Growing Daikons

Zone 9B Florida: This is my on-going documentary post on growing different varieties of daikon in my edible garden.

What is daikon? Daikon is a white radish used in many Asian cuisines. All parts of a daikon which include the root, petiole (stem), and leaves are edible. The leaves are great for sautéed. Its value is the root. There are many varieties of daikon radishes and the size and shape also varies from one variety to another. Not just that, some are crunchier and are recommended for use to make Korean kim chi and Vietnamese pickled daikons, while some varieties are better for stewing and soups. Some daikon varieties have some kind of hairy fuzz that makes it not easy to harvest and makes my skin itchy while some varieties have leaves that doesn’t have the fuzz on it.

Note: I am not a scientist or a botanist, I do not talk about the scientific facts and details about any plants I grow. You will need to find a reliable source for such information.

Where to buy daikon seeds? I purchase my daikon seeds from Pan Asia Heirloom on Etsy because I wanted to know the specific variety I am growing. Not just any kind of daikon is suitable for pickling to get the crunchy firm texture. I also sell daikon seed packets. See my “Seeds for Sale” post.

Growing the Different Varieties of Daikons:

Daikon Varieties:

Here are a list of daikon seeds I have tested in my little garden of Zone 9b Florida. It grows well in my 12-inch raised beds and the seeds germinate 98% so far in January, March, June, and November for me with at least 6 hours of sunlight.

D1. Minowase Daikon

D2. Giant Formosa Daikon

D3. Hirashime Hatsuka Daikon

D4. Green Shoulder Hybrid Korean Radish

D5. TBD