Radish Botanical Name: Raphanus sativus L. Family: Brassicaceae Chromosome number 2n=18 Origin: Western Asia.

Radish is a popular vegetable in both tropical and temperate climate used both root cum leaf. It has a characteristic pungent aroma and taste. It is easy to grow and widespread vegetable that can usually be found in most home gardens. Best suitable for sequential, inter- and relay cropping due to short duration and high productivity, enables maximum use of arable land. In Himachal Pradesh, it is grown as summer crop in dry and wet temperate zones and both as a winter and summer crop in the sub-temperate region.

Uses The leafy tops are very rich in vitamin A, B, C and minerals particularly Ca and Fe. The roots and leaves are consumed both as salad and as cooked vegetable. The roots are good appetizer, effective in curing liver, gall bladder and urinary disorders, piles and gastrodynia. It is a good source of vitamin C containing 15-40mg per 100g of edible portion. Pink skinned radishes are generally richer in vitamin C than white skinned ones. The young tender pods are also used as vegetable. A salt extracted from roots, dried and burnt to white ash is said to be used in stomach trouble. The juice of fresh leaves is used as diuretic and laxative. Seeds are said to be peptic, expectorant, diuretic and carminative

Spring radishes Winter radishes Young tender pods of rat tail radish are used as vegetable – no edible root is formed in this radish. The characteristic pungent flavour is due to the presence of volatile isothiocynates (4-methyl thio-3-butenyl isothiocyanate) – MTB-ITC. The colour of the pink cultivars is due to the presence of anthocyanin pigments. Spring radishes Winter radishes Very common, rapid growing and quick maturing (20-30 days) Slow growing and late maturing (50-90 days) Relatively small roots Large roots Root quality deteriorate quickly and mildly pungent Stored better and have characteristic strong flavour.

Two groups of radish varieties Asiatic/tropical/subtropical type European/Temperate Type Produce seeds in plains Seed production is limited to high hills. Palam Hriday, Pusa Desi, Pusa Reshmi, Pusa Chetki, Punjab Safed, Japanese White, Punjab Pasand, Arka Nishant, Chinese Pink, Hisar Mooli No. 1, Kalyanpur No. 1, Kalyani White, CO-I, IIVR-I, IIVR-II, C-2, Jaunpuri Mooli, Early Mino White. Pusa Himani, White Icicle, Rapid Red White Tipped, Scarlet Globe, Scarlet Long, Silver Queen, Kvarta (Short duration suitable for protected cultivation). French breakfast

Varieties recommended for Himachal Pradesh Asiatic or tropical type European Type or Temperate Type Varieties Japanese White Palam Hriday Chinese Pink White Icicle Pusa Chetki Pusa Himani

French Breakfast

White Icicle Scarlet Globe Chinese Pink White Globe Japanese White China white White Globe

RADISHES

Schedule for growing radish throughout the year Variety Sowing time Harvesting time Pusa Chetki Early April-Mid August Early May- September Pusa Desi Mid August- Mid October Last week of September-Early December Pusa Reshmi Mid September- Mid November Last October- early January Japanese White Mid October- Mid December Mid December- Early March Pusa Himani Mid October- Mid February Mid February- Mid April White Icicle Last October-end February Late November- Early March

Soils Light, friable loam soils containing high amount of humus are good to obtain best results. Usually the heavy soils produce rough ill shaped roots with number of small fibrous laterals. The optimum soil pH is 5.5-7.0. Sandy or sandy loam soils are preferred for early crop. A cool moist soil give best results in summer crop.

Climate It is predominantly a cool season crop and best adapted to cool or moderate climate. Indian types with greater temperature adaptation can resist heat more than the European types. The optimum temperature for best flavour, texture, root growth and development is 10-15oC. Different varieties respond to varied range of temperature. This is the fact that radishes are available throughout the year by growing different varieties in different months. The Asiatic types are tolerant to high temperature than European types. During the hot weather, the roots become tough, pithy and pungent before reaching the edible type. Long days coupled with high temperature leads to premature bolting without adequate root formation.

Sowing Time Seed Rate Himachal Pradesh 9-12 kg/ha Asiatic type – 10 kg Northern plains European type Any time between September-March Asiatic type August-January Mild Climate Areas Through out the year Himachal Pradesh Low Hills August-September Mid Hills July – October High Hills March- August Seed Rate 9-12 kg/ha Asiatic type – 10 kg European type – 12-14 kg (1 g seed contains 80-125 seeds)

Spacing European type - 30cm X 5-10cm Asiatic types – 45 cm X 6-8 cm Sowing depth 1.5- 3cm deep on the ridges for semi-long type 1-1.25cm for round cultivars. After germination maintain the distance between the plants with in row by following thinning of plants.

Soil preparation The soil should be thoroughly pulverized so as to obtain fine tilth for getting the best crop, otherwise it results in deformed roots.

Manures and Fertilizers Open pollinated varieties Farmyard manure (q/ha) N P2O5 K2 O (Kg/ha) 100 90 50 40 Full dose of farmyard manure, P, K and half N should be applied at the time of transplanting. Remaining part of N should be top dressed in two equal installments at an interval of one month each.

Interculture and weed control Weeding and hoeing are necessary at 20-35 days after sowing in mid maturity group of Asiatic type, Temperate and early Asiatic types require weeding at 15-20 days after sowing. Earthing up is necessary as the growing roots tend to push out of the soil, This results in well developed, quality and elongated roots. Pre-emergence application of following herbicides is very useful for effective weed control Pendimethalin 1.2 kg a.i./ha or Alachlor 1.5 kg a.i./ha or Fluchloralin (Basalin)@ 0.9 kg a.i./ha or Isoproturan 1.0 kg a.i./ha or Metalachlor @ 1.0 kg a.i./ha.

Irrigation A pre-sowing irrigation is to be given to help the seeds absorb moisture and germinate properly. Irrigation frequency and water quantities are depend on the planting season and available soil moisture. The soil should have sufficient moisture to obtain tender and attractive roots. Frequent irrigation is necessary during summer, otherwise the growth will be checked and root will be pungent making them unfit for market.

Harvesting Yield European type 50-80q/ha in 25-30 days Asiatic type The roots are harvested when they are of usable size and relatively young. The roots are washed and graded according to size and are tied into bunches alongwith tops for marketing. European types reach harvest maturity in 25-30 days. Asiatic types require longer period i.e. Chetki type 30-40 days and mid maturity group 40-60 days. Yield European type 50-80q/ha in 25-30 days Asiatic type 200-500 q/ha in 40-60 days.

Post Harvest Handling Cooled quickly to 40oF or below. Hydrocooling is effective in this regard. At 32oF & 95-100% RH topped radishes can be stored for 3-4 weeks bunched roots will generally keep no longer than 1-2 weeks. At 0oC and 90-95% RH, roots can be stored for 2 months

PHYSIOLOGICAL DISORDERS

1. Pore extent or pithiness It does much damage to the quality of the radish destroying the commercial value. Pores are formed by the collapse of parenchymatous cells in root tissues caused by excessive root growth in comparison with the corresponding assimilation ability of leaf tissue. Pore development is a sign of senescence and its degree differ among cultivars. Possible Reasons Harvesting should be done at appropriate time as delayed harvesting leads to this disorder

2. Elongated root or Forking Elongated root is brought about by secondary elongating growth in the root. Possible Reasons Excess moisture during the root development. It occurs on heavy soils due to soil compactness. Use of undecomposed organic manure.

Pest management Problem Management Damping off Seed treatment Alternaria blight White Rust Arka Nishant is reported to be resistant Aphids Spray malathion(0.05%) or oxy demeton methyl(0.025%)