
Horseradish
Horseradish: plant 45 cm (18 in) apart in the row and 60 cm (24 in) between rows, 1 per square. Good neighbours: Potato.
Key facts
| Spacing in the row | 45 cm (18 in) |
|---|---|
| Between rows | 60 cm (24 in) |
| In a 30 cm (1 ft) square | 1 per square |
| Sun | Full sun, 6–8 hours a day |
| Root depth | 40 cm (16 in) |
| Height when grown | 70 cm (28 in) |
| Crop rotation group | Cabbage family |
| Support | None needed |
Sowing and germination
| How it is started | From cuttings |
|---|---|
| Cuttings per planting hole | 3 |
| Planting depth | 8 cm (3.1 in) |
| Soil temperature | from 7 °C, best 16–22 °C |
| Before sowing | nothing needed |
| When to plant | Outdoors before the last frost; soil at least 7 °C |
From seedling to plant
| Takes transplanting | Badly, sow where it grows |
|---|---|
| Life cycle | Perennial |
| Cold tolerance | Takes a light frost → hardy, takes hard frost |
| Soil | Light, sandy, free draining, pH 6–7 |
| In a pot | 10 L, 30 cm (11.8 in) |
| Watering | Water when the soil is dry two fingers down; while roots swell |
| Feeding | Little; at planting |
| Support and training | None needed |
Harvest and planning
| Days to first harvest | 200–240 days, from planting |
|---|---|
| Ready when | After the first frosts, when it sweetens |
| Harvest window | All at once, 4–8 weeks |
| Sow again every | 21 days |
| Typical yield | 0.4–0.9 kg per plant |
| Botanical family | Brassicaceae |
| Watch out for | Flea beetles, clubroot, slugs and snails |
| First crop after | 1–2 years |
| Pollination | Fruits on its own |
Good neighbours
Plan Horseradish in your garden
Open the free planner, drop Horseradish onto a bed and see how many plants fit.
Start Planning Your GardenSowing and harvest
| Plant out | Mar–Apr |
|---|---|
| Harvest | Oct–Nov |
My dates for this crop
Give the date once and this page, the sowing calendar and the planner all follow it.
- Not recommended
- Marginal
- Conditional
- Favourable
Months for a temperate climate: about a month later in the north and a month earlier in the south. Give your own last frost date for exact dates.
From the same family
Plants of the Brassicaceae family share diseases and pests, so they follow each other in the rotation only after a break.
Grown much the same way
Crops that need about the same room and care, from another family.
Sources
The values on this page marked as checked come from these sources: spacing, sowing depth, germination, soil, timing and safety notes, each against the source named here.
- Home Gardening Series: Horseradish (FSA6087) — University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension for: sowing depth, soil, spacing in the row; checked 2026-10-30
- Horseradish in the Garden (2020) — Utah State University Extension for: sowing depth, spacing in the row; checked 2026-10-30
- Growing horseradish in home gardens — University of Minnesota Extension for: spacing in the row; checked 2026-10-30