Crosne, Stachys or Knollenziest – the Ziest is almost unknown, but still has numerous names. Stachys sieboldii is a wonderful winter vegetable with a fine taste, which can also be harvested fresh at Christmas and requires little care throughout the year. If you want to bring the gourmet vegetables into your own garden, you only have to pay a little attention and only grow the tubers once. After that, the bulbous ziest takes over its own propagation and remains so for years. Of course, this only works if the location and care are right. With the right knowledge, this is easily possible even for beginners.
location
Basically, any location is fine for the Knollenziest. A place in the light shade, where the Stachys sieboldii is warm but not exposed to the blazing sun, is ideal.
Because the Ziest, once successfully cultivated, will reproduce underground of its own accord, it should be restrained in small gardens. Lawn edges, a root barrier or some other underground cordoned off area would be ideal.
Substrate
A loamy, heavy soil is ideal as a basis for the bulbous loam. However, to make cultivation easier and to increase the yield, compost and sand should be added to this substrate. The sand loosens the soil, improves aeration and reduces the risk of waterlogging. The compost enriches the substrate with nutrients.
cultivation
Cultivation of the bulbous Ziest can begin in March and is to be carried out as follows:
- The soil is dug up well and mixed appropriately with compost, sand and mulch. It is best to start in the fall before you start cultivation. This allows the nutrients to be distributed more evenly in the soil.
- A distance of 40 cm must be maintained between and within the rows.
- Planting holes with a depth of 10 cm are dug into each of which two to four tubers are placed.
- The holes are filled with earth and tapped on the surface.
- The newly placed bulbous pine branch is then poured on in a flooding manner.
After about a month, the first above-ground shoots should appear. Of course, how fast the growth progresses at the beginning depends on the weather.
In order not to accidentally weed the young plants, it is necessary to know what they look like. However, because they look like a cross between deadnettle and mint, it may be difficult to tell them apart from weeds or unwanted bed visitors at first. As a guide, it helps to mark the planting holes with small sticks.
pour
The bulbous Ziest reacts quite sensitively to drought and waterlogging. Watering is therefore necessary to keep the soil slightly moist at all times, but only when necessary – such as prolonged dry periods when no rain falls. It is best to water with collected rainwater, as this is low in lime and therefore soft. For larger areas, tap water can also be left to rest in a larger container for about a week. During this time, the lime settles at least partially on the ground, the upper layers are suitable for watering the Stachys sieboldii.
tillage
If the Ziest cultivation takes place on loamy soil, the water absorption in summer can be difficult. When it is dry and hot, the heavy earth tends to cake in the upper layers. The result is a surface from which water initially runs off. Of course, the bulbous Ziest in the ground has little of it, and depending on the bed design, an unnecessarily large amount of water is wasted.
For this reason, it is advisable to hack up the ground from time to time and thus open it up for the water. This measure also prevents the overly successful growth of weeds and reduces the risk of infestation by diseases and pests.
Fertilize
The Knollenziest can definitely benefit from a light fertilization if this is carried out correctly and neither in quantity nor frequency is exaggerated. Suitable means are:
- Compost
- nettle manure
- Hornspäne
- vegetable fertilizer
- Pond water (if chemically unpolluted)
- Mulch
It is sufficient to apply a small amount or weak concentration of the chosen remedy about every four weeks. Ideally, the additional nutrient supply for the ziest is combined with tilling the soil and watering. The loosened surface allows the fertilizers to penetrate the soil better. On the one hand, watering distributes the substances better and, on the other hand, chemical burns on the roots are avoided.
Apart from compost and vegetable manure, none of the other remedies mentioned should be given consistently. It makes much more sense to alternate the respective fertilizers. In this way, the risk of one-sided over-fertilization is lower and the plants still get all the nutrients they need.
If the fertilization fails, this is usually not a problem.
Verschnitt
In autumn the green parts of the Stachys sieboldii wither and can be cut off radically above the ground. But they don’t have to. The foliage and stems can also be left on the bed and worked underground in spring. Here they serve as a natural fertilizer and return nutrients to the soil.
The situation is different in the case of an infestation with pests or diseases. Affected plant parts should then be treated as quickly as possible or removed if necessary to prevent further spread. In these cases, of course, the clippings must not end up on the compost. It can either be disposed of with household waste or destroyed.
harvest
The Ziest takes quite a long time before it is ready for harvest. As with growing potatoes, the parts above ground must turn yellow and wither first. This is usually the case around October.
In order to get to the tubers, the earth has to be removed. Now at the latest all gardeners will be happy to have added sand to the substrate mixture, because this makes digging up much easier and less strenuous.
After harvesting, the Stachys sieboldii tubers are fresh and crunchy for only a few days, so they should be removed from the soil immediately and used up quickly. No peeling is necessary, simply brushing and rinsing will suffice.
In order not to start cultivation again next year, two to four tubers should be left in the ground per planting hole. These sprout again in the spring.
storage
Similar to other root vegetables, such as asparagus and salsify, saffron can be canned or frozen. However, this changes its consistency. However, preservation is not necessary at all, at least in winter. From October until spring the Crosne can be harvested as needed.
If you want to save yourself the work in the cold and prefer to harvest all the tubers at once, you should think twice about this. A handful of seed bulbs can yield around 20 kg. Even if a good part of it is left in the substrate for next year’s harvest, the amount is still enough for numerous dishes. This also makes storage difficult and requires a large amount of space. It makes more sense to leave the Ziest in the ground until needed. It should of course be harvested on frost-free days.
If you have a cool, dark room available, the bulbs of the ziest can be kept in moist and naturally clean sand. However, care must be taken here, as mold can develop. To prevent this, the nodules should be clean and the sand should be heated to 100 °C before use.
wintering
Although the bulbous Ziest tolerates frost without any problems, it makes sense to protect the soil to conserve its strength and to facilitate the harvest. Suitable editions are:
- Mulch
- Stroh
- brushwood
These materials have an insulating effect and can therefore prevent the substrate from freezing through completely.
Because the root vegetables from Asia store their reserves in the tasty tubers, frost protection for the remaining sprouts is recommended even after harvesting. The less energy they lose in winter, the stronger they can sprout again next year and the greater the yield.
Implement
Once started in a bed, the cultivation of the bulbous Ziest can be continued in the same place for a long time. The Crosne is very self-tolerant and therefore rarely needs to change location. If you fertilize the substrate regularly during the summer, you prevent the soil from being exhausted and also extend the possible cultivation time. Only when the Ziest grows poorly in the usual place should some tubers be relocated in March.
However, a regular change of location still has a decisive advantage, even if it is not absolutely necessary: it minimizes the risk of diseases and pests. As an alternative to this, cultivation can also take place in a tub, as it is much easier to replace the substrate every year.
Cultivation in the bucket
If you don’t have a garden available, want to start cultivating the Stachys sieboldii every year free of germs and parasites that you’ve carried with you, or simply don’t feel like harvesting outside your own four walls, growing in a tub is the best choice.
The following points are important in this culture:
- Make sure there is sufficient water drainage in the container
- Insert drainage layer
- Keep substrate moist
- Choose a container that is flat and spacious rather than high
- Spend winter in a room where the temperature is 0°C to 10°C
Since the planter should be brought indoors over the winter anyway, the gradual harvest is very easy. At the specified temperatures, the substrate does not freeze, digging out remains easy.
Typical care mistakes, diseases and pests
On the pest side, spider mites and aphids occasionally show up on the above-ground part of the Crosne. These can be combated by ladybugs, predatory mites and lacewings. Rinsing off the pests or applying neem oil-based insecticides is also effective. The same applies to spraying with stinging nettle liquid or liquid manure.
Viral infections and rot fungi are also dangerous for the harvest. Watering behavior plays an important role in prevention. If the soil is too wet or too dry, this weakens the plants’ defenses. Germs then have an easier time. Neem oil can be used as a treatment, which is sprayed in diluted form on the plant and soil or added to the irrigation water if necessary.
