Pest and diseases
Slugs and snails love leafy greens. To protect seedlings, use brass scouring wool. Roll it between your hands until it forms a long sausage. Lay this around the seedbed, making sure there are no gaps or leaves hanging over for the blighters to use as a bridge. Pin it securely on the ground using twigs.
Protect from birds using netting as they love to nibble on Asian greens, especially in the middle of winter when there is not much else for them to eat.
Gardening
Exotic, delicious and healthy: how to grow and cook with Asian greens
Nutritious and easy to grow, Asian greens add a sparkle to the garden and the plate
Mizuna, gai lan, tat soi, bok choy — just the names of Asian greens are exotic and transporting. These leafy greens are fast and easy to grow, flourish almost all year round and are delicious and healthy. What more could you ask for?
What are they?
Hardy Asian greens come in a wide selection of colours and textures. Most are from the cabbage family and do better during cooler weather. They can be grown all year round, but expect them to go to seed more quickly during hotter months. Unlike lettuce, which turns bitter when it bolts, leaves of Asian greens are still edible when flowering, although they become more pungent and are better eaten cooked than raw. Some varieties produce tasty miniature broccoli-like buds. All parts are edible, including the flowers and seeds.
How to grow
Seedlings of many varieties are available but they are easily grown from seed. Leafier varieties do well when different types are mixed together and planted in a group. Bok choy and Chinese cabbage need a bit more space and should be planted separately. The “cut and come again” method is a practical way of growing and harvesting Asian greens, where individual leaves are plucked from a selection of plants grown close together.
Scatter seeds evenly in a sunny position, in fertile soil that has been raked smooth. Cover with a light layer of sieved compost and press down firmly. Keep moist until they germinate. They need consistent and plentiful moisture. In hotter weather they do better in semi-shade. Asian greens are ideal for containers. Good companions are spring onions, lettuce, nasturtium and beetroot
Pest and diseases
Slugs and snails love leafy greens. To protect seedlings, use brass scouring wool. Roll it between your hands until it forms a long sausage. Lay this around the seedbed, making sure there are no gaps or leaves hanging over for the blighters to use as a bridge. Pin it securely on the ground using twigs.
Protect from birds using netting as they love to nibble on Asian greens, especially in the middle of winter when there is not much else for them to eat.
Cooking tips
Varieties
• Sourced from: Jane's Delicious A-Z of Vegetables. Jane Griffiths. Published by Sunbird Publishers.
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