How to Grow Rat-tailed Radish UK
On this page
- Rat-tailed Radish (Raphanus sativus var. caudatus)
- When to Plant Rat in the UK
- Quick Facts
- At a Glance
- Soil & Growing Conditions
- Growth Stages
- Harvest & Storage
- Diseases
- Pests
- Rat-tailed Radish, a Radish Grown for Its Pods
- Plan your Rat-tailed Radish planting
- Growing Rat-tailed Radish in another region
- References
- Frequently Asked Questions
In the UK, rat-tailed radish goes in the ground early May to mid August.
Timing is the decision that matters most in the UK: sowing early May, and that same window applies across all 4 regions covered here.
The short answer
- Plant
- Early May to mid August
- Site
- soil pH 6–7
- Biggest risk
- Brassica downy mildew
Core growing advice on this page is checked against named horticultural sources — see References.
Rat-tailed Radish (Raphanus sativus var. caudatus)
Also known as: mougri · 3 sources cited · Verified
When to Plant Rat in the UK
When to plant rat in the UK: in Southern England, sow early May to mid August. Find your area in the table below.
Quick Facts
At a Glance
Soil & Growing Conditions
Growth Stages
Harvest & Storage
Diseases
Pests
Rat-tailed Radish, a Radish Grown for Its Pods
Plan your Rat-tailed Radish planting
When to sow and plant Rat-tailed Radish depends on your own frost dates. Check the UK vegetable planting calendar. To work out where it fits in your beds, sketch your plot in the free Garden Layout Planner.
Growing Rat-tailed Radish in another region
Sowing dates, frost timing and local advice differ by country. Use the guide for where you garden.
References
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Botanical family Brassicaceae. Not native to GB/Ireland. Genus Raphanus can be annual, biennial or perennial herbaceous plants, often with lyrate, glaucous leaves, small, four-petalled flowers and indehiscent fruits. Listed as an edible species cultivated as an annual vegetable. This RHS entry is a basic plant profile without full growing-guide detail (no hardiness rating, sun requirement, soil, height/spread, or pest/disease list given) -- supplemented below by The Gourmantic Garden for cultivation specifics not covered here.
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A secondary gardening reference rather than a university or horticultural authority, used for cultivation specifics (sowing depth/spacing, timeline, pests, harvest method) that RHS's basic profile does not cover, not contradicted by it. Grown for its seed pods, not its root -- pods have a mild peppery flavour and crunchy texture, eaten raw, in salads, stir-fries, curries, pickled, fermented, steamed, boiled or roasted. Direct sow 1cm deep, 2-4cm apart, into compost-rich soil in full sun. Grows bush-like to 1m, sometimes over 1.5m, benefiting from staking. Matures in 6-8 weeks; cooler months extend germination time significantly. Keep well-hydrated throughout the growing season. Harvest pods with secateurs once around 7cm long and filled with seeds, before they toughen. Pests: cabbage moth caterpillars (hand-removed) and aphids (hosed or brushed off).
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Mirrors FAO Ecocrop. Fetched and parsed directly for the numeric soil pH range.
3 independent sources are cited for this crop. Where they disagree - soil pH is the clearest case - every figure is preserved rather than averaged into false precision.
Frequently Asked Questions
When should I sow rat-tailed radish in the UK?
In Southern England, from early May. In Scotland, wait until early May. Treat these as a guide rather than a fixed date — the governing rule is to sow only once frost risk has passed and temperatures are reliably warm enough.
When do I sow rat-tailed radish?
Sow early May to mid August.
What soil pH does rat-tailed radish need?
A pH of about 6–7. That span reflects genuine variation between the authorities we cite rather than a single agreed figure — the References section lists each source's exact range.
What problems affect rat-tailed radish?
Our data links 1 disease and 2 pests to this crop. See the sections above for each one and how to manage it.
Plan next season before the problems start
Most of the advice on this page comes down to timing and spacing — sowing at the right moment, rotating beds, and giving plants enough airflow. The UK Garden Planner lays your plot out month by month so those decisions are already made before the season starts.
Get the UK Garden Planner →Instant PDF download · Written for UK growing conditions
How this guide is put together
The growing data on this page — sowing windows, pests, diseases, soil and site requirements — comes from named horticultural sources, listed in References below, checked against RHS and Met Office guidance. An automated pipeline assembles that verified data into the page you're reading: it selects which facts to lead with and builds the surrounding prose and layout. It does not invent a date, a source or a number — where a verified value for a field isn't available, the page leaves it out rather than guessing. A person reviews and publishes each page; nothing goes live unverified.
Related Problem Guides
Last verified 2026-08-29
Plan Rat-tailed Radish by month
The months this guide gives for sowing or planting, each with the full list of jobs for that month in the UK:
More from the same group (brassicas & mustards):
Growing advice for your part of the UK
Timing and conditions change a lot inside one country. These guides cover frost dates and growing seasons region by region.
Where To Go From Here
Take this crop from reading into a written plan for your own beds.
Keep going
Plan the next step
Use the printable SoilCommander planner for your region to turn this guide into sowing dates, bed layouts and weekly garden tasks.