mustards

Planting + Growing

Growing mustard in the garden is easy when planted under the right conditions. Mustard likes full sun to partial shade. Your soil should be loose enough to drain well. Mustards can grow crowded, but leaves will be smaller and crowded plants may tend to bolt and go to seed more quickly. To optimize growth and a bountiful harvest, follow the spacing guidelines below.

Starting from Seed. If you're starting from seed, plant 1 - 2 seeds about 1/4 an inch down in a small container of soil. Water the soil and place it in a sunny area. Check the soil daily to water if necessary. Once your seeds sprout and have true leaves, transplant them outside or into a larger container with about 6 to 12 inches of space in between each plant.

Starting from Seedling. If you picked up a mustard seedling from Sweet Water's seedling pick up, plant the seedlings into soil, allowing 6 to 12 inches of spacing between each plant.

Container growing mustards. Mustards will grow in an 8-inch pot. In larger containers, like a garden bed, you can plant more than one mustard, 6 - 12 inches apart from each other.

Other notes...companion plants. Plant near herbs including dill, rosemary, thyme, and mint.

Harvesting

You can begin to harvest your greens when your mustard plants are around 6-8 inches high. If you wait until they’re much taller than 9-12 inches, they will lose some of their flavor. Cut the outer leaves first to allow the tender inner leaves to grow. Be careful to not damage the plant’s center.

Always take the largest, oldest leaves and leave the young ones to continue growing. If you harvest carefully, the new leaves will grow and provide leaves to harvest for many weeks. Rinse off mustard leaves when you are ready to eat.

Cooking

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Links to More Resources

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