How to grow Caliente Mustard

How to grow Caliente Mustard in a garden/allotment/small area situation

1. Soil preparation and sowing

Prepare a good seed bed. Remove old crop debris, dig over and rake level. Apply a balanced N:P:K fertilizer at rates recommended on the label.

Sow Caliente Mustard seed thinly, from March to early October, either broadcasting it onto the soil, or sowing in rows. For small areas broadcasting is sufficient. Weigh out the amount of seed required for the area to be covered; this will avoid over-sowing and later overcrowding of plants.

Seed rate: Aim for 1.5 - 2g of seed per m2.

Rake the seed bed lightly after sowing to ensure the seed makes contact with the soil and water gently. Keep the soil moist until the seed has germinated (3-5 days)

2. Growing

Caliente Mustard will usually take between 60-100 days to reach maturity (ready for incorporation). Well grown crops will reach 90- 150cm (3-5ft) in height.

Ensure soil is kept moist throughout the mustard crop's growth, drought stressed plants will flower prematurely, resulting in less green matter production. Water regularly during periods with no rain, especially during the summer.

3. Chopping

Caliente Mustard crops can be chopped and dug into the soil at any point during their growth, however, for best results leave until vertical growth stops and depending on the time of year, the crop starts to flower. If the flowers open, aim to incorporate within 2 weeks to avoid any seed being shed and self sowing.

Chopping the crop into very small pieces is crucial for biofumigation and soil amendment effects.

To achieve a fine chop use a powerful garden strimmer, rotary mower, garden shredder or a spade to chop the crop into tiny pieces. If using a shredder or rotary mower pull the plants up by the roots and shred the whole plant (roots included).

4. Incorporating

Best results are seen when the chopped material is dug in as quickly as possible, so we would advise doing a little at a time to prevent all the biofumigant gas disappearing.

To dig the chopped mustard into the soil use a rotavator, tiller, fork or spade. Aim to incorporate it evenly 15-22 cm (6-9 inches) deep. The more even the incorporation, the better the result.

Once the entire crop has been chopped and incorporated, water the soil thoroughly and if desired cover with polythene or cardboard.

LEAVE AT LEAST 14 DAYS BEFORE SOWING OR PLANTING THE FOLLOWING CROP

5. Sowing/planting the following crop

Remove any polythene or cardboard used to cover the soil a couple of days before preparing the ground again.

Lightly fork over the ground to loosen it and rake to prepare for the following crop but there is no need to re-dig the area.

If a balanced fertilizer was used when growing the Caliente Mustard there is no need to apply more as it will be recycled through the green manure and slowly released to the following crop.

Notes:

Organic Growers

Caliente Mustard seed is not produced organically, however the seed is not dressed or treated in any way and is therefore suitable for use in organic systems.

Caliente Mustard seed is GM free.

Buy Caliente Mustard Seeds