Growing Radish

Raphanus sativas : Brassicaceae / the mustard or cabbage family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec
P P P P P P P P P P P P

(Best months for growing Radish in Australia - sub-tropical regions)

  • P = Sow seed
  • Easy to grow. Sow in garden. Sow seed at a depth approximately three times the diameter of the seed. Best planted at soil temperatures between 8°C and 30°C. (Show °F/in)
  • Space plants: 3 - 5 cm apart
  • Harvest in 5-7 weeks.
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Chervil, cress,lettuce, leeks, spinach, strawberries, tomatoes
  • Avoid growing close to: Hyssop, gherkins

Your comments and tips

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01 May 20, (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
I notice radish love compost
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22 Dec 19, Madison (Australia - temperate climate)
This is my first time growing radishes, and I found that most of the leaves had been eaten through or had tough brown/yellow streaks. I believe it may be some sort of disease or they have been attacked by pests.
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27 Dec 19, Another gardener (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
when it is wet and rainy the bugs and insect breed more, or that is their breeding time. I'm sub tropical and I try to grow radishes March to Oct. I'm finding I grow the best radishes late autumn winter. And try and have the soil a bit firm when planting radishes. I find if the radish has germinated and is growing and the soil is then compacted a bit by rain/watering you end up with radishes that look like a number 8 instead of a nice circle round.
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11 Jan 19, paul stanley wood (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
why not try the white long asian type i find them better they last longer in the fridge crisper
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14 Jan 19, Mike (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
That is a daikon radish . (More info here - www.gardenate.com/plant/Daikon?zone=3)
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28 Oct 18, Mandy McGuane (Australia - temperate climate)
Hi!! Would anyone be able to give some advice as to why my radishes when I picked them today, found that the base of them were split and not very healthy looking, rough skin? Could there be an issue in the soil? Thanks in advance.
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28 Oct 18, Mike (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
A bit of a contradiction - splitting maybe too wet and tough could be too dry. I find I grow the best radishes in the winter - a light watering each day.
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02 Nov 18, Mike (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
I picked some today - rough looking, probably a bit tough. They are longer than the winter ones - the root seems to be growing longer in search of water even though I water them every day or two. The winter ones are a lot better looking.
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22 Oct 18, Jean (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
I grow radishes a few years ago and they were so hot and spicy and I wanted to have another go, but when I went to the shop they had three or four different type. I just want to know which ones are mild and I can grow here in Brisbane.
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06 Sep 19, Terry (Australia - temperate climate)
Most of the heat is in the outer - red - skin. As a small child I'd peel that away (thumbnail worked well) and eat the white flesh inside, which is much milder. The leftover skin can be used in cooking, where they lose the peppery taste. Another way to use overly hot radishes is therefore to cut them into halves or quarters, coat in oil, and roast them in a hot oven (say 220C) until coloured and not too watery inside (30 mins or more).
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Showing 21 - 30 of 98 comments
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Your Black Spanish Radishes are a a winter variety - Germination (seed to seedling) happens at temps of 50f - 75f (10c - 24c) and will take 6 to 10 days. --they take anywhere from 30 to 70 days to mature (that is from sprouted seedling to harvest) - you can harvest them when they are about 3" to about 5". Plant anywhere from about two months before the first expected fall frost to 3 weeks before the first expected fall frost. Your best option is to figure out your first expected frost date - count back 8 weeks and call that your "expected planting date" - then check LAST years temperatures at or around your "expected planting date" -- if the temperatures sync up with the germination temperatures (10c - 24c) for Black Spanish Radishes, then it is a good time to plant, if not try and tweak your "expected planting date" so you will have the correct germination temperatures - and enough time for your radishes to grow. The reason your days to harvest has such a wide range is: you can harvest from 3" up to 5" -- additionally, when planting closer to fall/winter the number of hours of sunlight (and the intensity) varies a lot - for example: in my area on August 10th I get 14:36:05 hours of daylight .... and on September 30th I get 11:43:20 hours of daylight -- both are fairly good planting dates with August 10, 2022 having temps of (high/low) 20.4c/ 12.8c AND September 30th having temps highs of 20.4c and lows of 8.7c ==> but September has about 20% less daylight hours and the suns intensity is much weaker -- this means radishes planted in September will take longer to grow and mature than radishes planted in August.

- Celeste Archer

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This planting guide is a general reference intended for home gardeners. We recommend that you take into account your local conditions in making planting decisions. Gardenate is not a farming or commercial advisory service. For specific advice, please contact your local plant suppliers, gardening groups, or agricultural department. The information on this site is presented in good faith, but we take no responsibility as to the accuracy of the information provided.
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