All about horseradish: what it is, how it looks and blooms, what is the root

Horseradish village, or ordinary, is a type of plant known from ancient times in our country. It is distributed almost all over the globe, although it got to America and Asia only in the 20th century. The plant has an amazing morphology, picky about growing conditions, while many consider it the worst garden weed. Read all about horseradish in this article.

Fuck: what is it

Horseradish ordinary, or rustic (Armoracia rusticana), is a perennial herbaceous spicy-aromatic rhizome plant of the cruciferous (cabbage) family. It is found in the wild throughout Europe, Siberia, and the North Caucasus. The culture has perfectly adapted to the conditions of North America, where it was brought relatively recently.

The plant prefers well-moistened soil, therefore it inhabits lowlands, the banks of reservoirs and shady areas of the forest. If you do not limit its distribution in the garden, it occupies a large territory in one season. It is very difficult to deal with it like a weed, since the root system goes into the ground by 2-5 m, and a new root or shoot can form from each bud on the rhizome.

Horseradish became a gardener in our country in the 6th century. Now, without it, it is difficult to imagine a summer cottage or a personal farm. In cooking, it is used as a hot seasoning and for flavoring the blanks... In the first case, the rhizome is used, in the second, the leaves.

What does horseradish look like?

In the first year, the plant forms a rosette of 6-10 large green leaves on hard and long petioles. The leaf is solid, the edge is crenate. In the second year, it produces a peduncle in the form of an erect, branched stem with a length of 0.5 to 1.5 m.

In early June, the buds bloom. Flowering lasts 30-40 days. The process ends by mid-July. Flowers are small, white, fragrant, collected in a brush. One flower lives from two to five days, blooming every morning and closing in the evening. The fruit is a pod.

In the photo - horseradish.

Horseradish root

This is the most valuable part of the plant in cooking. Taproot, fleshy and thick, up to 10 cm in diameter, with well-developed appendages. Dormant buds are spirally located along the entire length of the root, from which rosettes of leaves or new roots are formed.

Important! If you divide the rhizome into several parts and leave them in the soil, each is capable of forming a new plant.

The roots are covered with a hard light yellow bark. The radius of distribution of the rhizome is up to 0.6 m, the depth is 0.3 m. The main rod is able to overcome a depth of 5 m.

Seeds

The plant gives fruits in the second year of life. By mid-August, in place of the inflorescences, pods 1-2 cm long are formed, containing four seeds. They are very small, dark red or brown in color. Germination is weak - only 2-3 germinates out of ten seeds.

Important! Garden forms of horseradish, as a rule, do not set seeds. Reproduction occurs vegetatively.

Horseradish is a herb, vegetable or root vegetable

From a botanical point of view, horseradish is a perennial herb, from a culinary point of view it is a spicy vegetable. But it is wrong to call the underground part of the plant a root crop, although such a definition is often found in everyday life. Horseradish root type - rhizome.

Plant features

In one place, horseradish grows up to five years. However, during such a period of time, its rhizome becomes lignified, coarse and dries up, therefore, from a culinary point of view, it becomes unusable.

After 2-3 years of growing horseradish transplanted or weeded out, giving the opportunity to grow up young shoots.With mass production, it is cultivated in one area for no more than 1-2 years.

Important! The stem of individual plants reaches 1.5 m in height. The growth and number of leaves depend on the feeding area, agricultural technology and age.

Horseradish is a cross-pollinated plant. Pollen is transferred from flower to flower by insects.

Rustic horseradish is a frost-resistant plant and tolerates winter well with temperatures up to -25 ° С in open ground and up to -8 ... -10 ° С after regrowth of leaves in spring. However, he absolutely cannot stand the heat and can die already at + 30 ° C, although he chooses areas that are well lit with a sufficient level of moisture in the ground.

Horseradish is picky about the level of moisture in the soil and air. This is due to its morphology. During the growing season, the plant grows a large green mass, from the surface of which water intensively evaporates, and the deeply penetrating root system has poor absorption in the upper layers of the soil.

Despite the high content of essential oils and the spicy aroma, horseradish is highly susceptible to attacks by insect pests. He has no less disease than tomatoes. Under favorable conditions, the plant is very resistant to diseases and pests.

Read also:

How to prepare cabbage with horseradish: recipes from experienced housewives

Recipes for making the most delicious cucumbers without vinegar for the winter

How and when horseradish blooms

In the second year of life, the plants grow as soon as the snow melts. Peduncles begin to emerge in late April - early May in the middle zone. In Siberia and the Urals - two weeks later. By the beginning of flowering, the main stem grows to 1.0-1.3 m, the weight of the leaves is about 2.5-3 kg. The flowers are bisexual, white, regular, growing in multi-flowered racemes, collected in a paniculate inflorescence. Most horseradish cultivars have sterile flowers.

At the bottom of the stem, flowers begin to open in early summer. This process continues until the end of the first decade of July. Horseradish bud tea has a specific taste, while refreshing well and quenching thirst.

Important! During the period of intense flowering, horseradish forms beautiful white fluffy brushes.

The picture shows a blooming horseradish.

Conclusion

Horseradish is an amazing plant. It is difficult to take him out of the site if he settled himself. At the same time, for some owners, all attempts to grow it end in failure. It is picky about soils, summer temperatures and humidity. But it tolerates winter frosts and spring return frosts well.

The aboveground part of horseradish can grow up to a height of 1.5 m, and the rhizome penetrates into the deep layers of the soil up to 5 m. This plant blooms for a long time and beautifully, and the aroma of blossoming buds does not have a specific spicy shade characteristic of leaves and roots. In cooking, horseradish is used entirely: the root is used as a hot seasoning, the leaves are used for pickles, and the flowers are used for making tea.