How to Grow Radish
Radish At a Glance
Difficulty
Easy
Category
Vegetable
Sun Exposure
Full Sun, Partial Sun
Frost Tolerance
Frost Hardy
Cold Hardiness
Survives to -7°C
Plant Family
Brassicaceae
Growing Season
Cool Season
Plant Lifecycle
Annual
How to Start It
★ Recommended for beginners
Radishes shrug off light frost, so start sowing about 2 weeks before your last spring frost. Sow the seeds 1 cm deep and 2 to 3 cm apart, then thin them (pull the extras) to 5 cm apart once they are up. They sprout in 3 to 7 days, and a fresh short row every 1 to 2 weeks keeps them coming.
Radishes are the fastest vegetable you can grow: spring types go from seed to plate in about 25 days. They love cool weather, so sow them in spring and again from late summer, and tuck them into gaps between slower crops. Big winter radishes like Black Spanish Round and China White take about 2 months and grow best sown in mid to late summer for a fall crop.
When To Start
First chance to plant
30 Days Before Last Frost
Last chance to plant
30 Days Before First Frost
When should you plant Radish?
Your planting dates depend on your local climate. Sign up and add your location to unlock personalized dates.
Your Radish Planting Window
Start planting
May 15, 2026
Last chance
Sep 10, 2026
Your Radish Calendar
Set your location to turn these into exact dates and reminders.
Sow radishes now, then a short row every 1 to 2 weeks
2 weeks before your last frost· every year
Pull radishes when the roots are 2 to 3 cm wide
1 week after your last frost· every year· optional
Did you water your radish seedlings today? Keep the top of the soil damp until they are up and growing.
About 1 days after you plant it
Time to thin the radish seedlings: snip the extras at soil level so each one has room to grow.
About 17 days after you plant it
Your radishes are racing along! Thin seedlings to about 5 cm apart so the roots have room to swell.
About 15 days after you plant it
Almost harvest time! Brush the soil away from one root to check, and pull radishes once they reach full size.
About 24 days after you plant it
Picking time may be here: check your radish.
About 25 days after you plant it
The Journey Ahead
Radish's Lifecycle
Seedling
Mature Plant
Seed Production
Step 2
Planting & Sprouting
Expect sprouts in 3–7 days
Growing Tips
- 1Sow radishes in full sun, or in part shade in warm weather.
- 2Loosen the soil, pick out stones and mix in a little compost for smooth, round roots.
- 3Keep the soil evenly moist, because dry spells followed by soaking make the roots split and taste hot.
- 4Skip extra feeding, since too much feed grows big leaves and small roots.
- 5Sow in the cool of spring and fall, because summer heat makes radishes bolt (rush to flower and turn tough).
- 6Cover the rows with row cover right after sowing to keep out flea beetles, which chew tiny holes in the leaves, and the root maggots that tunnel into the roots.
Seedling Phase
Step 3
Growth & Maturity
~25
Days to Maturity
15 cm
Mature Height
10 cm
Mature Width
Pests to Watch For
Diseases to Watch For
Mature Plant
Step 4
Harvesting
Harvest Window
21 days
When to Pick
Pull when roots reach full size
How to Harvest
- 1Spring radishes are ready about 25 days after sowing, when the tops of the roots peek out of the soil and are about 2 to 3 cm wide.
- 2Pull one to test, then grip the leaves at the base and pull the rest straight up.
- 3Harvest promptly, since radishes left in the ground too long turn woody, hot and hollow.
- 4Leave winter radishes in the ground until they reach full size, and dig them before the ground freezes.
- 5Twist off the leaves and keep spring radishes in a bag in the fridge for up to 2 weeks, while winter radishes keep for months in a cool spot.
- 6The young leaves are good cooked like spinach, and if a few plants flower, their crunchy green seed pods are tasty too.
Step 5
Saving Seeds
How to Save Seeds
Radishes cross easily with other radish varieties, so let only one kind flower within about 800 m. A single radish does not pollinate itself well, so let at least 6 plants flower together, and remember that hybrid F1 seeds will not grow true. Spring radishes flower the same summer, but big winter radishes usually flower only after a winter, so store their roots somewhere cool and replant them in spring. Let the pods turn brown and dry on the plant, then crush them in a bag and pick out the round seeds. Store them labelled in a cool, dark, dry place, where they keep about 5 years.
Seed Production
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