Community post
Difficulty growing radishes (German Giant)
The starter leaves sprout quickly, but then it takes forever for the next set of leaves to grow, and sometimes none at all. I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong...?
In the above photo, there's one radish sprout at the bottom, center. The other three in that pot died. There are some tiny cilantro sprouts growing, but I have a hunch they are also struggling.
In the pot to the left, there is one radish sprout towards the top, and the other three in that pot died, as well.
These pots are inside my apartment under two long grow lights (I don't have a yard). The Purple Cherokee tomato seedlings are doing fantastic, but the German Giant radishes planted around the tomatoes on June 1st are struggling.
FYI, the little pellets on the surface of the dirt are fertilizer. It has taken me many years to realize that plants need more than just light and water—they actually need nutrients, too! lol
Have you had luck with radishes? Any tips for fertilizer, how often to water, etc? Companion gardening tips?
Replies (3)
I'm not sure what to tell you on this one. I looked up the companion planting guide, and radishes go well with tomatoes, so it's not that. Perhaps you should try planting them in a separate pot with fresh potting soil and see what happens.
It's possible the fertilizer was too strong for the radishes. Or they may have not gotten enough water. If you can fill the pots to the brim with soil, the roots will have more room to grow and the soil can hold more water. Try sprouting more radish seeds, like 20 or so in that pot. Happy to offer any other advice I can. I know basil does great with tomatoes, so maybe give that a shot?
I just made a post this morning about growing radishes in pots.
https://steemit.com/garden/@jordanmccraw/planting-radishes-in-containers
I think that the fertilizer pellets on the surface might be too much for them. Try putting rich compost into the dirt and mixing it around. The compost acts like a slow release fertilizer. Every 4 weeks water with a solution of 20-20-20 or 10-10-10 fertilizer to keep replenishing the nutrients.
Upvoting and following.