeds are completely ripe.
The harvest intended for storage is placed in boxes, pouring each layer wet sand, and put it in the cellar. Instead of sand, root vegetables can be transferred moss. At a temperature from 0 to +1° C Daikon stays fresh until February. To prevent vegetables from becoming flabby, sand or moss must be kept moist.
Growing an exotic vegetable is not easy, but at the table your efforts will be appreciated by children, elderly relatives, and people with stomach diseases - everyone for whom hot radish is contraindicated will happily taste the tender, juicy daikon.
Daikon is a root vegetable that came to us from Japan. Being a hybrid of radish and radish, it has occupied a worthy niche in the consumer basket.
High nutritional value, shelf life (about 3 months without loss of quality), stability in the harvest (from 1 square meter - 5-10 kg of high-quality fruits) - factors that appeal to any farmer.
In height, daikon, otherwise called “Japanese radish”, reaches an average of half a meter with a weight of ½ kilogram and looks like a giant carrot. It is recommended to use the fruits fresh, salted or boiled. In addition to the roots, young leaves of the plant are eaten, especially in non-hairy species. The vegetable has a juicy, delicate taste; the inherent bitterness of radish is absent.
When to plant daikon in open ground is the question that primarily worries those who want to plant such an overseas fruit on their plot. And they are really worth getting. After all, daikon contains a concentrated mass of useful microelements, antioxidants, vitamins, and enzymes that ensure the proper functioning of the body. The potassium salts contained are able to remove excess water from the body; calcium, fiber, vitamin C and pectin substances normalize digestion. Daikon has antimicrobial and antiviral effects, while organizing effective cleansing of the body. The growth of bacteria is inhibited by substances such as glycosides, phytoncides, and specific protein components of complex structure. Daikon, like horseradish and radish, helps to effectively cleanse the liver and kidneys, as well as dissolve stones in them. Unlike its counterparts, daikon does not contain mustard oils, which add pungency to the taste and have a stimulating effect on the heart. Such vegetable bitterness is not recommended in large quantities, especially for older people. Therefore, daikon is an excellent analogue of a domestic product.
In Japan, it is the main vegetable crop, under which large areas are occupied: of the 635 thousand hectares intended for planting vegetables, 70 thousand are occupied by daikon. When to plant this interesting vegetable, already loved by domestic consumers? By the way, more than 2.6 million tons of daikon in Japan, which is included in the daily menu of every Japanese, are consumed annually.
So, exotic daikon radish. When to plant this vegetable and in what time frame? Is there a specific agricultural technique for caring for this crop, or can you adhere to some general rules for planting and cultivating it? Despite its unusual appearance compared to domestic radishes and radishes, daikon does not require the use of any special agrotechnical measures. This completely unpretentious crop is cultivated on any soil. If it is grown on an industrial scale, it is recommended to plant it on light, well-fertilized soil, which is optimal for harvesting the plant; This is especially true for deep-planted varieties: Ninengo and Nerima. Acidic soils should be neutralized with lime.
When to plant daikon radish in open ground? Planting takes place in July; when growing for greens, the dates can be shifted to a later time. Some gardeners may say that July is a long month and consists of 31 days. Therefore, I would like to be more specific about the timing and get an exact answer to the question: “When to plant daikon in July?” Planting takes place at the beginning of the month, in its first week.
The beds intended for sowing should be small with a half-meter row spacing. It is recommended to pre-soak daikon seeds for a day, waiting for them to hatch. Japanese radish is sown in the same way as radishes, the distance between the seeds is left in accordance with the planned size of the future fruit. 2-3 grains are placed in the nest; It is recommended to thin out the young shoots that appear (after 5-7 days) with true leaves, leaving a stronger plant in the nest. The rest need to be either removed or transplanted into other holes.
There seems to be nothing complicated that could lead to a refusal to plant such an interesting crop as daikon. It’s clear when to plant: it’s July. Moreover, Japanese radish can be grown as a secondary crop after harvesting the first harvest of green onions, lettuce, and dill. If all planting dates are observed, the output will be a high-quality succulent crop, which will be very useful in salads in winter, giving them a specific taste and original appearance.
When to plant daikon in open ground is, in principle, clear. The question arises of how to properly care for it and what agrotechnical measures to carry out. Daikon requires deep weeding (approximately 2-3 times per season), aimed at ensuring oxygen access into the soil. This operation is required to form a large root crop with a dense structure. An important element of care is feeding with soluble, easily digestible fertilizers. Watering should be regular, but not excessive. Excess moisture can lead to root rot in the soil.
It is impossible to fertilize the soil at the site where the daikon is planted with manure, even half-rotted manure. This gives the radish an ugly shape and a mediocre, neutral taste. Also, daikon will not be stored well and will be more susceptible to disease. Therefore, it is better to limit yourself to the application of mineral fertilizers.
When to plant and when to harvest Japanese radish on domestic lands? An important factor is the variety of daikon; The average harvest time is one and a half to two months after sowing. On light soils, vegetables are pulled out by the tops; on heavy soils, you should use a shovel to dig up the roots. This is done in dry weather; It is recommended to immediately sort and sort the dug up root vegetables, discarding damaged vegetables.
Many vegetable growers, when growing daikon, often encounter such a problem as the plant quickly throwing out arrows and flowering. There can be no talk of obtaining a full-fledged root crop from this specimen. What is the reason for this failure? In this case, we are talking about the biological characteristics of the plant, its reaction to the length of daylight hours. Belonging to the cruciferous family, daikon, like other root vegetables, is a long-day plant (15-17 hours), during which rapid development of flowers and fruits occurs, and the formation of root vegetables is delayed.
With decreasing daylight hours (13-15 hours), starting from the second half of summer, favorable conditions are created for day group plants for the development of root crops while the reproductive stage of development (flowering and fruiting) is inhibited.
The temperature factor when growing daikon also plays its own, sometimes negative, role. When sowing is early, which many gardeners are sometimes in a hurry to do, much more bolting specimens are observed than those sown in the summer. This is influenced by low spring temperatures, combined with the length of daylight hours. Based on the above, it becomes clear when to plant daikon in the middle zone to avoid crop losses. This is summer, end of June - beginning of July.
It is best to store daikon in boxes with sand in the cellar at a temperature of +1 to -5 degrees, in plastic bags or in the refrigerator. To avoid the formation of white rot on root crops, the latter should be stored at a temperature no higher than +3 degrees.
Nevertheless, even if all planting dates and growing conditions for daikon are observed, it is worth taking into account its varietal characteristics. Some varieties respond strongly to daylight hours, others weakly, and others neutrally. There are more than 400 varieties of daikon in Japan; the most suitable for domestic territories are:
When to plant daikon in the middle zone? Late June - early July. With such planting dates, varieties tested in middle zone conditions will give excellent yields. In particular, daikon TsukusHaru, Daikushin, Green Neck Miyashige will be given from 1 sq. meter more than 10 kg of beautiful juicy root vegetables, Harueshi, Bluesky, Harutsuge and Daishi will delight you with 7.5-9.5 kg of vegetables per 1 square meter, Tokinashi variety - 6 kg/sq.m. At the same time, the average weight of most root vegetables reaches 2-3.5 kg. In Japan, for example, the Sakurajima variety is capable of producing root crops weighing 20-40 kg.
When to plant daikon and black radish? When sowing in spring (in the first ten days of May), the root crops will be smaller than during summer planting, and many plants will go into arrows. However, even specimens that have sprouted do not lose their taste, the fruits do not undergo strong lignification, and their taste remains juicy. The last time for planting daikon in the middle zone is the beginning of August, when it is still possible to wait for the harvest of root crops. True, they do not have time to reach a large size: the average weight of the fruit is 250-350 grams with a yield of 3.5-5 kg per 1 square meter. meters.
Exotic daikon... When to plant such a vegetable to get a bountiful and high-quality harvest? This vegetable crop is just expanding into domestic gardens and markets. The “Fang” variety, a hybrid of the Chinese type and Tashanhun radish, is recommended for planting in the middle zone. The number of leaves is about 20; in the total weight of the plant, their mass is about 20%. The green leaf is dissected into 6-8 pairs of lateral lobes, the upper of which is round, the lateral ones are oval. The length of the pubescent light green petiole is 5-8 cm with a thickness of 1.3-4.5 cm. The leaf blade has dense, short pubescence.
The root crop is elongated-cylindrical in shape, its length is 18-22 cm with an average diameter of 7-9 cm. White, has light green pigmentation. The pulp is tender, juicy, and has a sweet-sharp taste. On the site, the root crop is raised two-thirds above the ground surface and can be pulled out quite easily.
The Klyk variety is mid-season; the growing season from planting to full ripening is 71-98 days. The weight of the commercial product is from 315 to 540 grams. This daikon radish is recommended for growing in mid-latitudes. When to plant this variety? It is sown for seeds in the spring, and in July to obtain tasty juicy root crops.
You need to cut off the tops, leaving approximately 10-centimeter cuttings, and place them in the refrigerator. After 10 days, the plant must be planted at a slight slope and harvested when the seeds are fully ripe.
Despite the fact that daikon is an exotic vegetable, some pests have successfully chosen it. In particular, cruciferous flea beetles, cutworms and slugs are partial to root crops. You can fight them using traditional methods by making grooves around the perimeter of the plantings and sprinkling them with hot pepper or ash. Root vegetables damaged by pest larvae and slugs are not recommended for consumption.
Daikon is still a rare crop in our summer cottages. The homeland of daikon is Japan, although later it became widespread in China and Korea. There is some confusion about what is daikon radish or radish? Translated from Japanese, the name sounds like “big root.” Yes, daikon is a root vegetable that looks like a fairly large white root. But in Russian, daikon is called both “sweet radish” and “white radish”. And scientifically, daikon and radish belong to the “Cabbage” family, the “Radish sativa” species. Yes, yes, daikon and radish are brothers, but in essence it’s all radish
Daikon is a sweet radish, without mustard oils. It is extremely healthy because it contains many minerals and vitamins. And daikon is not difficult to grow. But he is productive and unpretentious. The only thing where it can create a small problem is watering. In dry summers, it is advisable to water it every other day. But during the rainy season this problem will not exist. The main thing is to ensure that the soil is moist at all times.
Daikon seeds need to be prepared for planting:
The agricultural technology of daikon is similar to the agricultural technology of radish. If radishes are sown mainly in spring or early summer, then daikon, like radishes, should be sown in the second half of summer, starting in July.
Daikon is not sown in the spring - with long days and high temperatures, it almost immediately goes into the shoot instead of growing root crops. But the second half of summer, with shorter days and cooler temperatures, is better suited for radish growth. Radish root crops grow very well: they grow high-quality root crops, and are less likely to go into the flower arrow.
You should also take into account the varietal characteristics of daikon. In July it is better to sow late, late-ripening varieties. In August and September - mid-season, early.
By the way, early varieties can also be planted at the beginning of spring - their ripening period is 40-60 days, so in the cool spring temperature they will not have time to go to seed, but will produce root crops. Early ripening varieties of daikon are not stored for long; they need to be eaten immediately.
Late ripening varieties are best sown in early July, in its first ten days (in central Russia). Daikon of late-ripening varieties is stored much better, so it can be sown in mid-July if you need to use this radish in winter.
Daikon is considered a vegetable of the second crop rotation and can be sown in several stages:
Favorable days for planting bulbous crops, root crops and vegetables that grow underground in 2018 are:
Thus, the timing for planting according to the Lunar calendar will be as follows:
In principle, the technology for sowing daikon is similar to ordinary radish. You just have to take into account that its root crops are much larger, especially long ones. Briefly about sowing:
Attention! You should not plant daikon where radishes, cabbage and other related crops grew. Next to cabbage, radish, etc. It is also strictly not recommended to plant.
Root crops are harvested 40-70 days after emergence (depending on the variety). Root crops are left to lie in the air, but not in the sun, so that the soil dries out and falls off. Dig out daikon very carefully, especially varieties with long roots, using a pitchfork or shovel.
Daikon is very tasty and healthy. You can prepare a wide variety of dishes from it, you can eat it raw, you can pickle it, and salt it. Daikon is especially valuable in winter, when foods high in vitamins and other nutrients are very scarce.
We are accustomed to the fact that our radish is a spicy, pungent-tasting, vitamin-rich vegetable. But the culture also has a less vigorous, but no less useful variety - daikon or Japanese radish. It is tender, juicy, slightly sweet, piquant. Planting and caring for daikon has its own characteristics - in amateur gardens, the vegetable is often grown as a second crop, the roots of which are an excellent alternative to autumn radishes, and they are also stored well in winter.
To understand how to plant daikon correctly, we suggest understanding its biological characteristics and nuances of agricultural technology.
“Big root” is a tasty, healthy, low-calorie product, the main vegetable of Japanese cuisine.
It has been experimentally proven that under similar growing conditions, the content of nitrates, heavy metal salts, and radioactive substances in daikon is 10–20 times less than in other root vegetables. Perhaps this is why the vegetable crop is so popular among the Japanese and is included in many Chinese, Korean, and Thai dishes. For residents of South Asian countries, growing daikon in open ground is as common as growing potatoes, onions, and cabbage for us.
The plant belongs to the Cruciferous family and is grown in one- and two-year crops. Externally, the vegetable is recognizable by its carved, pubescent leaves, collected in a spreading rosette, reaching a diameter of 50–60 cm. In the first year after sowing the seeds, it forms a root crop, which, depending on the variety, can have a cylindrical, fusiform, conical, or round shape. In traditional varieties it is white; new hybrids may have a greenish, pink, or light purple skin color.
Planted root vegetables bloom and produce seeds - in daikon they are similar to radishes, maybe a little larger. Seeds can be grown in one year. If you plant the plant early in the spring, it will have time to form a head and shoot out the flower shoot.
Note! Better quality seeds are obtained from root crops planted specifically for planting (by transplantation). Seed material obtained in one year is prone to stemming; the percentage of flowering in such plants will increase from year to year.
Daikon is a plant with a strong photoperiodic dependence - if the day is long, it blooms, if the day is short, it forms a root crop. Sowing at the usual time for other crops (May - early June) is one of the reasons why the daikon began to bloom, instead of forming a vegetative organ.
At home, the crop has dozens of varieties, grouped into 7 varieties - according to the shape of the fruit, the degree of immersion in the soil, and the timing of ripening. The assortment for Russian vegetable gardens is not so numerous. When adapting foreign varieties and breeding domestic ones, breeders take into account a number of points.
These conditions are met by varieties that have received positive reviews from gardeners - Minovasi, Dragon, Elephant Fang, Dubinushka, Moscow Bogatyr, Sasha (with rounded root crops), hybrids Emperor F1, Flamingo F1.
Advice! When choosing a variety, consider the soil structure. If it is light and loose, daikon species with a long, immersed root crop (Minovasi, Caesar, Emperor) are suitable. On heavy soils, round-shaped fruits grow better (Sasha), rising from the soil by one or two-thirds of the length (Dragon, Dubinushka, Moscow Bogatyr).
Before you start planting daikon of the selected variety, pay attention to the general rules of agricultural technology.
Many gardeners claim that the main condition for a good harvest is to correctly calculate when to plant daikon. They recommend 2 terms:
It's actually not that simple. In addition to the length of daylight hours, temperature conditions are important for the formation of high-quality root crops. The culture will not develop at temperatures below 10⁰ C, and hot weather stimulates the plant to flower. Considering that in the summer there are enough other vegetables, we recommend not to bother with planting daikon in the spring, but to do it in July. With this approach, you will get a guaranteed harvest by the time when you are already tired of tomatoes and cucumbers, and you want something fresh and piquant.
Many gardeners take July 7 (Ivan Kupala) as their starting point; others focus on July 12 (Peter and Paul Day). If autumn is warm in your region, then the sowing period can be extended until mid-August. It is better to sow after the rains, so the timing often varies taking this factor into account.
Advice! The optimal time for planting daikon in the middle zone is the second half of July, but not later than the first days of August. Otherwise, the root crop will not have time to grow.
The best predecessors for daikon are early crops that are harvested by this time. These are new potatoes, summer carrots, legumes, onions, and green plants. An undesirable neighborhood is close relatives in the Cruciferous family (radish, cabbage).
If there is a choice, it is preferable to have beds fertilized with humus before planting the first crop. Many people are interested in whether it is possible to plant daikon after garlic. Considering that the vegetable is harvested until July 12, this is a good option.
If the soil is overdried, before digging, water it abundantly and apply a complete mineral fertilizer such as nitroammophoska (100 g/10 m²) or Kemira, containing an NPK complex and microelements.
Daikon planting scheme: distance between rows is 60–70 cm, between plants in a row – 20–25 cm. A convenient option is beds 1.5 m wide, on which the vegetable is sown in 2 rows. It is convenient to care for the seedlings; if necessary, they can be covered with film.
On a fluffy, leveled surface, rows are marked, they are shed with water, and small holes are made in which 2-3 seeds are placed. The planting depth of daikon is no more than 2 cm. The planted seeds are mulched with a dry mixture of garden soil, peat and humus. In a week the shoots will appear.
Advice! If it is too hot, to retain moisture and protect crops from pests, it is better to cover the bed with non-woven breathable material - lutrasil, agril, spunbond.
Immediately after the first leaves appear, the seedlings are thinned out, leaving stronger specimens. The soil is regularly loosened, and the roots are hilled up as they form.
Daikon needs abundant and regular watering, but only if the weather is dry. The golden rule for this plant is moderately moist soil. He does not like changes in humidity, this causes the flesh to become coarser and begin to taste bitter.
If fertilizers were applied during planting, this is enough for normal growth and development. But if the plant is depressed, think about how to feed the daikon. It can be watered with a solution of complete fertilizer, an infusion of organic matter, the so-called. herbal tea, a weak solution of mullein (1:20).
Advice! To make the root crop sweeter, in the middle of the growing season, feed it with Magbor at the rate of 1 tablespoon of fertilizer per 10 liters of water. The trace elements magnesium and boron improve not only the taste, but also the keeping quality of the fruit.
One of the mandatory elements of daikon care is timely protection from diseases and pests.
Cruciferous flea beetles are enemy number 1; they can destroy seedlings before the formation of true leaves. To prevent this from happening, immediately after sowing, the bed is pollinated with a mixture of ash and tobacco dust in a 1:1 ratio. This procedure is repeated several times per season. Covering material saves seedlings well from flea scourge. In case of serious damage to the plantings, it is recommended to treat them once with actophyte, a preparation of biological origin.
Of the daikon pests that love to feast on fruits and leaves, slugs are the most annoying; the fight against them is to keep the snail away from the plant. To do this, make grooves around the beds and fill them with ash. Sprinkling the row spacing with powdered superphosphate has a good effect.
Selective harvesting of vegetables begins after 40 days. When to harvest daikon completely depends on the length of the growing season of the variety and weather conditions. To prolong the growing season and protect root crops from frost, they are covered at night.
The optimal harvesting period is the dry period of October, the so-called Indian summer or immediately after it. The dug up root vegetables are dried in the fresh air, carefully so as not to damage the thin skin, they are cleaned of soil, and the tops are cut off.
How to store daikon so that the vitamin-rich vegetable lasts throughout the winter?
Note! Once frozen, the vegetable cannot be “restored”. Once thawed, it will turn into a mass unsuitable for consumption.
To summarize, we focus your attention on common problems in growing crops.
Unfortunately, if the daikon has bloomed, it is too late to do anything. This process is irreversible, however, if the root crop has formed and then bloomed, it, unlike radishes, can be quite edible.
Planting daikon:
Daikon radish is a vegetable crop bred by Japanese breeders from radish. In Japan, it has long been used as a staple food product, and is included in the daily diet of every resident. Although our long white root vegetables are sold everywhere, growing them in the ground is not as popular as in Eastern countries. The difficulty is that it is not always possible to calculate when to plant Daikon so that the root crops have time to ripen and the plant does not sprout. The timing of planting crops and how to grow an exotic vegetable in our latitudes will be discussed in the article.
Correctly chosen planting dates are an indispensable condition for successful cultivation of daikon. If these recommendations are neglected, the harvest may be disappointing and time will be wasted. And it’s not a matter of the capriciousness of the culture - on the contrary, daikon is very unpretentious to growing conditions, it’s just that its biological characteristics are such that it needs coolness and short daylight hours to form root crops.
Daikon, like all types of radishes or radishes, grows best in cool soil. Its seeds are capable of sprouting when the earth warms up to 3-5°C, and for normal growing season it only needs 10-12 hours of daylight. In addition, the plants tolerate short-term frosts well, and at the same time continue to form root crops, while they react in the opposite way to a sharp increase in temperature - they begin to grow the above-ground part and send out arrows. Flowering is also promoted by a constant increase in daylight hours and air temperature in the spring, so it is almost impossible to grow a good harvest in the spring-summer season.
Since creating favorable conditions for the growth of root crops artificially is very problematic, all that remains is to correctly select the timing in which planting daikon will be most successful. In our latitudes, it is recommended to plant seeds from the second half of summer, when daylight hours begin to decrease. However, at this time the soil is still quite warm, so in regions with hot summers it is better to move the planting time to early August. 
To grow a good daikon, planting dates should be selected in accordance with the varietal characteristics. Summer planting is more suitable for mid- and late-ripening varieties. For early varieties that ripen 40-60 days after sowing the seeds, planting in July will be premature, since the plants will immediately shoot, bypassing the phase of root formation. Early daikon is best sown in autumn or early spring. Spring is preferable, since early root vegetables do not have a long shelf life, and there is no point in growing them in the fall for winter consumption.
This video will tell you how and when to plant and grow daikon.
Daikon sowing in spring should be done as early as possible, in late March - early April. There is no need to worry about the seeds freezing. The crop is highly cold-resistant, so sowing is allowed immediately after the snow melts. To protect the soil from re-freezing, the bed is covered with film at night, and during the day the cover is removed until the threat of spring frosts has passed. If the seeds are planted in early April, then by the end of May the harvest of early root crops will already be ripe. 
I would like to remind you that only early varieties of daikon with a short growing season can be sown in spring. There is no point in planting mid-season and late varieties with a growing season of 70-100 days, because at high temperatures and long daylight hours, root crops simply cannot form. Also, spring sowing should not be delayed until late April or May unless the plants are being grown for seed.
It is best to plant daikon seeds at the end of May, then by the end of August - September the pods with seeds will be fully ripened. For good flowering, plants should be planted in a sunny area, since Japanese radish planting and care, as well as the timing of planting which affects the formation of flower stalks, will shoot faster in warm, sun-warmed soil. Some gardeners use ready-made root vegetables from the previous harvest to obtain seeds, because radish is a biennial crop. They are planted in the same way as carrots or beets: the tops are cut off, leaving small (5-7 cm) cuttings, and the root crop is buried in the ground at a slight slope. With this method, the seeds are ready for collection much earlier. 
The area for spring planting of daikon is prepared in the fall. It is advisable that the bed is well illuminated by the sun for at least half a day and is protected from the winds. Daikon is quite unpretentious to the composition of the soil, but on light sandy or loamy soil it grows better, and the root crops reach a larger size. It is very important that the soil is not acidic, otherwise you can’t count on a harvest.
Site preparation involves digging up the soil and applying fertilizer. It is ideal if the soil on your site is loose and rich in humus, but if this is not the case, then you should increase its fertility - add mineral and organic fertilizers when digging. Suitable mineral mixtures for daikon include superphosphate (40-50 g/m²) and potassium salt (20 g/m²). From organic matter, the crop accepts humus or compost well (0.5-1 buckets/m²), as well as ash 2-3 cups/m². If the soil is acidic, it must be limed. 
Daikon is planted according to a pattern that may differ depending on the variety. For plants with large or round root crops, as well as those that develop voluminous tops, it is recommended to plant at a distance of 30 cm between holes and 50-60 cm between rows. For long root crops, planting at a distance of 20 cm and 40 cm between rows is permissible. For daikon, planting seeds in open ground is most acceptable, but it can also be grown in seedlings.
In central Russia, the most favorable period for sowing daikon is considered to be the second half of July and August. At this time, the length of the day is steadily shortening, and the soil cools down to the desired temperature at night, which helps create favorable conditions for growing root crops. In August–September, the probability of arrows releasing is reduced to a minimum, and root crops begin to develop more rapidly. 
As already mentioned, summer is suitable for planting mid-ripening and late varieties, and late varieties are best sown at the end of July, and those with an average ripening period - in August. Late daikon, planted in the second half of summer, will ripen at the end of October. At this time, night frosts are already possible, but they are not dangerous for daikon, since the root crop can remain in the ground even at a temperature of -5°C without losing its taste and beneficial qualities. 
If plants are grown for the purpose of producing greens (used in cooking), then the planting time is not so important - it can be August, or even June. However, you need to understand that you won’t be able to get root crops from planting in June - such plants will shoot arrows in any case, regardless of the variety. In order for the summer sowing of daikon to produce a high yield, you should not rush with the planting time - it is better to sow the seeds later than too early.
In the southern regions, where summers are long and autumns are warm, daikon can be sown in early autumn. Mid-season varieties with a ripening period of 65-70 days will have enough time to form a root crop before the onset of frost; besides, late planting allows you to preserve vegetables longer. Late ripening varieties should not be planted in the fall, but it all depends on the climate of a particular region. 
The bed for autumn planting is prepared in the spring. The area is dug up and fertilized in the same way as during spring digging. However, if you are using a fertile bed after growing other vegetables, then you should not apply fertilizers - just dig deep (30-35 cm) enough. Autumn planting is convenient because you can use already vacated areas for gardening, thus obtaining a double harvest. By the way, in the east this is exactly how daikon is grown - as a secondary crop.
Some vegetable growers practice winter sowing of daikon, which is also carried out in the fall, but just before frost. Planting for the winter is carried out according to the same scheme as usual, with the only difference that after sowing the bed is covered with organic mulch (peat, humus, dry foliage), which will warm the seeds in the most severe frosts. Planting seeds in winter allows you to get an earlier and higher harvest in the spring.
The seedling method of planting daikon allows you to grow root crops a month earlier than usual, which is very important for the southern climate, where spring comes early and suddenly. Seeds for seedlings can be sown in greenhouses or pots in early March. In about a month they will get stronger, and if the weather permits, the plants can be transplanted into open ground. By this time, they already have several true leaves, while the seeds are just being planted in the soil.
It is advisable to grow seedlings in disposable containers with peat soil mixture. Young sprouts are quite sensitive to transplantation, so they need to be removed from the pot and transplanted into a garden bed along with an earthen substrate. It is also necessary to take into account that the seedling method is acceptable for varieties with round root crops, but long daikon does not tolerate transplanting, much less picking.
The process of growing seedlings takes about a month: seedlings appear after 3-5 days, thinning is carried out after 2 weeks, and another 2 weeks are allocated for growing leaves and hardening - during the last 2 weeks the plants are taken out into the air for a couple of hours to adapt to external environment. Throughout the entire time, the seedlings need to be looked after: water from time to time, loosen the soil, and make sure that the sprouts do not stretch out. Seedlings are planted in open ground when the average daily air temperature reaches 10°C. At lower degrees, the bed must be covered with film at night, and the cover must be removed during the day.
Experienced gardeners in this video will show you how to approach growing this vegetable.
