How to Grow Tatsoi
Tatsoi At a Glance
Difficulty
Easy
Category
Vegetable
Sun Exposure
Full Sun
Frost Tolerance
Frost Hardy
Cold Hardiness
Survives to -12°C
Plant Family
Brassicaceae
Growing Season
Cool Season
Plant Lifecycle
Annual
How to Start It
★ Recommended for beginners
Tatsoi handles hard frost, so sow it in early spring, about 3 weeks before your last frost, and again about 8 weeks before your first fall frost, which is its best season. Sow the seeds 0.5 cm deep and cover lightly. They sprout in 4 to 8 days: thin them to 15 cm apart for full rosettes, or leave them closer and pick baby leaves.
Tatsoi is a mild Asian green with spoon-shaped leaves that grows in a flat rosette, ready about 45 days after sowing. It is one of the most cold-hardy greens there is and keeps going through frost and even light snow, but heat makes it bolt (rush to flower).
When To Start
Tatsoi likes cool weather. Sow it in early spring, as soon as the ground can be worked.
We do not have exact sowing dates for this one yet.
When should you plant Tatsoi?
Your planting dates depend on your local climate. Sign up and add your location to unlock personalized dates.
Your Tatsoi Planting Window
Start planting
May 15, 2026
Last chance
Sep 10, 2026
Your Tatsoi Calendar
Set your location to turn these into exact dates and reminders.
Sow tatsoi outdoors now for a spring crop
3 weeks before your last frost
Sow tatsoi now for fall, its best season
60 days before your first frost
Start picking tatsoi leaves
About 30 days after you plant it
Did you water your tatsoi 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 tatsoi seedlings: snip the extras at soil level so each one has room to grow.
About 18 days after you plant it
Your tatsoi is growing! Keep the soil moist for tender, mild leaves.
About 23 days after you plant it
Harvest time is near! Pick the outer tatsoi leaves or cut the whole rosette.
About 38 days after you plant it
Picking time may be here: check your tatsoi.
About 45 days after you plant it
The Journey Ahead
Tatsoi's Lifecycle
Seedling
Mature Plant
Seed Production
Step 2
Planting & Sprouting
Expect sprouts in 4–8 days
Growing Tips
- 1Grow tatsoi in full sun in spring and fall, or part shade if it gets warm.
- 2Mix compost into the soil before sowing for fast, tender leaves.
- 3Keep the soil evenly moist, because dry spells make it bolt (rush to flower).
- 4Feed with compost tea every 2 to 3 weeks if you are picking often.
- 5Tiny black flea beetles chew small holes in the leaves, so cover sowings with row cover from day one.
- 6Pick any green caterpillars off the undersides of the leaves by hand.
Seedling Phase
Step 3
Growth & Maturity
~45
Days to Maturity
20 cm
Mature Height
25 cm
Mature Width
Pests to Watch For
Diseases to Watch For
Mature Plant
Step 4
Harvesting
Harvest Window
45 days
When to Pick
Pick outer leaves or cut whole rosettes; very frost-tolerant
How to Harvest
- 1Pick baby leaves about 3 to 4 weeks after sowing, or wait about 45 days for full rosettes.
- 2Pick the outer leaves and leave the centre to keep growing.
- 3You can also cut the whole rosette 3 cm above the soil, and it often grows back.
- 4Leave fall plants in the ground, because frost makes the leaves sweeter and they keep well into the cold.
- 5Eat the leaves raw in salads or lightly cooked in stir fries, and keep them in a bag in the fridge for up to a week.
Step 5
Saving Seeds
How to Save Seeds
Tatsoi flowers and makes seed in its first season, often after a spring sowing meets hot weather. It crosses with bok choy, napa cabbage, turnips, mizuna and rapini, since they are all the same kind of plant, so let only one of them flower within about 800 m, and remember hybrid F1 seeds will not grow true. Leave the thin pods until most are tan and dry, then cut the stalks and hang them in a paper bag to finish. Crush the pods to free the small round seeds, and store them labelled in a cool, dark, dry place, where they keep about 4 years.
Seed Production
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