How to grow mizuna and mibuna

Mizuna and mibuna are Japanese greens with a mildly spicy flavour, for eating raw or lightly cooked. The plants take up little space and are ideal in containers as well as in the ground. Sow repeatedly for generous harvests across most of the year.

Also known as Japanese or oriental greens, mizuna and mibuna are in the cabbage or brassica family. They are fast-growing but compact plants forming leafy

Rosettes are the circular arrangement of flower petals; or a cluster of leaves radiating from approximately the same point usually around a stem. Examples include aeonium and most succulent plants, African violets, primula, sempervivums.

Both are ideal for cropping as

A method of harvesting leafy crops so the plants continue to grow and sprout further leaves, providing several pickings over a long period. Snip off just a few outer leaves from each plant, rather than all of them, leaving the inner leaves to grow, for picking in a few weeks. Suitable candidates include lettuces and most types of salad leaves, as well as chard, spinach, mizuna and kale.

Mizuna forms loose rosettes of attractive serrated leaves up to 20cm (8in) long. These have a mild peppery flavour and can be used raw in salads when small or cooked in stir-fries when larger. If sown repeatedly, mizuna can be harvested almost all year round and makes an attractive crop with a feathery appearance.

Mibuna is similar, but forms larger, denser clumps of narrower, dark green leaves that have a light mustard flavour. Use in salads or lightly cooked.

Sow seeds repeatedly in small batches from spring to autumn, and through winter under glass, for harvests almost all year round. Plants take up little room and crop prolifically. You can even use them as edible edgings to flower borders, especially frilly-leaved mizuna.

Many other oriental greens, including pak choi, choy sum, komatsuna, Chinese cabbage and Chinese broccoli, can be grown in a similar way. They do particularly well from late summer onwards.

For more veg-growing inspiration, visit the RHS gardens, which all grow a wide range of vegetables, including oriental and other brassicas.

Seeds of mibuna and mizuna are widely available. There are several varieties of mizuna – most have attractive bright green, glossy leaves with a frilly edging, but some have very finely divided, lacy and/or reddish-purple leaves, for an even more decorative addition to both your garden and your salads.

Both mibuna and mizuna are also often included in winter salad seed mixes too.

Both mizuna and mibuna grow best in slightly damp soil, so dig in lots of well-rotted manure or garden compost before sowing or planting out, to help retain moisture. Hot, dry conditions can cause plants to bolt (flower) prematurely, so in summer choose a cooler site in light shade.

Weed the ground thoroughly, then rake the surface to a fine texture, removing any stones.

When growing in containers, these should be at least 30cm (1ft) wide, as smaller containers dry out too rapidly. Use multi-purpose or soil-based compost, and position containers in sun, or in light shade during hot weather. They can also be sown in growing bags.

Mizuna and mibuna are easy to grow from seed, indoors or outside, in the ground and in large containers. Seeds should germinate in about a week. They can be sown almost all year round, but need protection in winter, ideally in a greenhouse or in mild regions under cloches. They are cool-season crops, growing best in the mild, damp weather of spring and autumn.

For a continuous harvests, sow small batches regularly a few weeks apart – see our guide to successional sowing.

These compact plants are great when space is tight – use them to fill any short-term gaps in your veg plot or borders, or sow in between slower growing crops, such as parsnips and potatoes, for harvesting before the main crop needs the room.

Both mizuna and mibuna need little maintenance, apart from regular watering in dry spells, especially if growing in containers. Extreme heat and dry conditions can cause stunted growth or bolting (premature flowering).

Mizuna and mibuna can be harvested nearly all year round from repeated sowings, either as cut-and-come-again salad leaves or whole rosettes. You can start harvesting a few baby leaves when plants are just a few weeks old and 8–10cm (3–4in) high.

With cut-and-come again harvesting, you pick just a few outer leaves from each plant, so it continues to grow, providing several small harvests. You may get up to five pickings from a plant before it starts flowering.
Alternatively, you can harvest the whole rosette, using a sharp knife or scissors, after six to eight weeks. Cut about 5cm (2in) above ground level and plants should re-sprout.

Oriental greens are tough and vigorous plants that are relatively trouble free. Being members of the cabbage family, they are potentially susceptible to brassica pests such as cabbage root fly, but they grow so quickly that these are rarely a problem.

Flea beetles can make tiny holes in the leaves, but this is only cosmetic damage and a covering of fleece should prevent it if you wish.

Slugs and snails may eat young seedlings.

Plants may flower prematurely (bolt) in hot, dry weather. To keep them cropping for longer, water regularly, apply mulch and sow in light shade in summer. Or simply sow small batches regularly and remove plants once they begin to flower.