A step by step guide on how to raise and push your own Belgian Endive from seed in your home garden. Since I have a little more time as I lay it down for the summer and decide what else to do with my life, I’m starting a series on raising garden plants from seed. For now, I will categorize these under “How to Grow….” although these will be more like a “How to Master” series. I hope these are a little more useful than most of the posts beginning with “How to grow…” found elsewhere on the Internet, not that there isn’t an audience for “hacks” and “DIY” posts ” but most are oversimplified, and reduced to “just plant the seeds!” – I would like to offer posts that are a bit more useful than that. Being a ‘foodie’ and not one to shy away from a challenge in the garden, I’d like to offer some advice and guidelines for raising unusual vegetables (and flowers) – especially ones that are expensive at the market, or difficult to find. destiny. -find time at nurseries and garden centers or even crops that are often overlooked on other sites. This is how I came to grow Belgian Endive – I buy it often, because I love to make winter salads and cook with it, braise it with bacon and chicken broth but more than anything else, for almost $5.00 a pound, I. know that it is expensive. Probably a good sign that I write about raising Belgian Endive on this blog is that whenever I Google HOW TO GROW BELGIAN ENDIVE, more of my photos come up! – Sadly, often on other sites like this, or this site, or this one. They get my photos from Flkr, or from an old eHow post I did once. I realize now that I have more time, I could post more ‘Useful How To’ posts as I can show before and after shots, as well as actual “in the garden” images – which is – Well , is what I do, right? So why aren’t more people taking Belgian Endive? Well, okay, for starters, it’s Belgian Endive, and even trying to get the cashier in the supermarket to use the correct code can be a challenge, but if you’re a diner, yes you know why. But growing itself is a different matter altogether. The truth is, to this day, I haven’t met a single person who has grown or forced their own Belgian Endive (apart from the great Roger Swain from the TV show ‘The Victory Garden’ who mentioned a few one for me. years ago that he inquires why people are not raising their own old-fashioned forcing vegetables, as well as confessing to me that he is an avid blog follower (nice, right?).
Cichorium intybus var. foliosum
When other varieties of green are out of season, the delicate territory of Belgium is at its best – and thank God for that! a welcome antidote to ordinary winter fare.
Try our Avocado and Belgian Endive Salad
Belgian Endive Salad
Taste the Plant
In addition to the difference in appearance, there is also a difference in taste. the white variety is supposed to be less bitter than the red variety. However, I found the white variety to taste bitter and the red variety to taste completely different. The red variety was also fuzzy, like the fuzz you get on a peach, but the white variety was not.
When comparing the productivity of red and white varieties, the red varieties only give about 1/3 – 1/4 as much as the white varieties. This is what happens when both varieties are grown under the same conditions, so the cost of production is the same, but the white varieties are more profitable for the grower.
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