RADISH
By:- Ms. Juhi Chandra
Assistant Professor
Dept. of Agriculture
UMU, Ranchi
RADISH
BOTANICAL NAME : Raphanus sativus L.
FAMILY : Cruciferae
CHROMOSOME NO : 2n = 18
ORIGIN : Europe and Western Asia
Radish root develops from primary root and hypocotyl.
Major sugar present:- Glucose
Pigmentation present in radish:- Pink, purple , red is due to anthocyanin pigments.
Purple colour- Cyanidin
Red colour- Pelargonidin
USES AND IMPORTANCE
• The leafy tops are very rich in vitamin A, B, C and minerals particularly Ca and Fe.
• The roots and leaves are consumed both as salad and as cooked vegetable.
• The roots are good appetizer, effective in curing liver, gall bladder and urinary disorders, piles and gastrodynia.
• It is a good source of vitamin C containing 15-40mg per 100g of edible portion.
• Pink skinned radishes are generally richer in vitamin C than white skinned ones.
• The young tender pods are also used as vegetable.
• A salt extracted from roots, dried and burnt to white ash is said to be used in stomach trouble.
• The juice of fresh leaves is used as diuretic and laxative.
• Seeds are said to be peptic, expectorant, diuretic and carminative.
• Young tender pods of rat-tail radish (Raphanus sativus var. cadudatus) are used as vegetable–no edible root is formed in
this radish.
• It is a short duration crop and highly productive, so preferred as intercrop or in relay and sequential cropping.
• The characteristic pungent flavour is due to the presence of volatile isothiocynates (4-methyl thio-3-butenyl isothiocyanate) –
MTB-ITC.
• The colour of the pink cultivars is due to the presence of anthocyanin pigments.
• Radish contains alkaloids known as isothiocyanate though it is good source of carbohydrates and minerals. Pink colour
of radish is due to the presence of anthocyanin and white colour varieties are not rich in Vitamin-C.
There are two distinct groups of radishes viz. European or Temperate and Asiatic or Tropical Type:
Special features of important variety
• New variety of radish- Pusa Shweta
• Popular variety in North India- Hill Queen
• Resistant to Pithiness, pre- mature bolting, root branching and forking
Arka Nishant
• Giant variety more than 1m long- Jaunpuri or Giant radish
SOIL AND CLIMATIC REQUIREMENTS
SOIL
• The soil of selected field should be deep, light and friable.
• The field should be well drained.
• It can grow on slightly acidic soils (pH 5.5-6-8).
CLIMATIC REQUIREMENTS
• Ideal temperature for growth and development of quality roots in radish is 10-15o C. Though it can tolerate
high temperature, roots develop pungency under hot weather. Hence, it should be harvested when roots are
small and tender during hot periods.
Land Preparation:- Land is ploughed to a fine tilth and ridges of 25 cm height and furrows are prepared at
30-45 cm distance. Seeds are sown continuously in ridges. Spacing depends on type of varieties. Indian
tropical cultivars take longer time and grow large.
SEED RATE
• Asiatic Varieties : 8-10 kg ha
• Temperate Varieties : 10-12 kg /ha.
SPACING
• Row-row spacing for Asiatic types is 45cm and for temperate type is 20-30cm.
• The plant to plant spacing is 6-8 cm for Asiatic type and 3.5cm for European type.
SOWING TIME
• In North India, radish can be grown throughout the year, but the main season is from August to January.
• The European varieties can be sown from September-March.
• In South India, radish can be grown throughout the year but the best period is from April to June and
October to December.
• In the hills, radish is sown from March to October.
METHOD OF SOWING
• Seeds should be sown on flat beds or on the ridges.
• Sowing depth should be 1.5-3.0cm for semi-long types and for round cultivars, it is 1.0-1.25 cm.
NUTRIENT MANAGEMENT
• Incorporate 100-150 q/ha of well rotten Farm Yard Manure after the first ploughing.
• Apply chemical fertilizer mixture @ 80-100kg N, 40-60Kg P and 80-100kg K/ha.
• Entire quantity of FYM, phosphorus and potash and half quantity of nitrogen should be applied at the time of field
preparation.
• The remaining half quantity of N is top dressed 20-30 days after transplanting.
• Potassium application increase the vitamin C content in radish
IRRIGATION
• Irrigate the crop once in 6-7 days depending upon weather conditions.
• Uneven moisture supply causes harsh, fluffy and pungent roots
INTERCULTURAL OPERATIONS
• One weeding should be given 15-20 days after sowing.
• Thinning of plants must be carried out 15-20 days after sowing keeping a distance of 5-10cm between plants in a
row.
• Earthing up is also necessary to get well developed, quality and elongated roots as generally the growing roots
tend to push out of the soil.
• Application of Pendimethalin @1.2 kg a.i./ha or Alachlor @1.5 kg a.i./ha or Fluchloralin (Basalin)@ 0.9 kg
a.i./ha or Isoproturan @1.0 kg a.i./ha or metalachlor @1.0 kg a.i./ha in 750 litres of water as pre-emergence is
very useful for effective weed control.
HARVESTING
• European varieties are harvested 25 - 30 days after sowing.
• Roots will become fluffy or pithy if kept in the field for a longer time.
• The Asiatic varieties are uprooted 40-45 days after sowing and they remain edible for longer duration compared
to European varieties.
• The crop should be irrigated before the pulling out of roots as it facilitates easy uprooting of the roots.
YIELD
• The yield of Asiatic cultivars varies from 150-200 q/ha while it varies from 50-70 q/ha in case of European
cultivars.
Pest and Diseases
• Major serious pest- Aphids
• Mustard saw fly is most common occurring pest in India.
• Radish phyllody is a serious problem in seed production.
• Clubroot is a soil borne disease caused by Plasmodiophora brassicae
• White rust- Albugo candida
• 1. Radish Phyllody: The disease is transmitted by jassid Orosius albicinctus.
• Symptoms- The diseased plant assumes a dull grey to light violet colouration. The symptoms of the disease appear at the time of
flowering when all the floral parts become green violet and leafy. The sepals and petals become green thick knob headed leaves.
Generally, the whole plants show symptoms of the disease. If the infection occurs at an early stage of growth in the nursery then
the whole plant is affected.
• Control: One or two sprays of Monocrotophos (0.05%)
• 2. White Rust (Albugo candida): Disease attacks the leaves and flowering shoots. Affected flowering shoots get deformed and
bear only malformed flowers. White powdery substance in patches is observed on the under surface of the leaves.
• Control: Clean cultivation and use of resistant varieties help to prevent the disease. Regular spraying with Dithane Z 78 (0.2%)
effectively controls the disease.
• 3. Clubroot: Plasmodiophora brassicae
• Symptoms
• Stunting and yellowing of plants
• Leaves become yellowish and wilt on hot days.
• Club like swelling of root and root lets
• Club root is particularly prevalent on soils with a pH below 7, whereas it has been observed that the disease is often less serious on heavy soils and on soils
containing little organic matter.
• Management
• Soil fumigation with Methly bromide 1kg/10m 2 followed by covering with plastic film.
• Seed treatment with Captan/Thiram 4g/kg, followed by [Link] 4g/kg.
• Application of lime 2.5 t/ha.
• Soil drenching with Copper oxychloride 0.25%.
Clubroot White Rust of
Crucifers
Radish Phyllody
Physiological disorders
• Pore extent- Pores are formed by the collapse of parenchymatous cells in root
tissue caused by excessive root growth.
• Pithiness of root is more in summer crop is due to excess NPK and soil moisture
stress.
• Hollow rot- caused due to high temperature during 16-30 days of sowing.
• Akashin caused by boron deficiency.
