In the Garden with Pat Rubin

Bee garden writer Pat Rubin writes about everything that grows, from flowers and trees to vegetables and lawns. Pat volunteered for several years as a Placer County Master Gardener and has written about gardening for many national and regional publications. In addition to gardening, she spends time raising and showing miniature horses and miniature donkeys.

In the Garden will include news, events, advice and other gardening tidbits. Pat will also answer reader questions.

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May 07, 2008

The joy of radishes

I remember as a child planting radish seeds in school. They sprout quickly and produce plump red radishes in a matter of weeks.

The garden books say you can plant radishes every two weeks through July for a continuous crop. I like to plant them around the tomato cages, or wind rows of them in and out of the other vegetables in the garden.

They're one of the easiest crops to grow. And it's nice to be able to harvest something while waiting for the tomatoes, peppers, squash, eggplant and corn to ripen.

I don’t need all the radishes I plant. Two or three sliced thinly in a salad is enough for me. But I love their cheerful colors and shapes. And it wouldn’t be a garden without pulling a radish out of the ground, washing the soil off and then biting into it. The tangy, peppery taste makes me wince and then reach for the nearest glass of water. It's become sort of a tradition when walking through the garden.

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