Radish.

When did people start cultivating radishes? This question is difficult to answer, since its history is lost in ancient times. The Egyptians grew it 1.5-2 thousand years BC. As a common food product, radish, along with onions and garlic, appears on the menu of the workers who built the Egyptian pyramids; its images are found on the walls of Egyptian temples. The ancient Jews also consumed radishes. And the ancient Greeks already knew several varieties of this root vegetable.

Since ancient times, the unique nutritional and medicinal benefits of radish have been known. Appropriate advice on its use is given by Dioscorides, Galen, Pliny, and Avicenna. Moreover, our ancestors ate not only root vegetables, but also radish tops. Avicenna, for example, noted that “spring radish leaves, if boiled and eaten with olive oil and murri (sauce), are more nutritious than the root.” He recommended eating radish leaves after eating other dishes as they help digest food.

In many countries, radish is given a place of honor among other vegetable crops. The Japanese, for example, eat it all the time and in any form: raw, boiled, salted and dried. It is included in many dishes as an integral part, as a side dish, or as an additive.

Why has radish been loved for several millennia? In terms of the content of useful substances, including biologically active ones, it ranks among the first among other vegetable crops. Radish is rich in microelements, sugars, enzymes. In terms of fiber content, it has no equal among vegetables (up to 1.8 percent). It contains vitamin B, up to 20 mg% ascorbic acid, a significant amount of potassium salts (357 mg% in white and 1199 mg% in black radish).

Radish (from Latin radix - root) is a garden biennial plant of the cruciferous family, with thick white or dark roots that taste sharp. There are many varieties of radish, which differ in taste, shape, root color and ripening time. The taste of radish depends on the essential oils it contains, and its pungency is due to glycosides.

Radish promotes and improves digestion, stimulates the secretion of gastric juice. Due to its significant fiber content, radish is useful for those who suffer from constipation. In addition, it is a good cleanser of the body from harmful substances. Its fiber, in particular, promotes the release of excess cholesterol from the body, which is important in the prevention of atherosclerosis. However, in case of peptic ulcer disease, inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract and liver, and severe heart disease, it is undesirable to consume radishes and radishes.

In medicine, radish juice with honey is used, which is prescribed for upper respiratory tract catarrh and bronchitis. Take a mixture (1:1) of radish juice and honey or sugar. This composition acts as an expectorant and cough sedative. For rheumatism, gout, myositis, neuritis and radiculitis, radish juice is used to rub sore spots. Juice and grated radish accelerate the healing of wounds and ulcers, as they have an antimicrobial effect (radish contains a strong bactericidal substance, lysozyme). Radish seeds, especially black ones, also have pronounced antimicrobial properties. They are ground with a small amount of water and used to treat non-healing wounds and ulcers.

Radish- a type of radish. This is the fastest ripening type of vegetable. Its roots contain vitamin C, B1, B2, PP, many mineral salts, essential oils, pectin substances, glycosidic compounds that improve metabolism.

Turnip Belongs to the same cruciferous family as radish. Turnips grow in many countries in Europe, America, and Asia. In the old days, turnips were the most common vegetable. Potatoes were unknown back then; they were replaced by turnips and rutabaga. They even knew how to make kvass from turnips. And the leaves were not wasted; they were fermented for the winter, and then cabbage soup was cooked from them.

Turnips are often mentioned in Russian folklore, especially in fairy tales. When they want to praise a food, they say: “Sweeter than steamed turnips.” The economic benefits of growing the crop are noted with the words “cheaper than steamed turnips.” This saying arose because with a good harvest, the cost of growing it is very insignificant. People say: “The crumbs go into the earth, and cakes come out of the earth.”

Turnips contain up to 9 percent sugar, many mineral salts, a significant amount of vitamins C, PP, provitamin A and some vitamins B1 and B2. Mustard oil gives the smell and taste of turnips. Significant nutritional value and the presence of vitamins make turnips a valuable product, especially in the northern regions of the country, where they grow well. In medical nutrition it is used for constipation, but in acute inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract it is contraindicated. Turnip juice was previously widely used to treat scurvy, and decoctions were used as a diuretic and expectorant. An ointment was prepared from grated fresh turnips and goose fat (2:1) to treat frostbite.

Swede, being an unpretentious plant to heat, is of especially great nutritional importance for the northern regions of the country. It has become widespread in Europe, North America and North Africa.

Rutabaga contains up to 2 percent protein, 7-9 percent sugars, ascorbic acid, vitamins B1, B2 and P.

Leaves of turnip, radish, radish, rutabaga. The use of the leaves of these vegetables for food purposes has been known since ancient times. In Rus', peasant families used them to prepare stews, flatbreads, and pickles. Nowadays, the leaves of root vegetables are widely used in food in the USA, Canada, Japan, Italy, and India.

They can be used as an addition to many dishes, in salads, especially in spring and early summer, when the root vegetables are small and the leaves are tender, soft, bushy and weigh many times more than the mass of the root vegetables. They can be pickled together with vegetables. In terms of nutritional value, the leaves of these root vegetables are also not inferior to the latter, and in terms of the content of individual elements they are even superior. We provide a comparative table of the chemical composition of the root vegetables of radish, radish, turnip, rutabaga and their leaves.

Product type	Chemical composition, g per 100 g of product				Vitamin content, mg per 100 g of product
Product type	Water	Protein	Cellulose	Minerals	Carotene	C	B6
Radish	93,0	1,2	2,5	0,6	0,02	29,0	0,06
Radish leaves	87,0	1,4	1,6	1,4	-	104,0	-
Radish	93,0	1,2	2,3	0,6	-	25,0	0,1
Radish leaves	93,3	1,2	0,8	0,8	-	104,0	-
Turnip	93,0	1,2	2,3	0,6	-	25,0	0,1
turnip leaves	90,7	1,1	1,1	0,8	8,7	143,0	-
Swede	93,0	1,2	2,0	0,8	0,05	30,0	0,2
Rutabaga leaves	88,1	1,2	1,5	2,1	8,94	101,0	-

The table shows that in terms of vitamin C content, the leaves of root vegetables are significantly superior to the root vegetables themselves. Thus, turnip leaves contain 143 mg% vitamin C, while the root vegetable itself contains only 25.0 mg% vitamin C.

Radish leaf

In recent years, the popularity of national dishes of East Asian cuisine has been increasing among Russian gardeners. This cuisine is distinguished by a very wide variety of vegetables and methods of preparing them, and the presence of a variety of fresh herbs all year round.

Therefore, our range of green vegetables is gradually expanding to include leafy forms of cabbage, radishes, turnips and radishes, which give a high yield and ripen quickly, which allows us to obtain a lot of salad products.

Probably not everyone knows that in addition to the roots of radishes, the leaves are also used for food. It is clear that special varieties are grown for these purposes, which are still very little widespread in our country, but by growing which you can diversify your menu by adding radish leaf salad.

Unlike ordinary radish, leaf radish does not form roots, but it grows powerful herbaceous leaves, up to about 30 cm in height, which can be eaten. These leaves accumulate a large amount (up to 7%) of dry matter and are rich in sugars, carotene and vitamin C (up to 50 mg/100 g). These leaves should be used for food before flowering, as after flowering they lose their value.

Leaf radishes were brought to Russia from the Korean Peninsula. This is an annual herbaceous plant about 30 cm high. It has a powerful tap root, but, as a rule, it does not form a root crop.

Its leaves are pubescent, lyre-shaped or whole, collected in 8-16 pieces in a lush rosette. Like ordinary radishes, the flowers of leaf radishes are collected in an inflorescence-tassel, and the seeds ripen in pods.

Leaf radishes grow best in the cooler months. If the summer is cool, these vegetables are grown all year round, but in regions with hot summers only in spring or autumn. It grows best in fertile, moisture-retentive soils with low to medium nitrogen content.

When sown in spring on short daylight hours, leaf radishes bloom in 30-40 days. In summer, when there is maximum daylight, it grows faster - in 20-25 days, but increases a small mass (only 8-12 leaves weighing 25-30 g).

When sown in summer-autumn, leaf radish does not bloom for quite a long time - almost two months, while producing large (12-16 leaves weighing up to 150 g) and high-quality plants, so the yield of leaf radish, depending on the sowing time, ranges from 2.5 to 8 kg/sq. m.

Leaf radish produces the greatest yield on light loamy or sandy loam soils. In crop rotation it is better to place it after cucumbers, tomatoes, legumes, carrots, and potatoes.

The soil for growing leaf radishes is prepared in the same way as for radishes or Chinese cabbage. Radish seeds do not have any special requirements for fertility and soil composition, but they actively respond to the application of fertilizers.

But it should be taken into account that with an overdose of nitrogen fertilizers, radish leaves are capable of accumulating nitrates, so when growing it, it is better to use complex mineral fertilizers as fertilizers, rather than fresh manure or chicken droppings.

Since leaf radish is very little known to us, and we do not yet have our own zoned varieties, we do not yet have our own seeds adapted to local conditions. We can recommend the seeds of the South Korean varieties, Idoren and Darang, which grow well here.

Leaf radish is usually grown with a single stem as an annual plant. Seeds are sown scattered or in grooves, spreading them every 10 cm. Young plants are thinned out so that the interval between them is 15 cm, and between rows - 25 cm.

Caring for leaf radishes is traditional for early-ripening cruciferous crops: weeding, regular watering, loosening the rows, protection from the cruciferous flea beetle (dusting with ash, refreshing watering, biological products).

The harvest is harvested 5-6 weeks after sowing. The first cutting is done when the leaves appear and the height of the plants reaches 10 cm, or wait for immature flower shoots to appear when the height of the plants reaches 20-25 cm. The stems are cut at a distance of 2-3 cm from the ground.

During cool weather, the plants produce new shoots and produce one or two additional crops over four to five weeks. The shoots are cut until the stems remain soft.

Then the plant is pulled out of the soil, the roots are rinsed with water and wrapped in a damp cloth and a plastic bag. In this form, radishes are stored in the refrigerator for 10-12 days.

Leaves, young stems and young inflorescences with a sweetish taste are eaten after cooking or cut for salads.

Spring salad (serves 4). Chop 4 medium-sized plants and a fresh cucumber, add chopped green onions (30 grams) and season with vegetable oil and salt to taste.

Kim-chi in Korean. Mix coarsely chopped leaf radish, green onions, carrots chopped into long thin strips, salt, season with ground red pepper and mix well. This salad is not seasoned with vegetable oil or mayonnaise.

V. A. Loiko

Photo: o-g-o-r-o-d.ru

Botanical description, origin and distribution of radish

An annual (early varieties) or biennial (winter varieties) herbaceous root vegetable plant of the cabbage family. The biennial form forms a rosette of leaves and a root crop in the first year of life, and a branched flowering shoot grows in the second year. In annuals, the entire development cycle ends in one season.

Root vegetables are round or elongated, white, red, pink, purple, variegated or black in color. Flowers with white, pink or purple corolla. The fruit is a pod, the seeds are light brown, large. Not found in the wild. It probably originated, like the radish, from the seaside radish.

It was introduced into culture long before our era. Distributed everywhere in our country.

Chemical composition, nutritional, dietary and medicinal properties of radish

Roots radishes contain a significant amount of dry matter, sugars, proteins, and a large amount of coarse fiber, which contributes to good intestinal function. And also essential oil, choline, glycosides, ascorbic acid, carotene, B vitamins, enzymes, lysozyme (which has a strong bactericidal effect), phytoncides, purine bases, various mineral salts.

The variety of mineral salts contained in radish roots determines its high dietary and nutritional value. Salts of potassium, sodium, magnesium, iron, phosphorus, sulfur, chlorine, etc. are contained in it in a combination favorable for the human body. Black radish is especially rich in mineral salts.

Helps stimulate appetite, enhances the secretion of gastric juice and improves digestion. Medical science has proven that it has a choleretic and diuretic effect. Doctors recommend it for the prevention of atherosclerosis. Rinse your mouth with a warm decoction of radish for toothache, take a glass at night as a sedative. In therapeutic nutrition, radish is used as a means of stimulating the secretion of gastric juice, enhancing digestion and intestinal motility. Cholazan extract (choleretic agent for cholelithiasis) is obtained from radish.

In folk medicine, radish juice, mixed in equal parts with honey, is used for catarrh of the respiratory tract, pulmonary tuberculosis, urolithiasis and gallstone diseases. Radish juice, boiled with sugar, is prescribed as an antiscorbutic remedy, as well as for colds. Consumption of radish is contraindicated for stomach ulcers, inflammatory bowel diseases, liver and kidney diseases, since the purine bases and essential oil it contains have an irritating effect on the liver and kidneys.

Biological features of radish

Radish is a cross-pollinated plant. Radish, like radishes, is a cold-resistant crop that requires little heat. It can withstand autumn frosts without damage, but its storage capacity is reduced. Grows well in fertile, moist areas, but does not tolerate excess moisture. Otherwise, the biological characteristics are the same as those of radishes.

Features of radish growing technology

The best varieties radishes are: Mayskaya, Delicacy, Odesskaya 5- among early varieties, 150 and also Winter round white, Winter round black, Margelanskaya, Skvirskaya white, Skvirskaya black, Grayvoronskaya- for winter storage. Vegetable growers also grow numerous varieties and hybrids of foreign selection and local forms of summer radish.

Radish is grown by direct sowing of seeds or by seedlings. Typically, stepwise sowing of summer radish varieties is carried out at intervals of 20 days, starting in early May. The sowing or planting pattern is 15-20 cm between rows and up to 10 cm between plants and rows. The depth of seed placement is 2-3 cm.

Harvesting is carried out selectively as soon as the root crops are formed. Radishes for winter storage are harvested at a time, before the onset of frost. After digging up the plants, trim the leaves without damaging the apical buds. Store in rooms with a temperature of 0...2°C. Otherwise, the growing technology is the same as for radishes.

Using radish in everyday life

It is well preserved in cellars, unlike other vegetables, and can be used fresh almost all year round without losing its vitamin activity. Grated or chopped radish is used in a variety of salads with mayonnaise, sour cream or vegetable oil, cut into slices with salt, and colored root vegetables are used to decorate meat and vegetable dishes. At a young age, radish leaves are also used for salads, especially varieties with weak pubescence (summer Chinese and Japanese radishes), and they are also added as a flavoring to various salads.

In Rus', garden radish has always been valued, since to this day it is considered a life-saving crop. Its best varieties are considered to be the canonically shaped white root crop Grayvoronskaya and the round black one. Grayvoronskaya has a sharper taste. Its roots contain essential oils, glycosides, lysozyme, which has bactericidal properties, and ascorbic acid 0.12 percent.

It is these substances that give it bitterness and a specific aroma. It also contains sugars (pentose, glucose), vitamins B, PP, minerals, phytoncides, iodine. The medicinal properties of black radish have been known for many thousands of years. Doctors of the Middle Ages and antiquity used it for diseases of the stomach, intestines, kidneys, liver, and to increase appetite. It stimulates digestion and stimulates appetite. Black radish fiber helps remove cholesterol from the body, which is very important for the prevention of atherosclerosis.

Traditional medicine uses black radish as a diuretic for kidney stones and gout. The juice has choleretic activity; it is recommended fresh for liver disease, as it can open blockages in the liver and treat jaundice. Syrup boiled with sugar or juice with honey is recommended for inflammatory diseases of the upper respiratory tract as an expectorant. The juice is used to treat vaginal trichomoniasis. It is used as a food product that enhances the secretion of digestive glands.

Treatment with black radish - methods

Frequent drinking of black radish water decoction is recommended for chronic diarrhea. Leaves and seeds are also used as a medicinal remedy in Korea. The seeds are the most potent part of the root vegetable, followed by the peel, leaves, and the fruit itself. When using fresh juice with sugar, it is effective: part of the core is scraped out and granulated sugar is poured inside the root crop. Sugar soaked in juice is taken 3-4 times a day, a teaspoon.

The oral cavity is rinsed with juice when the mucous membrane is inflamed. The juice is used topically. The root vegetable is ground on a grater, the mass is squeezed out, and the resulting juice is rubbed into the skin along the path of the diseased nerve.

Radish seeds are useful against poisons - if you crush them and put them on a scorpion, it will die. The juice is more powerful. If a scorpion stings a person who has eaten radish before, then the scorpion’s venom will not affect him. Radish in wine helps with horned viper bites.

Radish seeds are also prescribed for inflammatory diseases of the respiratory and stomach organs. The therapeutic dose of daily intake is 6-12 grams. Radish seeds eliminate throbbing pain in joints and are useful for bruises. For inflammation of the bladder, extensive edema, and diabetes, use root vegetables as.

Radish seeds or crushed root vegetables are applied to burns, leaves are placed on bruises. A mixture of chaff flour and radish promotes hair growth in case of fox disease. Medicinal bandages made from honey and radish are applied to the hematomas for resorption. These dressings also treat malignant ulcers, and gangrene ulcers are finally cured by seeds and vinegar. The juice and freshly grated root vegetable are used in the treatment of purulent wounds, for rubbing against radiculitis, gout, and rheumatism. They also act like mustard plasters.

A type of root vegetable is radish, an annual plant with a less pungent taste. It grows very quickly and is especially valuable in the diet in early spring. In medical terms, the beneficial properties of black radish and radish are endowed with the same advantages.

Treatment with black radish: contraindications

But remember: it has contraindications. It should not be used if you have stomach and duodenal ulcers, cardiovascular diseases, or gastritis with high acidity. It is harmful to the stomach (it causes belching) and teeth. You must eat it after meals.

You have read the information

Probably not everyone knows that in addition to root vegetables, radish leaves are also used for food. It is clear that special varieties are grown for these purposes, which are still very little widespread in our country, but by growing which you can diversify your menu by adding radish leaf salad.

Leaf radish is a type of oilseed radish. (Raphanus sativus var. oleiformis) originally from East Asia, which is more often used in our country as a green manure crop. However, the salad variety has a lot of greenery and stocky growth). Just like ordinary oilseed radish, it blooms during short days, so the greens must be collected before flowering.

Unlike ordinary radishes, leaf radishes do not form roots, but they grow powerful herbaceous leaves, up to about 30 cm in height, which can be eaten. These leaves accumulate a large amount (up to 7%) of dry matter and are rich in sugars, carotene and vitamin C (up to 50 mg/100 g). These leaves should be used for food before flowering, as after flowering they lose their value.

Leaf radishes were brought to Russia from the Korean Peninsula. This is an annual herbaceous plant about 30 cm high. It has a powerful tap root, but, as a rule, it does not form a root crop.

Its leaves are not pubescent, lyre-shaped or whole, collected in 8-16 pieces in a lush rosette. Like ordinary radishes, the flowers of leaf radishes are collected in an inflorescence-tassel, and the seeds ripen in pods.

Growing Leaf Radish

Leaf radishes grow best in the cooler months. If the summer is cool, these vegetables are grown all year round, but in regions with hot summers - only in spring or autumn.

The soil. It grows best in fertile, moisture-retentive soils with low to medium nitrogen content.

Varieties. Since leaf radish is very little known among us. One variety is registered in the State Register of Breeding Achievements of the Russian Federation.

Salad radish Orient Express- early ripening variety, from germination to cutting of greenery 25-35 days. A rosette of leaves with a diameter of 20-30 cm. The leaves are green, juicy, tender, with a smooth edge, excellent taste, with a slight pungency, containing many vitamins and mineral salts. Used fresh in salads, sandwiches and other dishes. It is grown both in open and protected ground. The variety is cold-resistant and resistant to excessive soil moisture. Radish seeds are sown at a depth of 1-1.5 cm throughout the season.

Sowing. When sown in spring on short daylight hours, leaf radishes bloom in 30–40 days. In summer, when daylight hours are maximum, it grows faster - in 20–25 days, but increases in small mass (only 8–12 leaves weighing 25–30 g).

Leaf radish produces the greatest yield on light loamy or sandy loam soils. In crop rotation it is better to place it after cucumbers, tomatoes, legumes, carrots, and potatoes.

Care for leaf radishes, traditional for early-ripening cruciferous crops: weeding, regular watering, loosening of rows, protection from cruciferous flea beetle (dusting with ash, refreshing watering, biological products).

Harvesting and cooking recipes

The harvest is harvested 5–6 weeks after sowing. The first cutting is done when the leaves appear and the height of the plants reaches 10 cm, or wait for immature flower shoots to appear when the height of the plants reaches 20–25 cm. The stems are cut at a distance of 2–3 cm from the ground.

During cool weather, the plants produce new shoots and produce one or two additional crops over four to five weeks. The shoots are cut until the stems remain soft.

Then the plant is pulled out of the soil, the roots are rinsed with water and wrapped in a damp cloth and a plastic bag. In this form, radish is stored in the refrigerator for 10–12 days.

Leaves, young stems and young inflorescences with a sweetish taste are eaten after cooking or cut for salads.

Spring salad(for 4 servings). Chop 4 medium-sized plants and a fresh cucumber, add chopped green onions (30 grams) and season with vegetable oil and salt to taste.

Kim-chi in Korean. Mix coarsely chopped leaf radish, green onions, carrots chopped into long thin strips, salt, season with red ground pepper and mix well. This salad is not seasoned with vegetable oil or mayonnaise.

“Ural Gardener”, No. 29, 2016