Content
Daikon is a Japanese radish, a product that occupies a central place in the cuisine of the Land of the Rising Sun. The culture is grown in the countries of Southeast Asia, Europe, America. Daikon appeared in Russia at the end of the 19th century and quickly gained popularity. Due to the absence of mustard oils, it has a delicate harmonious taste. Also known as white radish and sweet radish. With proper care, root crops grow large, juicy, with a dense crunchy pulp. Daikon Sasha is a new variety loved by gardeners for its high yield, cold resistance, early maturity and the ability to maintain marketable qualities well and for a long time.
Photo daikon Sasha:
Breeding history of the variety
Daikon was bred in Japan in antiquity by breeding the Chinese lob radish. Most of the Japanese varieties are not suitable for cultivation in Russia, domestic scientists have created many improved analogues adapted to the climatic conditions of the country. Daikon Sasha was included in the State Register in 1994, it is successfully cultivated in all agricultural regions of the Russian Federation, but it feels more comfortable in the middle lane.
The originators of the variety are the Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution "Federal Scientific Center for Vegetable Growing" (Moscow Region) and LLC "Intersemya" (Stavropol Territory). Daikon Sasha is named after the honored breeder Alexander Agapov. Recommended for growing in winter greenhouses, under spring film shelters and in the open field.
Description of daikon Sasha
Daikon Sasha is a member of the Cabbage or Cruciferous family. The root crop has an even rounded shape, which can be slightly elongated or flattened. Sizes range from 5.5 to 10.5 cm in length and 5 to 10 cm in diameter in the middle. The skin is dense, smooth, white with a slight yellowness. The pulp is white, juicy, aromatic, crunchy, dense, without voids.
Sasha daikon fruits are characterized by a sweet-spicy taste and a pleasant weak aroma. Green leaves are lyre-shaped, slightly pubescent, 30-55 cm long, collected in an upright rosette. Petioles 10-17 cm long, light green, also pubescent.
Variety characteristics
Daikon Sasha demonstrates the best qualities of her species. In order to grow a high-quality crop and avoid annoying mistakes, you should know the distinctive features and basic rules for growing this variety.
Yield
Daikon Sasha is an ultra-early ripening variety that ripens together in 35-45 days, under favorable weather conditions, the period can be reduced to 1 month. Thanks to this quality, 2-3 crops can be grown per season. From 1 m2 it turns out to collect up to 2.5 kg of fruit in the open field and up to 4.5 kg in greenhouses. The weight of root crops is 200-400 g; when ripe, they rise almost completely above the soil surface, which makes it easier to extract them from the ground. Daikon gives good yields on deeply cultivated, fertile, light neutral and slightly acidic soils.
Disease and pest resistance
The Sasha variety is susceptible to diseases affecting all cruciferous species - black leg, white and gray rot, keel, vascular bacteriosis, felt ailment, powdery mildew, mosaic, fusarium. Has relative immunity to mucous bacteriosis.
The harvest of daikon Sasha is also damaged by pests - cruciferous fleas and bedbugs, cabbage fly larvae, click beetles, hidden proboscis, weevils, leaf beetles, cabbage moth and scoop. To prevent infection, you should follow the rules of agricultural technology and crop rotation, weed out in time weeds and loosen the ground.
Advantages and disadvantages of the variety
This variety of Japanese radish fell in love with gardeners due to the good taste and marketability of the fruit. In their reviews of the Sasha daikon, they note the following positive features:
- unpretentiousness;
- stable yield;
- good keeping quality of Sasha daikon;
- the possibility of year-round cultivation (if there is a greenhouse);
- high ripening rate;
- long shelf life of seeds (up to 8 years);
- undemanding to the composition of the soil;
- unlike other varieties of radish, daikon Sasha is suitable for baby food;
- resistance to premature stemming.
At the same time, the plant also has some disadvantages:
- requires stable watering, otherwise the structure and taste of the fruit deteriorates, the risk of blooming increases;
- in case of instability of temperatures (for example, in autumn), the pulp becomes denser, becomes coarse;
- heterogeneity of fruits in size;
- tendency to cracking due to improper care.
Planting and caring for daikon Sasha
Planting daikon varieties Sasha is carried out by seedlings and sowing in open ground. The variety easily tolerates a pick. Tomatoes, carrots, potatoes, beets, cucumbers, legumes, herbs, and onions are considered good predecessors for the culture. Do not plant daikon after cruciferous plants - cabbage, radish, turnip.
Landing dates
Sasha daikon seeds are recommended to be sown twice - in March and July. For the ripening of full-fledged juicy fruits, the plant needs a short daylight hours, with an excess of sun, the daikon begins to bloom, the yield deteriorates. Daikon seedlings are transferred to a permanent place at established daytime temperatures of + 10 ˚С. The fruits of spring sowing are harvested in May, but they are not stored for long. They should be consumed promptly. In April-May, daikon Sasha is planted mainly for seeds. The most productive is summer sowing. Daylight hours become shorter, the daikon enhances fruit growth, and the likelihood of flower arrows is reduced. Many gardeners in the middle lane advise postponing the planting date until August, claiming that this will help to forget about the problem of flowering. Root crops harvested in the fall can be stored for 2-3 months.
Garden bed preparation
The site for planting a daikon of the Sasha variety should be sunny, its preparation begins in the fall. The earth is dug onto a shovel bayonet, 1.5 kg of humus or compost, 40 g of superphosphate, 20 g of ammonium sulfate and potassium sulfate per m2 are added2... Lime to deoxidize the soil should be applied two weeks earlier. Before sowing, the soil is leveled with a rake, grooves are made 3-4 cm deep at a distance of 60 cm from each other. You can form a garden bed 1m wide.
Landing rules
Seeds of daikon Sasha should be planted in well-moistened soil to a depth of 2-3 cm. The sowing should not be dense, excess shoots should be removed. When thinning, the strongest plants are left at a distance of 25 cm from each other. Before sowing, it is recommended to soak the seeds of daikon Sasha in a disinfectant solution of potassium permanganate in order to prevent the occurrence of diseases.
To obtain seedlings, it is preferable to place the seeds in separate paper cups or peat tablets - this will avoid picking, and, consequently, trauma to the roots. Young shoots are placed in the ground, observing the prescribed interval, lightly pressed and covered with a layer of mulch.In case of probable night frosts, the planting of daikon Sasha should be covered with polyethylene or agrofibre.
Follow-up care
Daikon of the Sasha variety is undemanding in care, which boils down to weeding, regular watering, loosening the soil, and top dressing. The land should always be slightly moistened, and during the formation and maturation of root crops, watering should be increased. With a lack of moisture, the radish gives an arrow, irregular watering can lead to cracking of the fruit, which excludes its long-term storage. Loosening and weeding is essential for aerating daikon roots and preventing disease. As the fruits grow, they need to be sprinkled with earth. Daikon Sasha should be fed only once during the growing season - immediately after thinning the seedlings. A solution of nitroammofoska is best suited - 60 g per 1 liter of water. As a natural alternative, you can use wood ash, a solution of chicken manure (1:20) and fermented grass (1:10).
Harvesting and storage
Daikon Sasha fruits are harvested as they ripen - a month and a half after planting. Do not overexpose the radish in the ground, shooters may begin, and when overripe, the taste deteriorates. Work is carried out in favorable weather, in late autumn you need to catch it before the first frost. Root crops are removed from the soil by pulling the tops. If you cannot do this easily, they are pryed off with a shovel or pitchfork. Then the daikon of the Sasha variety must be dried, shaken off the ground and removed the tops, leaving "tails" 1-2 cm long.
During harvesting, small, overgrown and diseased root crops are discarded. Daikon Sasha remains for the longest time in a cellar or basement when immersed in moist sand. Air humidity should be 80-85%, temperature + 1-2 ˚С. In the absence of such premises, it is allowed to store the radish in the refrigerator in an ajar plastic bag, on the balcony in boxes with ventilation and insulation. The balcony is the least desirable place due to the fact that it is difficult to control the temperature there. It must be remembered that at temperatures below 0 ˚С. Daikon fruits will freeze and become unfit for human consumption; with warming above + 2 ° C, the radish will start to deteriorate.
The shelf life of daikon Sasha depends on the conditions. At room temperature, it does not exceed two weeks, in the refrigerator - 1 month, in the cellars - 3 months.
Diseases and pests, methods of control and prevention
In general, Daikon Sasha rarely gets sick, sometimes it is affected by fungal, viral and bacterial infections. They are treated by spraying with Bordeaux liquid, treating the earth with milk of lime (2 glasses of fluff per 10 liters of water) or a solution of copper sulfate. It is important to detect early signs of infection in time and take immediate action. If the disease is started, it will be necessary to destroy most of the harvest of Daikon Sasha and completely change the soil. Causes of diseases:
- thickened fit;
- high humidity at temperatures above + 30 ˚С;
- fertilizers with a high content of nitrates leads to the formation of excess green mass ”;
- insect parasites not only damage plants, but also transmit diseases.
In the fight against pests of the Sasha variety, an effective deterrent is feeding the daikon with slurry. Spraying with infusions of tobacco, dope, black henbane, mustard, dusting with ash are also effective. In extreme cases, insecticides are used, most often "Intavir".
Conclusion
Daikon Sasha is an unpretentious crop that can be grown even by a novice gardener. The root vegetable is widely used in cooking - it is eaten raw, boiled, stewed, pickled. The vegetable contains vitamins B and C, fiber, pectins. It has a high nutritional value with a caloric content of 18 kcal, it is used for dietary nutrition.Daikon varieties Sasha should be eaten with caution in the presence of diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and gout.
