🏂🏿 💅🏻 ✔️ Japanese cabbage "mizuna": description, features of cultivation and application 🤱🏼 😜 🚂

Japanese cabbage began to interest people as a culture since they learned about its beneficial qualities. This plant is also called cabbage for the lazy, as it does not require any special care. Japanese salad cabbage is very picky, and you can grow it even on your windowsill, and then enjoy its taste as part of a gourmet dish.

general information

To get started, let's get acquainted with what this representative of the flora is. Japanese cabbage, as the name implies, came to us from the Land of the Rising Sun, although there are suggestions that its homeland is China. In appearance, it represents thin long stems that are collected in the form of bunches. On the stem are carved leaves of bright green color. Belongs to the turnip family.

This plant is well established in our regions. We perceive it more as a salad than as a cabbage. It is worth noting that at home this plant has been used for food for a very long time. Due to its high content of vitamins and nutrients (phosphorus, iron, calcium, etc.), cabbage is recommended for use by patients with cancer and those who have digestive problems.

Varieties

Japanese cabbage "mizuna" has two varieties, which you need to talk about:

"Mermaid" sings at an average speed of about two months. Cabbage has a good yield, is able to grow outdoors in the open ground. It is believed that this name was given to cabbage because of the appearance of its leaves, which resemble the tail of a mermaid.
"Pejon" sings quickly, in a month you will get the result. This variety is smaller in appearance. A plant of this species weighs less than the previous variety. The advantage is that after cutting you get new shoots very quickly.

Planting a plant

As already mentioned, Japanese cabbage is quite unpretentious. In order to properly plant this plant, you just need to follow a few tips:

it is better to plant cabbage in the spring, although planting is allowed during the whole warm time until the end of summer, but it depends on weather conditions;
cabbage seeds are very small and similar to poppy seeds, they need to be planted in rows half a centimeter deep into the ground, withstanding about thirty centimeters between rows;
between the seeds in a row also leave a gap of about ten centimeters, but if it does not work out, then you can subsequently thin out the culture;
after sowing, it is better to cover the earth with a film, and after seven days you will see the first sprouts;
the optimum temperature is a range of 14 to 20 degrees of heat;
water crops, the earth should be moist;
when the sprouts have sprouted, the film can be removed and observe the development of the plant;
do not add too much organic fertilizer to the soil, since cabbage tends to accumulate everything in its leaves, and it is better not to use mineral fertilizers.

Growing Japanese Cabbage

After you have received the first seedlings, it is up to the watering and weeding. If you worry about mulching the soil, then these processes will be rare. Watering the cabbage is often not necessary, since it does not really like moisture. Only in extreme heat do you need to ensure that the ground is not very dry.

If it turns out that you delayed watering, after the first bucket of water, cabbage will quickly restore strength. You also need to weed the plant to avoid problems associated with pest attacks. It is worth noting that with regular cutting, cabbage grows and yields a crop until mid-autumn. And even the first frosts are not very scary for her. In this mode, the plant can exist for three years. As the crop is thinned, new seeds need to be sowed every spring, and then you will not have a break in receiving the product.

Pest control

Like any vegetable plant, cabbage can become a victim of pests. One of the most frequent guests is the cruciferous flea. Due to the fact that the plant is eaten, no poisons can be used to combat the pest. In this case, ash and tincture of tobacco dust will be a good helper . Having diluted the tincture in a ratio of one to ten with water, you need to spray the cabbage. Also in specialized stores they sell natural products that help get rid of the problem, but do not harm health.

In order to respond in time to the appearance of the pest and destroy it, you need to regularly inspect the plant, feel its leaves and stems. If there is any problem, then you will feel that the leaves have begun to fade and the stems to rot.

Useful Tips

There are some useful tips, listening to which, you will achieve a positive result in growing plants.

Japanese cabbage does not like areas where such crops as turnip, radish, radish grew before it. This refers to all plants belonging to the cruciferous family.
Do not waste time growing seedlings, it will not bring benefits. Sow cabbage directly into the open ground. Otherwise, you risk getting a lot of arrows and colors instead of the right leaves.
The plant feels great both in the lighted area and in the shade, so there is no need to worry when choosing a place to plant.
If you want to grow cabbage in the room, you need to dig a few bushes on the site and plant them in a container, while carefully watering. Place the container on the veranda or balcony until the frost comes. In addition to useful properties, the plant also has a beautiful appearance and can decorate your home.

The application of cabbage

Speaking about the use of the plant, the first thing you need to pay attention to is that it has a very delicate taste that resembles something between a radish and mustard. Some compare it to arugula. Cabbage is used fresh, and it is also salted, pickled and dried. Mostly leaves and stalks are eaten, roots are not used. If you store a bunch of cabbage in the refrigerator, don’t immediately discard the root, it will help preserve the freshness of the leaves, just pull them as necessary until fully used.

As for cooking tips, cabbage is used in different dishes. For example, a salad of Japanese cabbage, sandwiches with cabbage leaves, a snack in addition to meat and fish. In salads, the product is in perfect harmony with both cheeses and fruits.

There are many recipes where this cabbage is used, there is no limit to the imagination of the chef. Most importantly, this plant is very useful and recommended for use even by highly qualified doctors.