iGrowVeg

Growing Chicory

Description: Chicory is mainly grown in winter for salad leaves. It has a bitter taste raw and needs to be blnched to take away its bitterness. There are a few types of chicory: sugar loaf, radicchio (red) and whitloof forcing chicory. Chicory is high in Vitamin A and potassium.

What month do I sow?:
Witloof varieties sow June-July for October harvest. Sugar Loaf and Radicchio varieties sow June – August and harvest Sept – November.

Varieties:

Witloof types – Witloof Zoom F1.
Sugar Loaf types – Pain de sucre, Frisee Glory.
Radicchio Types – Augusto.

What growing conditions does chicory like?: Chicory likes and open site with well drained and fertile soil but not freshly manured.

Instructions:

Refer to your own seed packet or take these instructions as a guide only.
With your trowel or dibber, draw a row or line in the raised bed soil that is no more than 1.5cm or half inch deep.
Then keep moist.
When the seedlings have two or more leaves thin them to 10cm apart for larger leaves.
Water well until established.

Tips on Growing: The wet cold weather may cause leaves and stump to rot. Remove any decayed leaves as they may be food for slugs.

Approx No of Weeks til Harvest: 13 weeks.

How to Harvest: Pull off individual leaves as required or cut the stem at its base.

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