2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38
Oat root - vegetable culture; root plant of the Asteraceae family, or Asteraceae. The homeland of the plant is considered to be the Mediterranean. It is also actively cultivated there and used for culinary and medicinal purposes. In small quantities, oat root is cultivated in Western Europe, the Baltic States and some regions of the United States. In Russia, the closest relatives of the plant are grown - this is the meadow goat and the eastern goat.
Characteristics of culture
Oat root is a biennial plant that in the first year of life forms a smooth conical root crop 20-25 cm long with a sweetish taste and a rosette of gray-green lanceolate leaves. The lower part of the root crop is equipped with numerous branches, which is probably why the plant acquired this name.
In the second year, the plants form erect flowering stems up to 150 cm high with purple-violet or blue flowers, collected in baskets, characteristic of all representatives of the Asteraceae family, or Compositae.
Seeds are rod-shaped, have fluffy crests, thanks to which it is carried by the wind over long distances. Seeds remain viable for 2-3 years; later, it is not recommended to use them. Blossoming goatbeard blooms in June-July, the fruits ripen in August-September.
Growing conditions
Oat root is a plant that does not impose special requirements on either soil conditions or location. The culture can grow without problems even on poor and dry soils, however, high-quality yields of juicy and large fruits can be obtained only on fertile, friable, well-aerated and moisturized. It will not accept strong acidic and heavy clayey soils.
Sowing
Goatbeard is sown in early spring or autumn. The earlier you sow, the more amicably the seedlings will appear. Seeds are sown in an ordinary way with an interval of 15-30 cm. Before sowing, the seeds are treated with an epin solution for 15-18 hours and mixed with peat or humus in a ratio of 1:10. Embedding depth 2 cm.
For sowing, it is recommended to use fresh seeds harvested in the current or previous year. With the appearance of 2-3 true leaves on the shoots, the crops are thinned out, leaving a distance of 10-15 cm between the plants. Too thickened plantings will affect the formation of root crops, they will be small and dry.
The soil for the oat root is prepared in the fall: the soil is dug up and potassium chloride (30 g per sq. M) and superphosphate (25-30 g per sq. M) are added. In the spring, the ridges are loosened and fed with ammonium nitrate (30 g) or urea (15 g).
Care
Caring for the oat root does not cause any particular difficulties. The soil in the near-stem zone is systematically loosened to a depth of 3-5 cm, increasing to 14 cm as the root crop grows. The first three weeks after sowing, and later, during a prolonged drought, abundant watering is carried out.
The need for moisture increases in the phase of root crop formation. The culture responds well to feeding, excellent results are given by feeding with wood ash and a solution of mullein (1: 5) or chicken droppings (1:10). Plants that have prematurely released peduncles are removed.
The culture is not prone to damage by pests and diseases. It is rarely attacked by lettuce aphids, mining flies, meadow moths, as well as gray and white rot and downy mildew. To combat them, use permitted insecticides and herbal moods.
Harvesting
The oat root is cleaned very carefully, it is impossible to damage the root crops, since milky juice flows out of them. Root crops are poorly stored, therefore they are removed as needed, the last collection is carried out a few days before the onset of stable frosts. Near each row, grooves are dug to the depth of the root crop, then pulled by the tops, which are subsequently removed. Root crops are placed in boxes filled with wet sand and stored in the basement and cellar.
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