LATIN NAME: Cichorium endivia.
CULTURE: Endive (Frisee) is hardy and can be planted as early as the soil can be worked. It is a cool weather crop and grows best at temperatures of 15.5-18.3C. Careful variety selection is important for hot weather plantings. Sow every 3 weeks for a continuous supply of fresh endive.
THERMAL DORMANCY: Endive seed can enter thermal dormancy when exposed to high temperatures above 25C. Optimum germination results at soil temperatures of 15.5-20C.
MICRO-FARMING SPECIFICATIONS: *
Frisee (Curly Endive)
QUICK OVERVIEW: (As per Mesclun varieties) Rows; 4, Spacing on the row; 15cm, Days to Maturity; 60, Harvest window; 27days, Days in garden; 57, Days in cells; 30, Yield/30m bed 65kg, $22-28kg crop total $1430-$1820AUD (3 cuts)
INTENSIVE SPACING: 4 rows , 20cm per bed spaced every 15cm on the row.
FERTILIZATION: Frisees will do great in beds that were previously amended with compost and fertilized with a mix of alfalfa meal (2-0-2) and pelleted chicken manure (5-3-2).
IRRIGATION:
Irrigation Type;
Drip tape, Techline (4 per bed) or sprinkler
Irrigation Management;
Root depth: Shallow (15-60cm)
General: Water consistently to avoid bitter taste. Critical to water before head development.
IMPLANTATION:
We plant frisee every 4 weeks and plan to have up to 3 cuts per seeding. For each seeding, we plant enough beds for an estimated 3 weeks of harvest per planting. Some frisee will be sold as heads, but most of it goes into our signature mesclun mix. Loose leaves of frisee make up +/- 10% of our mix. The number of beds we grow is therefore proportional to our weekly mesclun harvest targets.
In our planting program, frisee is grouped with spring onions, sucrine, mini-fennel and lettuce, all crops that have similar plant requirements and that are planted every 2 weeks. Frisees will be planted with those every other cycle.
EQUIPMENT:
Rotary harrow,
75cm bed prep rake,
Popping tray and marking roller.
Option-Paperpot Transplanter; Drop Seeder 4.5mm, Chainpots 15cm.
ITINERARY:
Remove tarp and clean out large debris. Use the rake if needed.
Uniformly apply amendments and pass with the rotary harrow at a depth of 5cm. To make transplanting easier (seeing as the soil is loose after being harrowed), we only prepare the beds when we are about to transplant.
Pass with the dibbler-roller to mark the planting holes and bring out the well-watered trays.
Once the beds are ready, 1 person will drop the seedlings while 2 others transplant as fast as possible. Frisee transplants are very hardy and don’t need special care. 3 people/30mbed is a good ratio for efficient workflow.
Install irrigation and water until the soil is deeply moistened.
* If the previous crop is too well established, or if the bed is too messy, mow the crop as low as possible and harrow at a depth of 5cm. Add 2.5cm of compost evenly spread on the whole width of the bed and transplant into compost following a no-till strategy.
WEEDING: Frisee is cultivated using the flex tine weeder 10 to 12 days after implantation, or when the weeds are at the filament/cotyledon stage. In weedy beds, a second pass should be planned 7 days later.
PLANT PROTECTION: For really nice blanched hearts, place blanching bells on selected heads 7-10 days prior to the harvest. The bells are moved each week after the blanched hearts are harvested.
HARVEST:
Frisees are harvested in the fields in a kneeling position. Both heads and loose leaves are harvested using a VERY sharp knife. Sharpen your blades before each harvest; this will help reduce potential oxidation of the cut surface. Do not use carbon or rusted blades.
When harvesting heads, cut high enough to remove dead and damaged outer leaves while keeping the head intact.
When harvesting loose leaves, only take the heart of the plant (leaving the dark green outer leaves), cut just above the growing tip (for regrowth) and slice the tops off at 10cm. In the end, you want leaves that are no bigger than the palm of your hand 10cm, with about half the leaves blanched.
Always trim the exterior leaves after you cut, making sure the core is clean for the regrowth of the plant.
CONDITIONING:
When mixing the chicory in with the mesclun, refer to the procedures for Mesclun.
The frisee heads are washed by quickly dunking them in a sink full of cold water.
Use both hands (one lettuce head in each hand) to shake out any excess, and place them on a screen facing down to let them drip-dry for a moment. Make sure the frisee is in the water for no longer than a minute to avoid getting waterlogged.
Pack the frisee tightly in storage totes, stacking them upside down to let the water drain while sitting in the cooler.
STORING: Frisee heads are stored in cold room kept at 2C and should not stay for more than 3 days before being sold.
*based on an excerpt from: The Market Gardener Masterclass, (JM Fortier).
TRANSPLANTING: Sow in flats, 4 seeds/2.5cm, or in 19mm plug trays, barely covering seeds with fine vermiculite, 3-4 weeks before transplanting outdoors. Shade the flats on sunny, warm days if necessary to keep the soil surface cool, below 24C, until germination. If sowing into flats, transplant 2.5-5cm apart into flats, pots, or cell-type containers about 2 weeks later. Harden seedlings by reducing water and temperature for 2-3 days before planting outdoors. Properly hardened transplants can survive temperatures as low as -6C. Spacing closely at 20-25cm encourages these varieties’ self-blanching characteristics.
DIRECT SEEDING: Seeds will germinate from 5-29C, but the highest germination percentage will occur around 24C, depending on the variety and seed lot. Sow seeds 2.5cm apart, rows 30-45cm apart. Cover seed lightly, about 3mm, and firm soil gently. Dry soil must be watered to ensure coolness and moisture, and for uniform germination. Thin the seedlings 20cm apart as soon as they are large enough to handle.
SALAD MIX/BABY LEAF: Sow in a 5-10cm wide band, about 60 seeds/30cm. Cover seeds lightly, about 3mm. Firm soil gently, and keep surface moist until emergence in 3-5 days (or longer in cold weather). Harvest at 4-5 weeks.
HARVEST: Clip individual leaves or harvest whole head by cutting with a knife just above the root attachment. Cool quickly by dunking in cold water, drain, and refrigerate.
BLANCHING: Our varieties are nicely self blanching, but if a thorough white or cream blanch is desired use the French technique: about 3 days before harvest, rest a 10-12cm cardboard disk, plate, or tie leaves up, to exclude light from center of plant.
DAYS TO MATURITY: Baby leaf maturities are from direct seeding. Other maturities listed are from transplant; add about 10 days if direct seeding.
AVG. DIRECT SEEDING RATE – BUNCHING: 1M/55m, 5M/28m, 25M/1.25km, 175M/acre at 6 seeds/30cm in rows 45cm apart.
AVG. DIRECT SEEDING RATE – BABY LEAF: Sow in 5-10cm wide bands, 6 seeds/2.5cm, 1M/4m; 5M/24m; 83metres/30g; 1.25km/500g.
TRANSPLANTS: 2 seeds per cell, thinned to one seedling.
SEED SPECS: SEEDS/1,000 pelleted seeds/37 grams
