Chicory: growing in the garden and care in the open field, how to plant and propagate

Chicory - a plant with pale blue flowers, growing along roadsides, in fields. Culture is known for several reasons at once. Someone is familiar with the plant, like a beautifully flowering grass, others like a spicy coffee substitute, and still others have paid attention to the medicinal properties of chicory. At the same time, chicory can not only be purchased at a pharmacy or store, but also without much effort to start growing it in the garden.

Features

Biennial culture common in Europe, Russia, Central Asia, Western Siberia. In the first year, a root system is formed with a root crop weighing up to 400 grams. In the second year, chicory gives leaves, seeds.

Massive root, long stem, up to 100-170 centimeters, with small villi, leaves, blue flowers with a diameter of 3-5 centimeters distinguish the plant from others from the Astrov family. Oblong light brown fruits reach 3 millimeters.

Culture blooms from July to late autumn. Delicate flowers fade quickly and are replaced by new ones. The harvest can reach 20 thousand seeds.

Crop varieties

According to various sources, there are 8 to 12 varieties of chicory. But only two types of plants are cultivated, such as:

1. Salad. Young fresh leaves are used to prepare both salads and side dishes, meat treats. 3 varieties are popular:

• Escariole, Witloof - have juicy heads with wide sheets;
• Endive - outwardly similar to an ordinary lettuce with curly carved leaves.

2. Regular variety. Suitable culture for the preparation of medicinal drinks. The plant is planted as an ornamental flower.

If you grow a plant as an alternative to coffee, it is better to take root chicory. On the territory of the Russian Federation, the Yaroslavsky variety is popular, which got its name for the name of the region that produces useful grains for more than two hundred years. The plant, which actually came from Southern Europe, should be sown annually for better yields.

What is useful chicory

Despite the powerful aerial part, seeds and roots are used for medicinal and food purposes. The substance intibin gives the roots a specific bitter taste. Inulin makes the plant essential for the dietary menu of diabetics.In addition, the root system is rich in fructose, carotene, vitamins C, group B, trace elements: calcium, iron, magnesium, sodium. Healing decoctions are made from the lower part of the plant.

Chicory is used in medicine as a treatment for diseases of the skin, kidneys, spleen, kidneys, inflammation of the eyes.

Great value of grains, as a substitute for coffee drink. The infusion promotes the removal of gallstones, improves blood circulation, and has a tonic effect. During the day, chicory will invigorate, toning, calming the nervous system, and at night it will relieve insomnia.

In ancient Egypt, a document was found dating back to the 4th millennium BC, confirming the information about chicory as a remedy for diseases of the stomach, liver, intestines.

Methods of plant propagation

The plant propagates in two ways at once: seed, root. The roots are divided into parts, each of which is the basis of a new shrub.

Chicory is referred to as a clock plant. On a bright morning, the flower opens, but with the onset of cloudy weather or evening, the flowers close instantly. The culture is a good honey plant, blooms up to 3 months, giving a lot of pollen and nectar.

To prepare the seeds, you need to "pack" the flower stalks with gauze caps, paper envelopes or bags for 21 days after flowering. At the beginning of the collection period, cut off the inflorescences with the stem, hang them in a warm, ventilated room for ripening. As a result, the seeds will fall into prepared containers.

Chicory planting dates

Medicinal species are planted in early spring, as soon as the soil thaws. Lettuce varieties are best planted no earlier than mid-May. It is not worth sowing seeds before winter, as many flowering plants will appear.

Low air temperature will provoke early flowering of the crop, and the root system will not form.

Growing chicory seeds in the open field

Even a novice gardener will grow chicory in the country, because the process is similar to the cultivation of any vegetable crop. The plant endures temperature fluctuations, hot days in the garden, short-term frosts, cold temperatures down to 10 degrees below zero.

Seed preparation

Sprout seeds of lettuce before planting in advance in a damp cotton material or napkin. To speed up the process, put the bundle on a warm battery, leave for 2-3 days. Control constantly so that the fabric is warm, moist. If necessary, spray the seed sac with warm water.

You can soak chicory in a special stimulant for 5-6 hours to increase yields.

Seeds of an ordinary variety should be planted immediately, without pre-soaking.

Preparing the landing site

Before planting, you need to prepare both the seeds and the soil itself:

1. The site is dug up in advance, leveled, abundantly moistened. If necessary, the territory is fertilized.
2. The soil for the plant is not acidic, loamy. Acidic soil is limed in advance.
3. The site should be lit, not cluttered with trees. The flower loves direct sunlight, as bright places as possible.
4. It is advisable to prepare a place for sowing in bulk using humus fertilizers and peat. The dug-up place is fertilized with a mineral agent at the rate of 3 tablespoons per 1 meter of area. Peat fertilizers with humus, nitrophoska are mixed with soil and leveled, making the soil loose.
5. After that, fill the area with water.
6. Further, grooves are made at a distance of 30-35 centimeters from each other, where varieties of chicory are planted - both lettuce and ordinary.

Also, when planting, it is important to consider that a strong coffee aroma attracts pests. Therefore, the place should be chosen as far as possible from valuable crops.

It is ideal to grow chicory on the back of combined flower beds, multi-row flower beds - mixborders. It is better to combine flowers with annual crops, since when the root is removed, the overall picture is not lost. Pale blue flowers with violets, cornflowers, daisies look beautiful. Spicy herbs such as basil, dill or parsley are the most suitable neighbors.

In ancient Egypt, chicory was used as an antidote for the bite of poisonous snakes and insects. On the basis of chicory, people prepared healing infusions for indigestion, inflammation of the eyes.

Sowing seeds

Seeds should be planted to a depth of no more than 1-1.5 centimeters. The distance between seedlings is at least 8 centimeters. It is important to observe the proportions of the row spacing, leaving a distance of up to 40-60 centimeters for an adult plant.

Deep planting will result in reduced germination and germination time.

The first shoots will be visible on the 7-14th day. As it grows and develops, it is necessary to thin out the crop. Otherwise, young plants will destroy each other (the minimum distance between adult specimens is 30 centimeters).

Features of growing chicory at home

You can grow a lettuce variety both in a summer cottage, a garden, and on the windowsill of an apartment. For home growing:

1. At the end of September, lettuce leaves are removed from the beds along with the roots. The crop is folded, left for several days to dry and wither.
2. Then the greens are cut, and the root system, without clearing the ground, is put away for storage (at a temperature of +1+2 degrees).
3. Rhizomes with an uncut head and buds cut at a height of 10 millimeters are planted in a box for the winter period.
4. The soil is chosen sandy or from a mixture of peat, sand. The soil layer should reach 40 centimeters in height.
5. Root crops are planted 25-30 days before harvest. The roots are placed at a depth of at least 15-20 centimeters.
6. For greater productivity, the substrate is constantly moistened with water at room temperature. Maintain air temperature - 16-18 degrees.
7. Cut heads of cabbage with a part of the rhizome so that the leaves do not crumble. Fruits are stored for 2-3 weeks in the refrigerator, using in salads and for decorating dishes.

You can grow lettuce in plastic pots:

1. Root crops are placed so that the heads are 1-1.5 centimeters above the ground level.
2. The soil is abundantly moistened.
3. Cover the pot with black polyethylene, remove it for 10-12 days in a room with a temperature of 13-14 degrees.
4. The next 12-24 days the plant spends in a room with a higher temperature - 16-18 degrees. The entire period of growth will take 22-24 days. During this time, sprouts will grow to 150-180 grams each. Since the root crops are deprived of light, the heads of cabbage will have a white color.

How to transplant chicory

When a chicory has 3 leaves, it is advisable to thin out the crop, throwing away extra copies. The plant is not subject to transplantation.

Rules for crop care

Caring for chicory is very simple, like any other plant of the Aster family. All care comes down to thinning plants (with an interval of 8-15 centimeters), weeding, loosening, proper moderate watering, fertilizing the soil, protecting the plant from pests.

Fertilizers

Feed chicory with mineral fertilizers at the rate of 1 gram per 1 meter. For top dressing, both wood ash and compost, humus are used. In moderation, the soil is flavored with superphosphate, potassium s alt and ammonium nitrate solution.

Feed the crop at intervals of 14-21 days, alternating mineral and organic fertilizers.

Irrigation

Despite the fact that chicory tolerates both heat and cold well, proper moderate watering is necessary for a sufficient harvest:

1. Do not flood the plant, otherwise the leaves will rot.
2. You can save moisture by mulching.
3. Spray the leaves on hot days.
4. Do not moisten the plant in winter.

Ideal soil moisture - 75%, air - 80%.

The irrigation regime also depends on the amount of precipitation, air temperature and plant variety. The salad species does not tolerate a long drought, and needs constant soil moisture. The medicinal variety is more heat tolerant and only needs to be watered when there is no rain for a long time.

Protection from diseases and pests

Common chicory is resistant to various diseases and pests. Lettuce varieties of chicory are more susceptible to diseases such as leaf spot and rot.

Pests are slugs, leaf aphids, root mites and wireworms. Slugs are removed by hand, the ground around the chicory is sprinkled with crushed egg shells or sand.

For prevention, it is necessary to remove weeds in a timely manner, destroy plants with rot, water the crop moderately. All these activities contribute to the growth, flowering of chicory.

Weeding and loosening

Also, the plant must be protected from weeds, provide a constant supply of oxygen to the roots. To this end, the soil is constantly weeded and loosened.

Harvesting

Medicinal chicory blooms only in the second year after planting, as it is a biennial plant. In the first year, the roots are harvested. The leaves are cut in late autumn, leaving the culture in a "bare" form for wintering.

Chicory salad is harvested in October. The stalks are cut off with a sharp knife. Store lettuce leaves in the refrigerator compartment or cellar.

How to prepare chicory flowers

Chicory flowers are harvested as follows:

1. Harvest flowers during their abundant bloom, from June to September.
2. Choose plants away from highways and roadways.
3. Weather for collection should be dry and warm.
4. Don't pick flowers early in the morning as the dew hasn't dried yet.
5. Cut for drying only delicate flowers without the stem part.

How to dry chicory grass

Cut the stems of the plant to dry in the shade, under a canopy. Spread the raw materials in one layer on the fabric, dry in the attic.

Stir the dryer periodically, achieving uniform drying. As soon as the stems begin to break, the raw material is ready.

How to harvest plant roots

In early spring or late autumn, after the death of the ground part, they begin to harvest the roots. The root system is saturated with minerals as it prepares for wintering.

Harvest the roots as follows:

1. Dig up the roots of the plant.
2. The rhizomes are cleaned from the ground, washed. Remove thin side roots.
3. Initially dry the roots.
4. The rhizomes are cut lengthwise into small plates, large ones are cut across.
5. Dry the blanks using a dryer, oven, at a temperature of 60 degrees, ventilated room.

Store harvest no more than 3 years in cardboard boxes, wooden boxes or paper bags.

How to make coffee from your own chicory

It is very easy to prepare a coffee substitute from the harvested crop. To do this:

1. Cut the roots into strips 1-1.5 centimeters thick.
2. Dry the crops by drying with a heating temperature of 100 degrees for 12 hours.
3. Fry the blanks in a pan, cool.
4. Crush the roots with a blender, coffee grinder, mortar.
5. Use as a natural drink, at the rate of 1 teaspoon per cup of boiling water.

For flavor, mix chicory with barley, rowan, oats, rye, almond or acorn kernels.

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