Growing And Healing Properties Of Scorzonera - Scorzonera Hispanica

2024 Author: Sebastian Paterson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:47

The root that heals.

Scorzonera (Scorzonera Hispanica L.) or scorcioner, aka black root, sweet root, Spanish root, goat - this is a rare root vegetable crop from the Asteraceae family (Compositae)

Of the 170 species of scorchonera common in the world, 80 grow in the CIS. They are found from the Caucasus to Siberia, the Baltic States, Central Asia and Ukraine. Despite the fact that the roots of several species are edible, now only one species is cultivated - as a vegetable and medicinal crop. Root crops (to a lesser extent - leaves) are rich in sugars (about 20%), vitamins C, B1, B2, salts of potassium, manganese, iron, copper, zinc, phosphorus, calcium. But its main advantage is the high content of inulin (about 10%) in root crops, as well as asparagine and levulin. This is just medicine for diabetics. In addition, scorzonera root crops contain up to 2% pectin substances. And she is also a good honey plant.

Scorchonera is still not very popular in Russia, although it can be cultivated up to the northernmost regions of the European part of the Russian Federation. It is widely used in North America, Western Europe (France, Belgium, Holland, etc.), and the Baltics.

There are few scorzonera seeds on the Russian market. The varietal diversity of this culture is not rich in our country, which, in the first place, explains its weak distribution. However, in the "State Register of the Russian Federation … 2004" there is already a variety Solnechnaya premiere of the Stavropol Research Institute of Agriculture. One of the Russian firms supplies seeds, apparently under the arbitrary name Gypsy, of clearly foreign origin. In the North-West of the Russian Federation, mainly local populations are cultivated, obtained from replanting old (XVIII - XX centuries) varieties such as Vulkan, One-Year Gigantic, Russian Gigantic, as well as collection samples of scientific institutions, amateurs, which are usually exchanged by "experts". In the store, the gardener can only buy seeds of foreign varieties (as a rule, the variety is not indicated). These are either German Schwartz Pfal, Schwartz Peter, or Dutch Pronora,Prodola, Pilotis, Duplex. One of the Danish firms supplies Einjarige rizen seeds.

Growing scorzonera

Scorzonera gives good yields only on neutral, humus-rich, fertilized, deeply (30-40 cm) cultivated soils. On clayey, dense soils, as well as when applying fresh manure, root crops turn out to be ugly, branch, and you cannot get a full harvest. The culture is responsive to mineral fertilizers.

Scorchonera seeds are large, 15-20 mm long, about 1.5 mm thick, ribbed, grayish. Weight of 1000 seeds is 15-20 g. It is better to sow with fresh seeds (germination is maintained for 1-2 years). It is better to germinate them for 5-7 days at a temperature of 25C. After 10 days, the germinated are selected and sown, the rest are washed and germinated for another 5-7 days, then sown. Sowing scheme 20x8-10 cm, seeding depth 2-3 cm.

In the conditions of the Leningrad region, they are usually sown in mid-May. Seedlings appear on 4-10 days at a temperature of about 20C. To shift the dates of use to earlier, you can sow in July and September.

Care consists in watering, weeding. The crops are fed twice a month until mid-August with complex mineral fertilizers with microelements.

Root crops are ready for harvesting 100-110 days after germination. They begin to be harvested after two months of growth, however, they are usually harvested for storage in mid-late September when the weight reaches 100-150 g. Moreover, root crops, for example, Schwarz Peter varieties, should not be overexposed, otherwise they will sag. Old Russian varieties as well as new Dutch varieties are less capricious.

When harvesting, root crops must be buried in, freed from the soil by hand.

In boxes with sand I put only not injured, healthy roots. The sand is kept moist throughout the storage period. Part of the crops is left before winter and used immediately after thawing the soil, before shooting. Moreover, their taste only improves, but with the beginning of shooting it sharply deteriorates.

Considering that there are few scorpion seeds on the market, it is better to take care of them yourself. To do this, part of the crops is left before winter. In early spring, the plants grow back and in June they throw out flower stalks. Inflorescence - basket, yellow flowers. As soon as the inflorescences look like a "fluffy" dandelion, they are picked and laid out in a ventilated room for drying and ripening, and then rubbed. Well-ripened seeds usually germinate 80-90% in the first year, and only 30-40% in the second.

Scorchonera cultivation experience

Skorzonera root vegetables are prepared for future use in dried, frozen form. A substitute coffee is prepared from them. First of all, they use broken, injured specimens.

Scorzonera is an excellent ingredient in canned vegetables. A variety of dishes are prepared from its roots.

Fresh root vegetables taste sweet, and they are used to prepare a variety of salads, vinaigrettes, side dishes, soups, drinks. In spring, for salads, they use bleached leaves, like oat root.