The young tatsoi was ready for its first cut this morning. NE Texas. 20-gallon fabric grow bags. Planted it 12 September, direct-sowed the seeds. Today (16 October) the leaves are about the size of my palm, tender and loaded with flavor.
I snipped the leaves and petioles off about half of the plants, leaving the main stems and roots intact so that they can grow back. This thins and opens up the canopy so that it can get more air circulation and sunlight, helps it thrive. By the middle of next month each plant will be two or three times the current size and will have assumed the characteristic “rosette” shape. I make a point not to crowd it as it develops, pulling up extras as necessary.
Tatsoi is cold tolerant, and if I cover it with frost cloth when temps get into the middle 20’s F, it keeps going strong until sometime in January, when a sustained hard freeze into the lower teens eventually kills it off. It is a brassica, so to keep the destructive cabbage moths off, I cover it with fine-mesh insect netting.
Flavor is something like spinach, except a bit tangier (notes of mustard greens.) Crisp texture. Delicious in a stir-fry or added to a soup at the last minute. Also works in this stage as a hearty salad. Goes well with tomatoes.
Tatsoi is one of my favorite cool-weather vegetables and I especially look forward to this first early harvest of its tender young leaves.
by NPKzone8a
2 Comments
Tatsoi is always in my spring & fall gardens. I very much dislike the texture of cooked and wilted spinach, so I routinely substitute tatsoi in any recipe that calls for cooked spinach.
Your tip about not crowding is key if you want good production per plant. I’ve also found that it’s hardy down to the low 20s F with low wind, but it’s quite susceptible to wind chill if the ambient temps are anywhere below freezing.
I am trying out tatsoi this year! My plants are almost to harvest stage. I am excited to taste it