Endive and escarole look like lettuce, forming a nearly flat rosette of leaves up to 18 inches across when mature, but their flavor is somewhat sharper. (Belgian endive is actually witloof, a plant very different in appearance.) Endive has slender leaves with wavy edges, escarole rather broad flat leaves. Both types must be blanched-that is, shielded from light-to remove some of the green from the leaves, making them yellowish green, and also to eliminate a bitter flavor.
Good varieties of endive are Green Curled and Salad King; good escarole varieties are Florida Deep Hearted and Full Heart Batavian, also called Broad-Leaved Batavian. A 15-foot row yields about 15 heads over a period of two weeks.
Endive and escarole grow best in soil with a pH of 5.8 to 7.0. In most of the U.S. and Canada, where frosts are expected in winter, sow seeds in midsummer about three months before the first fall frost is due; the crop will be ready in fall. Because the plants tolerate frosts, seeds may also be sown in very early spring for summer harvesting, but the plants will not be as satisfactory as those grown for harvesting in fall.
In regions where winter temperatures rarely fall below 25, sow seeds in fall for harvesting during winter and spring. To sow seeds, group three or four in a spot, setting each group 1/4 inch deep and 8 to 12 inches apart in rows 2 feet apart. When the seedlings become 1 to 2 inches tall, pull out all but the strongest plant in each group. If you have limited space in your garden, you can sow the seeds in a seedbed; then when the seedlings are 2 to 3 inches high, move them to the garden where other plants, such as beans, have already been harvested.
Whenever there has been less than 1 inch of rain in a week, give the plants a thorough soaking. Every three to four weeks scatter 1/4 cup of 5-10-5 fertilizer in a 11/2-foot band around each plant.
The fruit is ready to pick when it is about 6 inches long and very shiny -about 145 days after seeds are sown or about 70 days after seedlings are transplanted to the garden. If the fruit gets dull, it is overripe. Pick all fruit before they mature; otherwise the plants stop producing. The stems of the fruit are tough and should be cut with shears.
Good varieties of endive are Green Curled and Salad King; good escarole varieties are Florida Deep Hearted and Full Heart Batavian, also called Broad-Leaved Batavian. A 15-foot row yields about 15 heads over a period of two weeks.
Endive and escarole grow best in soil with a pH of 5.8 to 7.0. In most of the U.S. and Canada, where frosts are expected in winter, sow seeds in midsummer about three months before the first fall frost is due; the crop will be ready in fall. Because the plants tolerate frosts, seeds may also be sown in very early spring for summer harvesting, but the plants will not be as satisfactory as those grown for harvesting in fall.
In regions where winter temperatures rarely fall below 25, sow seeds in fall for harvesting during winter and spring. To sow seeds, group three or four in a spot, setting each group 1/4 inch deep and 8 to 12 inches apart in rows 2 feet apart. When the seedlings become 1 to 2 inches tall, pull out all but the strongest plant in each group. If you have limited space in your garden, you can sow the seeds in a seedbed; then when the seedlings are 2 to 3 inches high, move them to the garden where other plants, such as beans, have already been harvested.
Whenever there has been less than 1 inch of rain in a week, give the plants a thorough soaking. Every three to four weeks scatter 1/4 cup of 5-10-5 fertilizer in a 11/2-foot band around each plant.
The fruit is ready to pick when it is about 6 inches long and very shiny -about 145 days after seeds are sown or about 70 days after seedlings are transplanted to the garden. If the fruit gets dull, it is overripe. Pick all fruit before they mature; otherwise the plants stop producing. The stems of the fruit are tough and should be cut with shears.
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A few vegetable gardening tips are starting with vegetables that taste notably better picked fesh and choose varieties that will grow satisfactorily in the vegetable garden in your climate.
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