I’m channeling @FarmGirl-Z6A and put together a propagation bed for my over-the-winter cuttings (aronia, currants, honeyberry). All materials I had lying around, and filled it with a mix of compost, well-decomposed tree stump grindings, and soil. Hopefully the mesh will keep the squirrels and rabbits out.
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After a week of hard frosts, I decided it was time to dig my tardiva radicchio. Dug them all up, shook off the excess soil, and potted them in a tight formation. Into a dark corner of my basement they go. With any luck, I’ll have some nice beautiful heads of radicchio in 4-6 weeks.
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Hey Jay, I find this very interested but I know absolutely nothing about Radicchio or what you are describing. I was even inspired to do some googling and reading but it didn’t really explain what you described. Can you explain a little more?
It sounds like you are saying that you dug up the small plants from outside and potted them up, then moved them into a dark basement where they will form heads in 6-8 weeks. Do I have that right? Is the second photo you posted showing what they look like when you potted them? If so, I don’t see how they have enough space to form heads. By heads I’m thinking of the heads I see in the store-similar size to a head of lettuce but more elongated. Is that what you are going for? And why would they head in a dark basement? From what I just read, it sounds like Radicchio is fairly frost-hardy and makes heads in the fall anyway, so why are you digging yours up and moving them to the basement?
Again, please understand that I’ve never grown or even seen radiccio plants growing so I know less than nothing and my questions may be pretty silly. But I’d like to learn more and better understand what you are doing there. Thanks
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I am also curious to hear more. Do you know if radicchio can be forced from common chicory?
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@thecityman @urbangardener great questions! Let me just preface this by saying there’s a whole world of chicories out there, and what I know just barely scratches the surface. I might have to do a longer, more general chicories thread at some point. But, back to radicchio.
Radicchio is a term for any of a bunch of Italian chicories (Chicorium intybus) that have been bred to form a head (so common chicory won’t work). There are many categories within the larger radicchio category, and multiple varieties within each category. Most of what we see stateside are red and white Chioggia or Verona types, but in Italy they come in reds and greens and pinks and all sorts of shapes. What I’m growing is one of two Treviso types, the tardiva (late) variety. Radicchio di Treviso tardiva is a class of radicchio that is meant to be forced over the winter, in darkness. Most others are just grown in the field and head up naturally (but not as reliably as lettuce). This is similar to Belgian endive. During the growing season, it looks like an unremarkable chicory with strappy leaves. But after a few hard frosts, the growth pattern starts to change. The older leaves flop over, and the new growth will be red, sweet, and more curled in. At this point, they’re dug up and traditionally packed cheek-by-jowl into crates and left in a dark spring house with water running over the roots. My plants in the pot are about 3-4" apart, so they actually have more room than they need. The darkness keeps them from having any green, so you get that nice red and white color, as well as a more tender texture, and the tight spacing helps make a nice tight head. At this point they’re just growing off the reserves in their roots. If you look a few posts back, you’ll see what the finished product should look like. It’s a lot of work, and kind of finicky, but it’s such a good radicchio, and very striking. Radichio can be used raw, but it’s really best cooked. I like to grill or roast it in halves or quarters, or chopped an sauteed, served with balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Nuts, dried fruit, and sharp crumbly cheeses also go well. It can also be put in a risotto.
Here’s a video summarizing the growing process in Italy (pardon the goofy music):
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And yes, us Italians aren’t afraid of having a lot of steps if it means the food turns out just right (I don’t condone the “cheese” in this picture, though).
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Thank you so much, Jay. You’ve just opened a whole new world to me, and I’m really interested. Now I have to taste some. I honestly don’t think I’ve ever tried ANY variety of radicchio or even any chicories for that matter. (I confess I have never been much of a salad guy, but my doctor and me have seriously been working on that lately which is why this caught my eye I think. The only thing I every even heard about chicory is that some type of it suppossedly can be used as a coffee substitute in hard times. Also, I know that the world famous Cafe du Monde in New Orleans actually adds chicory to their house brand of coffee. Seeing this I’m very confused about how this leafy plant could be used instead of or in conjuction with coffee - though I do understand that this is not the variety used for that purpose.
I did watch that whole video. I thought the “heads” were more like a head of lettuce or bok choy, but apparently its not as leafy as those. Also, I noticed that when he had trimmed and transplanted the plants from outside to the indoor bed, there was a lot of steam coming of the bed. What is that about? Do they use warm water to keep the roots wet, or is there some decomposition causing the heat, or is this simply the greenhouse effect from having the bed covered in plastic while the sun shines on it? Is this important to the process or just kind of an unrelated effect of the process?
I also kept thinking “who in the world figured all this out!”. I mean, there are a LOT of steps involved here and none of them are the kind of thing common sense would just lead someone to do. So this must have been developed over a very long period of time.
Anyway, I’m going to read and watch more videos. This is neat. Thanks, Jay.
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I’m glad I can pique even one person’s interest here! I really like growing chicories, they have just enough difficulty to them to make them rewarding but not impossibly frustrating, and you can really dive into getting your process and timing just right. And there’s so much variety, most of which you can’t find on a supermarket shelf. The chicory that’s used for coffee is the wild type that’s naturalized throughout much of the US, and has more of a tap root.
As for the steam in the video, keep in mind that this in winter. The water isn’t actually hot, it’s about 55-60 F spring water, so you’re seeing what little water vapor is there condense rapidly. The spring water keeps things watered and at just the right temperature for tender, sweet growth. I should also point out that when I say sweet, that’s a relative term. These are definitely still bitter, but they have a nice sweetness as well. The overall flavor is quite well balanced. Now, if only I can get my plants to get anywhere near the size in the video. Maybe next year…
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Jay, this is really cool. I remember watching the video you shared last winter and thinking to myself - I should give it a go. But, I must’ve gotten distracted by a squirrel. Will definitely give it a try the next growing season.
In the meantime, I have found some info on forcing chicory and chicons: https://bit.ly/3wHSnn2
I have a surplus of common chicory as I added it to my meadow mix and it kinda took off. I’ll start a bucket this weekend and will report on whether it works or not.
That article also may have an answer to Kevin’s question about discovering the process. I guess, like many good things, it happened by accident - people storing chicory roots in cellars to use as a coffee substitute in winter, and the roots sprouting in the dark.
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Very cool! I’m sure you’ll get nice tender leaves, but I’d be surprised if it forms a head. Please let me know if it does; I certainly wouldn’t mind being proven wrong on something like that.
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I’m really enjoying this. I don’t talk much about my garden/gardening, but I’ve been gardening since I was a child and my parents would section off a little area and make it “mine”. But my point is that in all the years I’ve been growing things, I’ve never tried chicory and to be honest barely even heard about it. So this is fun. Thank you very much for that link - I’ve done a good deal of reading the last 24 hours and I think that was one of the best articles yet.
I’m also very happy that @jcguarneri started a whole thread. Your first entry there, Jay, was also super helpful and interesting. The first few pics I saw of chicory I kept thinking how much it looked like dandelion. Now I found out that are related (at least thats what I think you were saying). Also, I feel a little silly now, but I kept trying to figure out how they turned leaves into a coffee substitute/additive. Never considered that it was the ROOTS that they dried and ground. That obviously makes a lot more sense
Thanks again for this new interest. For a long time I’ve meaning to try garlic - something else I’ve never grown and not known many who do around here. Now I’m adding chicory to my list of things to try. .
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I’m glad it was helpful! Yes, they are related (although the Italian dandelion name is just because of the superficial resemblance). In fact, you can use dandelion greens in a similar fashion (they’re best in the winter or fall) and the roots can also be roasted and ground as a coffee additive/extender/substitute. I haven’t tried it yet, but it’s on my ever-growing to do list.
You should definitely try garlic. It’s one of the best ROI crops out there, even if you just compare what you’re getting to supermarket prices. I’d check out Southern Exposure Seed Exchange for varieties that are adapted to your area. If you know how to grow tulips or daffodils, you pretty much know how to grow garlic.
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Put my in-ground fig to bed today. Lows are in the low 20s for most of the week, so I decided it was time. Buried in soil and topped with shredded leaves.
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@thecityman here’s what my radicchio look like at almost 3 weeks. Still a ways to go, but you can see the heads starting to form. My plants were still on the smaller side when I dug them, so I don’t think they’ll be nearly as big as in the video.
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Those are great photos for helping me understand how this all works. When I first saw them after you moved them to the pot, I couldn’t really even understand the process. Now I’m getting it and those actually look good. I notice that the “heads” on yours and many I’ve seen in photos/videos I’ve been looking at recently look more like long, loose heads - similar to Bok Choy or something (appearance wise) while the one I bought was compact and round- more like a head of cabbage. I guess its just different varieties I look forward to seeing yours as they progress.
Are you growing these mostly in the dark?.
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Yes, I have them in a closet in the partially-unfinished basement. That helps make sure they’re nicely red and white.
Yeah, there are many shapes of radicchio. Apparently, this is more the ancestral type, and farmers pursued tighter and tighter heads until you get to what we find in supermarkets. This kind is a bit of a specialty and had been having a renaissance in the last few decades. And it has DOP status! You can only legally sell it as radicchio di Treviso tardivo if you’re growing it near Treviso in the Veneto region.
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Looks like we’re heading into spring now! My fancy new rhubarb plant from Gurney’s is already coming up. The family heirloom next to it is not even close.
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Is that the “KangaRhu” rhubarb? Ah, Gurneys and their plant names . . . 
The named cultivars are a little behind my great-grandma’s rhubarb here, but they’re all peeping out at the world right now.
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That’s the one! I, too, am not fond of the names. But, the promise of extra-red, extra heat tolerant rhubarb got me. Earliness is a nice bonus.
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