Radishes are easy to grow. In actual fact, they can be the ideal vegetable for those individuals that are just starting out or even those that do not have much space available.
However, even though the growing part is easy, this does then lead to a problem. That problem is the way in which you have to store your bounty. Basically, there is a pretty good chance that you will be overwhelmed by their numbers and it would be a shame to see them going to waste.
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So, that being said, how do you store radishes? How do you manage to keep them fresh for as long as possible so you can then enjoy them over an extended period of time?
Well, the answer is going to be easier than you were perhaps aware. In actual fact, there are several important steps for you to follow that will lead to them staying crisp and fresh.
The good news is that you are not going to actually need too many things in order to satisfactorily complete this process. What you will find is that the things that you need are going to vary depending on the storage option that you.
Depending on this, there are various requirements as you will see below. However, there are some main items that everybody is going to need at some point.
For this, the main items that you will need to have at your disposal will be as follows.
As you can see, there is nothing too special here at this point. At the same time you are not going to require each and every item since, as we said, it does depend on the storage method that you plan on using.
Now that we have explained the things that you need in order to complete this process, we need to move on and guide you through the step by step process. This process is going to ultimately lead to you being able to store your radishes correctly. As you will see, there are not too many hoops for you to jump through at this moment in time.
The first step is the harvesting and the best advice here is to always look at doing this when the soil is dry. If you harvest them when the soil is wet, then there is an increased risk of the roots of the radish starting to rot. As a result, it is going to reduce the length of time that they are going to be able to stay fresh for.
Allow there to be several days of dry weather before you uproot them and you will be able to solve this issue immediately.
The next step is to remove the green parts as they are not going to be required. However, some people do cook them and eat them so that is certainly an alternative that is worth exploring. Also, when you remove the green parts it is best not to wash them as storing them dry is often the best way to go.
If you do remove the green parts of the radishes, then you can go ahead and store them in water. For this, you have to use a jar, a mason one is best, and make sure that you cut off the tap root at the bottom.
Wash them, trim other roots, and then place several in the jar along with some of the greens. You can then fill the jar with water and keep it in a cool place like the refrigerator. This should keep them nice and fresh for over a week.
But what happens if you are only wanting to preserve them for a short period of time before you use them? Well, there is another option and it is referred to by many as hydro-cooling. For this, get a bowl and place some water in the base.
You then put the radishes into the water so their roots are sitting in it and they should sit there at room temperature. This will keep them fresh for up to seven days, although you do get the best results from this in around half of that time as a maximum.
If you are hoping to keep your radishes nice and fresh for several weeks, then the best option for you to use is known as zipping and sealing them. For this, you simply need to take your unwashed radishes and remove the green leaves.
Next, place them in a zip bag designed for storing food. However, you should also look at adding a damp piece of paper towel and then place this bag in the drawer in your refrigerator. This should lead to them being kept nice and crisp for a number of weeks.
Finally, there is also the option of storing them outdoors. However, this is mainly for those crops that are grown more in the fall rather than in the spring. With this, there is nothing wrong with you starting by checking if the plants are fully grown. If so, remove the tap root, and then bury them again until you are ready to use them.
This works well when the temperature is cooling down as the soil temperature is going to help to keep them fresh. However, the only problem with this option is that you need to be aware of the risk of frost. Alternatively the ground becoming frozen for an extended period of time will just cause more problems.
In other words, there are a whole host of different ways in which you can store radishes. There is no reason why you will not be able to still have fresh and crisp vegetables several weeks after they have stopped growing.
So, as you can see there really is nothing complex at all about being able to store radishes. It is easy to do so for an extended period of time without too many issues. You just need to follow some simple instructions that we have explained above.
Radishes are easy to grow and are packed full of flavor. However, the best part is that you can sow them both in the spring and to the end of summer allowing you to enjoy them for an extended period of time even if they are just fresh out of the garden.
As a result of the tips that we have mentioned above, there is no reason why you will not be able to enjoy them throughout the entire year. You just need to replenish your stock at those times of the year where there are the optimum growing conditions. We have certainly had fun exploring the different ways in which you can store them and we hope that you will too.
If this has been of any help to you and made it easier to understand how to store radishes, then please do feel free to share the article and leave any comments below including those that describe how successfully your own attempts at storing radishes have been.
Hello, I’m Laura Bennett. I love nature especially when it comes to flowers and different kinds of plants. I started a very small garden behind my house and I named it Humid Garden. So, I created this blog to provide aspiring and inspiring thoughts about gardening for gardeners and anyone who has the intention of keeping a garden.
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