Crops › Radish
How to grow Radish
in the UK
Sow March to September, harvest April to October. About 28 days from seed to plate. You can sow it this month.
Radish, proper cracking little root veg. If you're after something quick and easy to grow on the plot, these are just the ticket, honestly. They pop up fast and give you a lovely crunch.
Sowing
Radishes are proper easy to sow directly where they're going to grow. You can start 'em off from March right through to September, keeping on with successional sowings every two or three weeks for a steady supply. Make a shallow drill, about 1cm deep, then pop your seeds in about 2-3cm apart. Cover 'em lightly with soil, give 'em a good drink, and they'll be up in no time. No need for plug plants with these, you just get 'em straight in the ground.
Growing on
Once your little radish seedlings start to show, you might need to thin them out a bit if they're too close together. Aim for about 5-8cm between each plant so they've got room to swell. If you're growing in containers, which they're cracking for, just make sure the pot's wide enough for a good few to grow. They don't need any special support, just a bit of space, you know what I mean.
Looking after it
Radishes need a steady supply of water, especially when it's dry, otherwise they can get a bit woody and too spicy. Don't let the soil dry out, like I say. A bit of shade in hot spells helps too, stops them bolting off to seed. You don't usually need to feed them much, good soil's enough.
What goes wrong
To be honest, the main things to watch out for are slugs and flea beetle. Slugs will munch holes in the leaves, especially when they're young, so keep an eye out. Flea beetle can make tiny holes in the leaves too, a bit like shotgun pellets. If it's a real problem, a bit of horticultural fleece can help keep 'em off, but usually, they grow through it.
Harvest
You'll be harvesting radishes in no time, usually about a month after sowing, sometimes quicker. Just pull them gently from the soil when they're a decent size, don't let 'em get too big or they'll get woody and past it. Best to use 'em fresh, straight from the plot, in salads or with a bit of butter and salt. They don't really store well, so just pick what you need.
I always try to sow a small batch of radishes every fortnight, even if it's just a few, 'cause then you've always got that fresh crunch ready for your tea, you know what I mean.
Dates for your plot
Type the first half of your postcode and the plant-out advice shifts to your area's typical frost dates.
Varieties, and whether the club would grow them again
| Variety | Club verdict |
|---|---|
| French Breakfast 3 A cracking early variety that's a bit milder than some. It produces nice, long cylindrical roots, perfect for a quick snack. | No club votes yet |
| Sparkler 3 This one's a proper classic maincrop with its distinctive red skin and white tip. It's a reliable choice that always looks good on the plate. | No club votes yet |
| Cherry Belle A lovely round red radish that does well later in the season. It's a dependable variety for extending your harvest. | No club votes yet |
| White Icicle This heritage variety gives you long, pure white roots, a bit like a mini daikon. It's got a nice crisp texture and a gentle flavour. | No club votes yet |
| Scarlet Globe A classic round red radish that's cracking for growing in pots and containers. It's reliable and gives a good crunch. | No club votes yet |
| Easter Egg This one's a real treat with its mix of colours, like little Easter eggs popping out of the ground. You get a good yield of these vibrant roots. | No club votes yet |
| Sparkler Another cracking Sparkler, this one's an early variety with that lovely red and white bicolor look. It gives a really crisp texture, dead good. | No club votes yet |
| Rudolf If you've had problems with radishes bolting too quickly, Rudolf is a good bet. It's a reliable round red that's slower to go to seed. | No club votes yet |
| Easter Egg Mix A lovely heritage mix that brings a splash of colour to your plate. You'll get reds, pinks, whites, and purples, all with a good crunch. | No club votes yet |
| Minowase Summer Cross F1 This F1 variety is a proper Japanese daikon, giving you long white roots. It's a good maincrop choice if you fancy trying something a bit different. | No club votes yet |
| Rudi Similar to Rudolf, Rudi is another cracking bolt-resistant red globe radish. It means you get a longer window for harvesting without them going woody. | No club votes yet |
| Watermelon Radish This heritage variety is a real showstopper, white on the outside and a vibrant pink inside, just like a mini watermelon. It's got a lovely sweet, mild flavour too. | No club votes yet |
| Long White Icicle A cracking maincrop variety that produces pure white, long tapered roots. It's reliable and gives a good yield of crisp radishes. | No club votes yet |
| Pink Beauty This early variety gives you lovely rose-pink globe radishes. They're crisp, mild, and a bit different from your usual red ones. | No club votes yet |
| Zlata Zlata is a cracking heritage radish with a unique golden yellow skin. It's got a mild, sweet flavour, perfect for adding a bit of colour to your salad. | No club votes yet |
Votes are members rating varieties in their Seed Tin, one vote per gardener. Tap a variety for the full page and where to buy.
Buy Radish seeds
Partner retailers. If you buy through these links we may earn a small commission. It never costs you more.
Cook the harvest
Musaengchae is a classic Korean cold side dish where julienned radish is dressed with gochugaru, sesame oil, rice vinegar and garlic to create something crisp, fiery and deeply savoury in minutes. It is the kind of dish that disappears faster than you expect and is genuinely better the day it is made. Serve alongside steamed rice, grilled meat, or as part of a spread of small plates.
15 min · easySmashing radishes rather than slicing them opens up their texture so they absorb dressing like a sponge and develop craggy edges that catch every bit of the punchy garlic and chilli dressing. This is a dish you will find variations of across China, and it is extraordinary for how little effort it takes. Ready in ten minutes and genuinely addictive.
10 min · easyThis is the recipe that makes you feel brilliant about your garden, because it uses every single part of the radish — the roots sliced thin and added at the end so they keep their bite, and the leafy tops wilted into the broth where they add a mild peppery depth. A deeply savoury, clean Japanese soup that is ready in twenty minutes and wastes absolutely nothing.
20 min · easyThis is a proper British summer salad built around the natural affinity between peppery radishes, rich smoked mackerel and sharp horseradish. The crème fraîche dressing ties everything together and doubles as a sauce, while the watercress adds bitterness to cut through the oiliness of the fish. It comes together in about twenty minutes and needs no cooking whatsoever.
20 min · easyWatch for, and grow alongside
Questions people ask
When do you sow Radish in the UK?
Sow Radish from March to September.
How long does Radish take from sowing to harvest?
Roughly 28 days, with the harvest April to October.
Which Radish varieties do gardeners grow again?
Club members rate every variety they grow. This page shows the grow-again votes for French Breakfast 3, Sparkler 3, Cherry Belle, White Icicle and more.
Track your Radish from packet to plate
Sowing reminders and harvest forecasts for your own frost dates, the Seed Tin, Scan Centre for any label or packet, and the Potty Mouth Garden Club. Free to start.
Allotment keeper in the North East of England, the voice behind the Tony C Smith YouTube channel, and the gardener who built GrowMore CookMore. Club numbers on this page update as members log their plots. Last updated 3 September 2026.