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Asian Vegetables

Mizuna and Da Cheong Chae

14 years ago

Hello all, is anyone growing these veggies? They came from Johnny's selected seeds. I made seed tapes and planted them but only one Mizuna came up. Yesterday morning I started more seeds in the expandable jiffy pots and I already have sprouting. I have never grown these veggies and would appreciate any input on their growth habits and their use and taste.

Thanks in advance!!

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Comments (10)

mauirose
14 years ago
i have some Da Cheong Chae seeds also but i haven't gotten them planted yet. Have you grown bok choy? i think the culture and growth habit will be similiar. Rich, fertile soil, ample water, probably benefit from a little shade in hot weather.

Mostly i use the choys to make a quick slaw-slice thinly, toss with other thinly sliced greens (a little arugula is great) or shredded carrots/daikon (or not-time permitting), dress with papaya seed or chinese chicken salad dressing and toss with crunchy wonton stips or crispy chow mein. Yum.

Sometimes i stir fry it with a few other veg (carrots, onions, snap peas, etc) and aromatics (garlic, ginger, lemongrass) and add to fried noodles. Sauce with whatever you like and have available-hoisin with soy, fish sauce with oyster sauce, black bean sauce, a dash of sesame oil and always-sambal oelek.

It can also be stirfried by itself like any other leafy green. When stir frying it's good to start the stalks first and add the green leafy bits when the stalks are almost done.

Sometimes i braise baby bok choys but i think the habit of the DCC will be too open for that.
crayphish_la
Original Author
14 years ago
HI Maurirose, thanks for responding. I've never grown bok choy or any other asian veggies. I have eaten it sauteed and enjoyed it. I chose those because they do well in the heat and have some nutritional value. I am planting in containers so they can be moved to a partial shady area as they need. We are planning to use them both in salads and hot cooking. Have you grilled the DCC? Can it be harvested by leaf cutting instead of pulling the whole plant?

I like your suggestions for cooking DCC....I guess it'll be 45 days or so before I can get them in the pan!!
Thanks!
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mauirose
14 years ago
well i guess you could grill them but i never have. Let us know if you find success.

i harvest lettuce, komatsuna, and chard by cutting the outside leaves but i haven't done that with any of the chois. it's a pretty quick crop so i have better luck with succession planting. Zone 8b? Sounds like a long growing season, good for many harvests!
namfon
14 years ago
Cray Phish,

The Mizuna bolts for me when it gets above 75

I let it flower and re-seed.

It then grows well in Fall when the temps drop, say, below 60F.

They can handle light frosts, IME, they will wilt if frosted ( lightly ) then when it warms ( to even High 30s ) they perk up.

hth
promethean_spark
14 years ago
My mizuna also had poor germination, I planted 1 pot with 9 seed and got one plant (didn't try that hard), it's pretty much full size now and mid-bolt and it's about 20" in diameter and hemispherical in shape. I'm going to save the seed and hope fresh seed does better than the seed I bought.
crayphish_la
Original Author
14 years ago
Hmmm, bolting makes me sad. I chose Mizuna because I read it was slow bolting in the heat. I have 6 that made it to transplanting in a container. I am looking forward to eating it!! I will keep y'all posted.
namfon
14 years ago
It can re-seed prolifically.

I just transplanted another 20 + seedlings ( these grew where plants went to seed last year )

If you let them re-seed you may get plants when it gets cool. In your zones it may be Thanksgiving ~ Christmas.
crayphish_la
Original Author
14 years ago
Hi namfon, So far I have harvested enough for just a salad additive and enjoyed it. Since they are in a container I'll probably not let them get to the bolting stage. I may plant one in the front garden tho, to get some seedlings for the fall.
thanks for responding!
blueberrier1
14 years ago
This year I planted mizuna so it is partially shaded by 1pm. Soil is mostly clay, but grows steroidal weeds. We have had high 80s and no bolting. It is delish...my favorite salad with sliced radish and raw onions. I planted thicker than usual, outdoors, and am repeating thinning passes. Great in stir fries. Think the seed was from PineTree. Do not know DaCC, but may have bought and cooked it when we lived outside Shanghai. Will research.

When I lived in Z-5, I used full sun for all crops. Here, I find that even the rhubarb does better on the east side of the house. Next year, I will have all the salad beds on the east side. Cray-you might want to try a shade screen over some of the greens to reduce bolting.
crayphish_la
Original Author
14 years ago
Hi blueberrier1, thanks for responding. We've not had rain for 25 days and it's not coming any time soon!! It's been hot too, with 110 heat indexes. The mizuna are doing well. I had a battle with a brood of catepillars but I won, so all is good!! I intened to try the stir fry soon. They are hanging in there, I am very pleased. How big does Mizuna get?

The DaCC is a hybrid of pak choi and tatsoi, I believe. I got it from Johnnys as it is supposed to be heat tolerant. They are small but very green and pretty.

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