When to plant lotus roots in Baoding

Why these dates

Plant rhizomes in spring once the water has warmed past 18C, laid horizontally in heavy soil under 15cm of water. Harvest from the second autumn, after the leaves have browned.

Hardy to about -6C provided the rhizome sits below the ice line, which in a shallow container it does not. Bring tubs into shelter where winters freeze hard.

Lotus roots are planted once and then left in place, so there is no sowing offset to resolve. What matters in Baoding is the shape of the year: this crop is dormant through the winter and is planted while it sleeps, any time between leaf fall in autumn and the restart of growth in spring, so long as the ground is neither frozen nor waterlogged. That is why the window below spans the cold months rather than sitting in the middle of the growing season.

Hardiness is not the obstacle here. Baoding is zone 7a, comfortably inside the range this crop is rated for, so an established plant should come through an average winter without protection.

Do not expect a crop in the first year. A plant set out now should give its first worthwhile pick around year 2, and will then produce every year after that, which is what makes the planting decision worth getting right the first time.

See every crop timed for Baoding →