How to Grow Asian Greens

Rather than talk about pak choy, bok choy, choy sum, tatsoi, or kailon separately, it makes sense to offer it up as a single article as they all have very similar growing needs. Asian greens are typically high in iron, calcium, manganese, potassium, and vitamins A, C and K. This means they contribute to healthy bones, blood pressure, hearts, joints, thyroid function, cancer prevention and more! They are better for you when cooked but can be eaten in salads and are great in soups, steamed, added to stir fries, and even some curries. And the best part? They grow quickly and easily.

When to grow Asian greens

Most Asian greens tend to prefer soil temperatures of 7-23°C or 45–74°F to germinate from seed and don’t like to get too hot throughout the lifespan of the plant. For this reason, if you are in a warmer climate with mild winters, planting in autumn and growing through winter and spring is ideal. For colder climates, you may even be able to grow them year round. There are some more heat resistant varieties than can be grown in summer too so be sure to check the seed packet.

Asian green varieties

Whilst we are lumping them together, each of these is a different plant and may have different varieties of their own:

· Pak Choy/Chinese cabbage/Bok Choy – with both heading or non-heading varieties, this is the Asian green that you might be most familiar with and in Australia pak choy refers to green stemmed varieties while bok choy refers to the white stemmed ones

· Choy Sum/Chinese flowering cabbage/Yu Choy – has a mild, slightly sweet flavour

· Tatsoi/Spinach Mustard/Tat Choy – very cold tolerant, tatsoi can be eaten at every stage of growth and has a mild mustard flavour that is great in salads or added to a stir fry right at the end of the cooking process

· Kailon/Kailaan/Chinese Broccoli – named for its slight broccoli flavour, the whole plant can be eaten and is great steamed or stir fried just like you would do for broccolli.

How to grow Asian greens from seeds

Raised garden beds are perfect for growing Asian greens in – it ensures good drainage, and you can fill them with quality soil. Birdies garden beds [LINK to discount codes] are Mark’s raised beds of choice.

Like many plants, Asian greens love full sun except in hot summers where they will appreciate a bit of protection from the hot sun by being in the shade of another plant such as peas or beans or perhaps from some shade cloth.

Sow the seeds around 5mm or around quarter of an inch deep and around 200mm or 8 inches apart and cover them over with soil before giving them a light water. Continue to water frequently to keep the soil moist but not wet.

Seedlings will begin to emerge around 7-12 days after planting.

How to grow Asian greens from seedlings

To grow Asian greens from seedlings, you still want to ensure that your soil is right and pick a good location as mentioned above.

Plant out each seedling 200mm or 8 inches apart for best results. It’s your choice whether you plant them in the clusters or prick them out and plant each one individually. The ideal time to do this is very late in the afternoon or first thing in the morning to give your plant an opportunity to get established without being blasted with the hot sun immediately. Lightly water the seedling in with a seaweed solution such as the Plant Doctor’s Seaweed Secrets (use SSME10 for 10% off your order) to minimise transplant shock.

Asian greens tend to have shallow roots which means they need frequent watering, especially if it has been overly warm or windy. Mulching your soil with a good quality mulch will help to retain moisture and protect those roots.

How long do Asian greens take to grow?

Most of the Asian greens are very quick to grow, reaching maturity in 70 days or less. Succession planting can be a good idea to prevent them all being ready at once and extending the season out longer.

When to harvest Asian greens

Most Asian greens can be eaten as microgreens which are ready in 10-14 days. From there, you can wait until they are a bit bigger and harvest baby plants which are usually tender and sweet or you can let them grow to full size and harvest then but be warned, if you leave them in too long, they will go to seed all of a sudden and produce a LOT of seeds. This makes the plant virtually inedible but does give you plenty of seed for next years crop! If you don’t harvest those seeds in time, you’ll likely have Asian greens growing in some very unusual places for years to come.

Asian greens pests and diseases and how to control them organically

Cabbage Worms/Cabbage Loopers/Cabbage Moths

The arch nemesis of any gardener are the cabbage worms. As Asian greens are brassicas, cabbage worms will target them just like they do broccoli and cabbage. These bright green caterpillars can destroy an entire crop in days if left unchecked. They are the larvae of the cabbage moth which is a small white moth that lays their eggs on the underside of leaves. The caterpillars have voracious appetites and will eat and eat and eat until your plant is decimated. Fortunately, there are a few ways to control them. Picking them off and squashing them can help to keep populations down. Netting your susceptible plants at night may also help – especially while your plants are young as they do prefer young leaves. Companion planting to attract parasitic wasps is something I’ve had great success with – borage is my go-to for a companion plant that grows quickly and brings in the wasps in droves. Alternatively, BT or bacillus thuringiensis is a natural option that can be sprayed on the leaves of your plant. When the caterpillars eat the BT, it tells them that they are full so they don’t eat and ultimately die of starvation. It sound brutal but anyone who has experienced the devastation of cabbage worms will tell you, sometimes desperate times call for desperate measures!

Slugs and Snails

Cool and damp loving snails and slugs love leafy greens to munch on. Their shiny trails tend to give them away along with holes in the leaves they have been eating. If you head out to your garden at night, you might catch these pests in the act and be able to pull them off your plants and dispose of them however you see fit. Alternatively, salt is the kryptonite of slugs and snails so sprinkling some around the edges of your garden bed may be enough of a deterrent to keep them at bay and diatomaceous earth may have the same effect. Some people also swear that copper is a deterrent too so putting some copper around the base of your plants may work too. Otherwise, there are organic slug and snail killer products that you may like to try instead.

Aphids

Aphids can be a gardener’s nightmare for a huge range of plants. These small insects can be found on the stems and undersides of leaves of your plant and can be a range of different colours depending on what they are eating. Left untreated, aphids can swell to proportions that risk your plant developing diseases and becoming unhealthy. The most natural way to avoid aphids is to attract beneficial insects such as ladybugs that eat the aphids. Other natural remedies include organic neem oil, diatomaceous earth sprinkled on top of the aphids to dehydrate and kill them, strong spray of water to dislodge the aphids, or a spray of soapy water which suffocates the aphids (be sure to hose off any soap later).

Downey Mildew

Downey mildew is in fact a parasite that is recognisable by yellowing or bleached spots on the top side of leaves and a white mould on the underside of the leaves. Cool and moist weather is when the mildew thrives so ensuring you have plenty of space between plants to allow air flow and watering at the base of the plant rather than overhead will help. Remove any infected leaves as soon as possible and ensure you rotate your crops to avoid future problems.

Mark’s top tips for growing Asian greens

Oversow your Asian greens and harvest as baby greens as you want to use them which thins out the plants allowing the remaining plants to grow and mature as normal. You may also want to check out Mark’s video “Oversow your greens baby bok choy big tip” for more tips.

Do you have any tips or questions about growing Asian greens?

Mark and the Self Sufficient Me team love hearing about your growing success, so why not join our forum to let us know how you went growing Asian greens?

If you had some trouble growing Asian greens or simply want to pick Mark’s brain about your self-sufficiency goals or projects, you may want to consider becoming a patreon for exclusive content and email access for less than a restaurant meal each month!

Other posts that may interest you…