How to grow radishes in an apartment: on a windowsill or balcony - sowing rules and growing conditions

Of course, you are used to growing radishes in the garden, sowing it in early spring in open ground (under a film) or to the greenhouse.

But for fun, you can try to grow radishes at home on the windowsill, for example, by doing it in winter. However, before sowing, it is worthwhile to familiarize yourself with which varieties are suitable for growing at home, not to be mistaken with the soil, choose a convenient container and (most importantly!) Provide suitable conditions: a sufficient amount of light and the required temperature, humidity.

Which varieties of radish are suitable for growing on a windowsill

There are a wide variety of radish seed varieties and hybrids on the market. How to figure out which ones are suitable for growing radishes at home? In general, the main thing that you need is just to purchase the most early ripening varieties that are resistant to flowering, drought and insufficient lighting,
these are the ones that are best suited for growing on a windowsill:

However! Many home gardeners are advised to purchase for growing in indoor (balcony) conditions varieties for closed ground.

• Dubel F1; 
• Champion;
• Diego F1;
• 16 days.

Many other varieties are also suitable for sowing and growing radishes on the windowsill: 18 days, Zarya, French Breakfast, Greenhouse Mushroom, Early Red, Rudolph, Ladies' Caprice, Deca, Heat, Sora, Quarta, Nursery, Husar.

How to plant radishes on the windowsill: containers, soil, pre-sowing treatment - step-by-step sowing instructions

In order for the radish to sprout well and quickly grow at home, while gaining not only the aerial part, certain rules should be followed. To do this, you need to choose a suitable container, soil, carry out the correct sowing, and in the future, properly care for the root crop, maintaining the necessary microclimate.

What container to plant

To grow radishes, you need a fairly deep pot (at least 15 cm) or a container (balcony box).

Do not forget that there must be drainage holes on the bottom of the container through which excess moisture will come out without stagnating in the bottom of the pot. Also, at the bottom of the planting container, a drainage layer of expanded clay should be laid out.

For convenience, some are planted in special containers (cassettes), in which each cell is separated.

What kind of soil

The soil for growing radishes on the windowsill requires a loose, fertile and necessarily neutral reaction.

Note! If you plant seeds even in slightly acidic soil, the plant can get sick with keel.

To prepare the substrate yourself, you should take and mix: 1 part of ordinary garden soil or peat (of course, it is better if it is black soil), 2 parts of compost or humus and 1 part of river sand.

Important! Before sowing seeds, the soil should be disinfect in one of the ways, including purchased. In addition, it is additionally recommended to spill the soil with a weak solution of potassium permanganate or Fitosporin.

Presowing seed preparation: soaking

It is believed that radish seeds germinate well, even without any pre-sowing manipulations. But thanks to germination, you can be sure that the sown germinated seed will definitely sprout, because at home there is no point in sowing a whole bed in order to thin it out later.

Radish seeds are soaked in the standard way: you put a cotton pad in a container, moisten it with water, pour out the seeds, cover with another wet disc on top.Then close the container with a lid or saucer (so that the moisture does not evaporate) and leave it for 1-2 days, until the seedlings germinate.

Important!Do not forget to check the seeds periodically, the cotton pads should be moist throughout the entire germination.

Or you can act like the author of the next video - instead of cotton pads, use toilet paper, which you put on the bottom of a glass jar, moisten it with water, lay out the seeds and close the lid tightly so that the moisture does not evaporate.

Video: radishes on a windowsill in pots - soaking seeds

Direct landing

Step-by-step instructions for sowing radish seeds at home:

• Fill containers with soil.

Advice! Never fill the pots completely. A little space should always be left to fill up the soil, for example, if the seedlings are excessively stretched.

• Moisten the soil by spilling water.
• Make small separate indentations (1-1.5 cm) or grooves.
• You can immediately sow the seeds at a sufficient distance from each other (from 5 cm) or sow a lot at once in order to further thin out.
• Sprinkle with earth.
• Moisten with a spray bottle.
• Cover with foil to create greenhouse conditions for better germination and germination of seeds.
• Place the container with crops in a relatively warm (16-18, maximum 20 degrees) and dark place.

Video: sowing radishes on the windowsill with germinated seeds

Growing radish in egg trays (cassettes) at home

An interesting method of growing radishes, which is also used (at least recommended) in the open field, is to sow the seeds in egg trays (or cassettes).

Note! The method, of course, is interesting, but you will hardly be able to grow radishes in this way at home for one simple reason - for the normal development of root crops, much more land is needed than there is space in the cells. What if cut holes in the cells below (which must be done in the open field), then the planting capacity will take up a lot of space.

In general, you can try, but purely for the sake of experiment.

To do this, you need:

• Take an egg tray, cut a hole at the bottom under each cell.
• Place and sink into a wide container (balcony box).
• Fill with pre-moistened soil.
• Sow one seed in each cell.
• Sprinkle lightly with soil.
• Water carefully so as not to wash the seeds (it is optimal to moisten from the spray bottle).
• Cover the container with crops with cling film.
• Place the egg tray in a warm and dark place until the seeds germinate.

Video: unsuccessful sowing results in egg trays

How to care for radishes on a windowsill

The first shoots of radish on the windowsill in optimal conditions - within 3-5 days. With germination even earlier - in 2-3 days. (however, as in the garden). As soon as this happens, you should quickly remove the film and move the container to a cooler and brighter place. And then the standard care, which consists in periodic watering as the soil dries up, as well as maintaining optimal growing conditions (cool at night, warmer during the day).

Video: growing radish in a pot - the first shoots

Growing place: light and temperature

Radish is considered a short day plant, although, of course, light is required for growing. 10-12 hour daylight hours will be quite enough, which means that in spring or autumn you do not need to put a container with plantings on the south window. The western or eastern window is also quite suitable, as well as the northern window.

By the way! If you have excessively warm and dry air on your windowsill due to the presence of a central heating battery under it, then this will undoubtedly negatively affect the development of radishes. Therefore, it is advisable not only to cover the batteries themselves with something, but also to substitute something under the pot so that it does not overheat.

If you are going to grow radishes on a windowsill in winter, then you will definitely need to supplement it, in other words, keep it under phytolamps or full-spectrum LED lamps.

Important! If the plant lacks light, then it will begin to stretch. And if, on the contrary, the daylight hours are too long, then it will begin to drive the peduncle (shoot).

If seedlings you already stretched out, and you just now realized your mistake, then you can always additionally add soil.

For good and fast growth of radish, it needs daytime temperature within + 10-15 degrees (not higher than + 20-23), a at night recommended at all lower the temperature to + 5-10 degrees (or at least to + 15-18). Of course, this will not be so easy at home. It is also worth considering that after germination and before the formation of the root crop he needs lower temperature than at the stage of direct active formation of the fetus.

Note! Radish does not like high temperatures, otherwise it again goes to the arrow (starts shooting - expelling the peduncle).

Thus, it should be borne in mind that if the radish does not have enough light, and the temperature is elevated, then, apart from the tops, you will get nothing.

Therefore, grow radishes more convenient rather on the balconythan on the windowsill, because there really can be created more suitable conditions.

Video: radishes on the balcony

Watering

Watering is carried out as the soil dries up, but the plantings should not be overly moistened so as not to provoke decay. You need to water in moderation, but regularly, while using water at room temperature (preferably settled or filtered through a filter, that is, soft).

It is very important to increase the frequency of watering (almost every day) during the period of root crop formation and stop one week before harvest. Then, as at first, it will be quite enough to water 2-3 times a week.

Important! You do not need to feed the radish.

Thinning

If planting is carried out in a common container by evenly distributing seeds throughout the entire container, then when the radish has 1-2 true leaves, you will need to thin out: remove all weak plants so that there is a distance of about 5 cm between them.

When to harvest radishes on the windowsill

Harvesting of homemade root crops is performed as they ripen. In the open field, in ultra-early plant varieties, this period can come in 16-18 days (after germination), others need a little more time - 20-35 days. But at home, the ripening period is usually slightly postponed.

The main thing is to pull the radish out of the ground in time. If you overexpose it, then the upper shell becomes dense (rough) and gets bitter.

Video: radish in a pot on a windowsill - growing results

Thus, if you create the right conditions, you can easily grow radishes on the windowsill all year round (except perhaps in summer). All you need is to carefully choose a place, highlight it as needed, maintain a temperature regime, and, of course, water.

Advice! Be sure to watch the next video, in which the author not only talks about planting and caring for radishes at home, but also about setting up his mini-greenhouse in the apartment, more precisely, in the basement under the balcony, and also talks about the characteristic features of the planted varieties.

Video: growing radishes in an apartment in a greenhouse

By the way! Even if you did not manage to grow the radish (root crop) itself, and only tops grew, then it also contains vitamins, which means it can be crumbled into a salad.