Tendergreen Komatsuna
Certified Organic
Brassica rapa
As silky and sweet as spinach, but easier to grow.
The artwork on this pack completes a sort of interruption the narrow vantage offered by a vintage Japanese stamp. It imagines the parasoled lady on a stroll in a field of Komatsuna, also known as Mustard Spinach, Japanese Spinach, or Tendergreen. Among her are all stages of the crop: young, flowering, gone to seed. You can reproduce this full spectrum scene in your own garden by letting some plants live on without the interruption of harvest: they will flower and go to seed self-sowing a second generation for delicious fall greens.
Komatsuna is one of our favorite Asian greens. You can plant it from early spring through fall and eat the leaves, stems, and even flower heads; it survives the winter happily in an unheated tunnel or under row cover. You can use the leaves fresh when young. Wilt or braise when more mature for an unbeatably tender, melting, bright-green, sweet mild mustardy treat! Delicious, highly nutritious (plenty of calcium), and a beautiful, light-green, shiny addition to any garden. If you try one new leafy vegetable this year, make it Komatsuna.
from $3.99
| Unit | Price | Quantity | Availability |
|---|---|---|---|
| Art Pack / Organic / 250 seeds | $4.79 | In Stock | |
| 250 Seeds / Organic | $3.99 | In Stock | |
| 750 Seeds / Organic | $6.99 | In Stock | |
| 2 Ounces / Organic | $11.49 | In Stock |
Price as selected:
Sow under protection 4-6 weeks before last frost and transplant 3 weeks before last frost. Succession sow July-August; fall crops are most successful. Spring-sown crops must be harvested young to beat bolting; they also may need row cover to protect against flea beetle damage. Will overwinter with protection and give delicious greens through January at least. Grows very quickly and is usually ready for harvest in about 6 weeks.
| Days to Germination | 5-10 days |
|---|---|
| Days to Maturity | 35 days |
| Planting Depth | ½" |
| Spacing in Row | 4" |
| Spacing Between Rows | 10" |
| Height at Maturity | 10" |
| Width at Maturity | 6" |
| Sun Preference | Full to Little Sun |
Postage stamp painting by Molly Rausch. Molly Rausch writes, paints, and builds treehouses in New Paltz, New York. Her stamp paintings began 16 years ago with an envelope of foreign stamps from her dad and a small bookbinding project she didn't know how else to fill. Rausch created a Lost & Found Drawing Booth in 2009, dug a tunnel to an abandoned Fotomat in 2010, published a children's book with Penguin in 2011, created a Short Sale for the Corcoran Gallery of Art in 2012, and traded drawings for hand-drawn currency at the World Financial Center in 2013. Each stamp painting begins with an actual postage stamp that is glued down to the paper. Then Rausch paints around the stamp, extending the scene, with watercolor and gouache. As a result, the paintings are quite small. Everything is done freehand with a brush; she does not use pens or pencils. She does not paint on the stamp itself. And she does not research the subject, so the extension is completely invented and should not be tested for accuracy.From the Artist: "I've had this stamp from Japan set aside for some time as a particularly beautiful one I wanted to paint. When I saw Komatsuna on this year's list of possibilities, it seemed like the right time. The stamp is gorgeous. And I loved the idea of placing two friends in a garden, taking a walk in the rain. Painting and gardening share the satisfaction of creating something that wasn't there before. And watching how it changes and grows through the years. My paintings certainly don't look the same as they did 8 years ago. And neither does my yard. Some years it all goes crazy wild. Other years I keep very tidy corners."Medium: Watercolor, Gouache, Postage Stamp