Hello, Muffy/Puffie.

I have two thoughts for you.

Suggestion #1: DAIKONS! I grew several varieties of Daikon radishes this past autumn. This was my first time growing them, and they've utterly amazed me. I direct sowed them in late July in fairly sandy soil. We had a lot of rain this fall here in SE Michigan, and temps have been all over the board, but overall fairly mild to cool. I grew 'April Cross' and 'Minowase'from Stokes, along with a couple of other types of Oriental radishes, but those two did the best. I've gotten these enormous radishes, up to about 18 inches long and two inches in diameter, and they are extremeley mild and very juicy and crispy. I've especially enjoyed slicing them and pickling them for a few days in vinegar. I put a fair amount of fertilizer on the beds, which I think also helped them to do so well. So, this may be one option for you. The 'April Cross' is claimed to do well as spring crop also. The only down side I can see to Daikons is that they take a lot longer to harvest than do regular radishes, about 50 to 60 days, versus three to four weeks for regular radishes.

Suggestion #2: YACON. If your husband is truly looking for the crispy texture without any heat or bite to it, try growing Yacon, which is a South American root vegetable similar to a waterchestnut in texture. Flavor is sweet and mild, sort of carrot-like. This crop takes all season to grow, but it's claimed that the tubers last up to 8 months in cool storage. I grew it for the first time this year, and I really like the flavor and texture. So far, they are keeping just fine, but I only dug them about 5 weeks ago. I ordered plants from Nichols in Oregon this past spring. Seeds of Change offered the starter plants as well. Mine did really well, six plants gave me about 3/4ths of a bushel of tubers, which range in size from about 4 ounces to well over a pound, although most are in the 10 to 16 ounce range.

Hope these give you some ideas.

Dennis
SE Michigan

The 'secret' is to grow them fast and with lots of water and to harvest them immediately.

Radish increase in heat and woodiness if they aren't harvested within a day or three of being ready. They are also a fast grower if conditions are right and should be planted and via water and ample fertility be encouraged to grow quickly.

Avoiding the hot season also helps.

I'm not a big fan of eating radishes. I like to grow them, but I don't seem to ever eat more than a slice of one. A couple months ago, we went out to eat at a Korean restaurant. One of the side dishes they served was radish, and it was really good. I think that may be a Daikon as mentioned above, but I really am not sure.

So, I guess what I'm saying is he might like whatever the Korean radish might be.. There was no "bite" or heat to it at all. This comes from one who is NOT an adventurous eater...

Thanks to everyone for all the helpful suggestions!

I'd never even heard of Yacon before now--I'd love to try it! I did a little googling and it looks like it's tough to grow from seed. Any ideas where I can find a supplier?

If anyone has a suggestion which variety of radish I should try (I'm thinking French Breakfast), let me know!

Thanks again!!

Puffie, I only know of two mail order sources for yacon plants.

The first one I'd try is Nichols Garden Nursery in Oregon. www.nicholsgardennursery.com

They were a lot cheaper. The plants they sent me last spring were nice and healthy.

The other source I know of is Seeds of Change.
www.seedsofchange.com

They were a lot more expensive for the plants than was Nichols.

A nice, mild European type radish is 'Hailstone,' a round, white radish that takes about 22 to 26 days to mature. Quite a few companies offer seeds of this one.

The only way to get mild radishes in our climate is to plant seeds weekly starting in October. These plants will be ready for harvest in November. Seeds planted in late November and December will take a few extra weeks to produce. Below are Cherry Belle.

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Try White Beauty or Fire and Ice along with Daikon, French Breakfast and Cherry Belle growing during the cool season less than 80 degrees and harvest at prime, good luck.

Certainly for fall planting, the Asian radishes are tops. My favorite is Watermelon/Chinese Red Heart but Daikons like Minowase Cross and Korean Tae Baek are also good.

Salad radishes usually have some bite. Mildest for me have been Pink Beauty, Ping Pong, Rudolph.