Allotments 4 All

Any one know how to grow gobo ie when and how to plant

- no - but we have a chap in the village called Burdock = Tim

has he got a mate called dandelion .Angie

try gardenweb asian forum .Angie

 Grow it like any other member of the daisy family. If you are intending growing it as a crop and will be fertilising it, give it at least two feet between plants.
  For the best roots you should prepare the beds as carrots to reduce splitting as much as possible. The roots exhibit totipotency, the ability to grow out from very small pieces, so you should aim to harvest as much of the root as possible or else you will be digging it up for years to come. Where I live I have noticed a tendency for it to self sow in firm ground, so you may want to compact the soil prior to planting as this seems to be it's preference.
  

It is so good to have educated people on the board.What a superb word that is John i presume it can be used with regard to horseradish.How i wish someone had told me about its totipotency when i planted it.

By `eck-totipotency is what tha gets after 12 pints of Tetleys ;D

Horse radish is nobbut but a reet bugga.

And please before anyone gets upset about this posting I did live for 20 years in Leeds-just a tease.

Stephan.

K....so is that like dandelion and burdock then?  My most fave drink in the world ever!  :P  If not, then what do you do with burdock?   ;D

fanks clever peeps  ;D

Mmmmmmmmm dandelion & burdock, yummy!  ;D

EJ:- Burdock is used particularly in treating skin disorders, for instance eczema, while the seeds have a reputation of reversing the normal aging of skin. It is useful internally as a diuretic.

Thanks John, that is very interesting.  Our daughter was born with chronic eczema and spent almost the first year of her life wrapped head to foot in bandages - I will have to dig out a piccy to show you - and she still suffers now.  We hate using the steroid creams, and the various oils and lotions either irritate her more, or do nothing apart from empty the bank account!  Maybe worth us having a little grow.  In fact, if it can reverse the aging process, with me fast approaching mid 30's, I think it is a necccessity!!   ;)

Managed to get some Takinogawa seeds from japan, they are a smaller root than our Greater Burdock and mature a littel quicker so I am told I was also sent the growing requirements and here is a picture of their progress. Planting out onder plastic bottles tomorrow
Thanks for the help
Len
PS will also go Dandelion picking

Hi Len, I am going to grow burdock (gobo) this year as part of the japanese theme to the lottie. Got seeds from OGC, and plan to start them in kitchen roll middles, then plant them into deep holes in pre-prepared builders' bags filled with coffee grounds, compost and spent hops. This should (so the theory goes ::)) allow them to rootle deeply and avoid the problem of permanent burdock. Watch this space!  ;D

Grown it for the last two years with fair success. Piled up a mound about 18 inchs high the width of the allotment plot making sure all stones were removed. Then opened up a growing hole on the peak with a metal spike about two foot six inchs deep and at one foot six inchs spacing filled these with a good fine compost and planted the plants on top. The plants were easier to harvest this way and no bits were left behind to grow in the future. (Very nice boiled with carrot or just grated into a salad).

Thanks for the metal spike tip  ;) Len. Got any pictures? :P

I will have a dive into my archives

Hi Len,

I sowed some Takinogawa Gobo seeds in autumn and  little seedlings are now growing on slowly under a cloche.

In spring,I'm going to sow a different variety called "salad Gobo" which is much shorter and grows up to 20-30cm.

They all need a lightish stone free soil so for Takinogawa,I dug a 80 cm deep trench and filled it with compost.Yes, it really was a back breaking job..... !! 

I grew some Scorzonera before which we describe as "western Gobo" in my home country(Japan).Although these two roots look quite similar, the texture and flavour weren't really alike.Scorzonera was nice,too though :).

Hi KT this is very helpful, better pop some in to start them off now!
If you have any cooking hints, would you be able to post them here or in the eatables section? Yum yum. Will you be starting off any other japanese veg in February?  :)

Quotebetter pop some in to start them off now!

Oh, no supersprout :o :o :o.... You should wait until spring(late March-April) to sow Gobo outside. Germination can be erratic so soak the seeds for a few hrs before sowing.I read that they could be started indoors in a tray but being a root veg,it'll be a bit tricky to plant out.

you might find these links interesting :)

http://www.wholehealthmd.com/print/view/1,1560,AR_966,00.html
http://japanesefood.about.com/od/vegetable/r/kinpiragobo.htm

If not oriental cooking, Gobo is also nice in cream gratin or battered and deep fried,shredded and seasoned with mayonnaise.Also as roasted root veg,as you'd with parsnip.

....and this is one of my fav gobo dishes,as requested.This one's sooo yummy! ;)

[Braised beef with burdock]
Ingredients
1 thick or 2 thin burdock root
300g thin slices of beef
sesame oil
1 tablespoon sugar or mirin
1 tablespoon soy sauce, sake

Wash the burdock with a scrubbing brush and scrape off the skin surface with the back of a knife. Cut the burdock into matchstick size and soak them immediately in water to prevent discolouring.
Cut the beef into thin strips.
Heat the sesame oil in a saucepan. Saute the beef quickly over high heat and once take out. Saute the burdock. Add the soy sauce, sake and sugar or mirin. Serve with rice.

I'll have to wait until march to start sowing Mizuna,daikon radish and tatsoi etc as I haven't got a greenhouse....  :'(

Nice to see some Japanese veg intreast I try to grow a bit when seeds are available (usualy from my mother in law) I find some of the Japanese cucumbers and spinich varities very easy to grow on my allotment. Dicon in the early stages seem to be the favorite of the dreaded flea beetle but mesh seems to lessen the damage.
The recipe link is very good as is your web page.
Arigato Gozaimashita