Went to Lidl yesterday, just to buy some sheets - but came back with loads of seeds -well at 29p per packet its hard to resist! Bought a packet of Black Salisfy and am now wndering where the best place to grow it. Does it like well drained soil like carrots [I grow mine in raised beds] and how long do they grow?
Scorzonera(?) or Salsify which has white skin and flesh?????
Yes like carrots, raised beds but Scor. is technically a short lived perennial and the roots can be left longer to get bigger.
:-\
Salisify and Scorzonera roots are long and slender.for best results dig the soil well at least 30cm(12inch) deep and remove any stones.Avoid adding fresh Nitrogen sources such as manure,which may cause forked roots.put about 1inch of compost into soil work it in.
Also these crops don't need much special care and almost never suffer from pest problems.and be careful not to mistake grasslike foliage for grass.
Also once they grow and you get a crop,cook em first before peeling,for some reason you'll lose their delicate flavour.
Their flavour is reminiscent of Oysters.
Hope this helps.
Graham ;)
I forgot about this bit.
I have had em grow to about 12 inch long if luck about 14 inch, and there about 3 quaters of an ich in diameter.
Graham
(http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e190/Plot52/SalsifyR.jpg)
Here's some we prepared earlier.... and if you forget them you get some pretty flowers
(http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e190/Plot52/salsify.jpg)
and all your neighbours get some as well....
;D
good crop Saddad, also good pics.
graham ;)
Many thanks for all the info and the great pictures . Now I'm really looking forward to growing them.
They are superb specimens saddad *sigh* What was the brand?
Nothing Special Supersprout, Mammoth Island I think....
Just bought some ScorzoNera from Franchi at Ryton and was interested to see that the Italian for Salsify was ScorzoBlanca....
Perhaps SS but I've never managed to germinate Scorzonera... but am determined to do so this time!
love those quirks of language & definition ;D
thank you saddad, guess you have the Salsify Thumb! :o
I reakon black salsify is scorzonera which has yellow flowers rather than the purple. Lovely! The plants when in bloom can be really very tall and take up quite a lot of room. The roots underground can be very long, and like dandelions, very brittle, and if you break it in the ground, you will have it again next year.
Perhaps I had better grow them in an old bin like I am going to do with my horseradish. Trouble is they take a lot of filling.
I haven't found them to be that invasive, not in the same league as HorseRadish but they will self seed very liberally... like Dandelions!