One of the late summer/early fall chores in my garden is to dig up the horseradish and plant next year's crop. A good rule of thumb is to replant about one-third of the roots, if your aim is to maintain the size of your harvest next year.
In this climate, horseradish has no problem overwintering in the ground. In fact, you'll be less likely to have a crop next year if you try to store the roots indoors, as you would flower bulbs. If you replant at the same time that you harvest, you'll have robust plants next year. Planting in early fall gives the roots time to re-establish themselves before frost and the horseradish leaves will be among the first to appear in the spring.
Horseradish rarely appears on anyone's list of herb garden plants because of its invasive nature. Left to grow unchecked, horseradish will take over a flower bed. I've run into people who have at some point in their lives been so exasperated by horseradish that they consider it a noxious weed.
Having heard the horror stories, I read up on horseradish before I ever put it in the ground at my house. I found a gardening resource that recommended planting horseradish in bottomless plastic pots, the theory being that since horseradish roots travel sideways, the plastic barrier will frustrate their attempts to spread.
This was the third year that I had horseradish in my herb garden and I've had none of the problems that other gardeners' anecdotes of misery had warned me about. For plastic pots I have used the one-gallon size or larger -- the pots that nurseries use for shrubs -- which gives the roots room to grow. With a little effort, the bottoms of the pots can be cut out with a utility knife. The entire pot can then be buried in the ground, up to its top edge.
The high volume of rain we received this spring and early summer made me wish that I had replanted a little less root into each pot, because the plants quickly had completely filled up the pots by the first of June. When I dug up a large plant this summer to give to a friend, I noticed a couple of small roots in the bottom of the crater that remained. Those had to be dug out as well, to prevent renegade, uncontained plants from gaining a foothold.
I've also heard criticism that horseradish is an unattractive plant. I disagree. The plants are large and have an upright habit, with leaves that are large and stand two to three feet in height, with a bit of frill along the edge. I find that horseradish provides an interesting contrast to the more common plants in the herb bed, which tend to be small leaved and to grow lower to the ground.
Horseradish roots are easy to turn into a condiment. Trim the roots with a knife and grate them. The sharp flavor of horseradish, which is a relative of the mustard plant, is contained in an oil that is released during grating or cutting. Once it is in contact with air, the oil does not maintain its flavor for long, unless you mix the grated root with vinegar.
The common formula for basic prepared horseradish is a mix of 1 tablespoon of vinegar to each 1/4 cup of grated root. Add more vinegar, if you like. The mixture can be stored in small jars in the refrigerator for several months but eventually will take on a bitter flavor.
If you want freshly grated horseradish, the roots may be stored in the crisper drawer of your refrigerator, much as you would a ginger root. Expect to use them within three weeks.
We most often think of horseradish as one of the bitter herbs of Passover, or as an accompaniment to corned beef. It's a bit more versatile than that. Grated or prepared horseradish may be added to applesauce or sour cream, according to taste, as a condiment for beef, pork or fish. Or try spicing a Russian salad dressing with a bit of horseradish.
-- When she's not writing about foods and gardening, Gwyn Mellinger is teaching journalism at Baker University. You can send e-mail to her at mellinger@harvey.bakeru.edu. Her phone number is (785) 594-4554.
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