How to grow Chicory in Australia

Where to plant

Grow chicory in full sun in free-draining soil of moderate fertility. Very rich soil gives lush, leafy growth and, in forcing types, poorer roots. It is a cool-season crop that handles cold weather well; hot, dry conditions make the leaves very bitter and plants bolt.

Water thoroughly in dry spells; dry plants are both more bitter and more likely to run to seed.

• Sydney, Adelaide, South East Queensland and the Northern Rivers: sow from February to June or July for cool-season leaves.
• Melbourne: sow from February to August; Melbourne's cold winters suit witlof forcing.
• Perth: sow from March to July.
• Hobart: sow from November to February; roots for forcing are lifted through the cold winter.
• Canberra: sow from December to March; force the roots through winter.
• North Queensland and Darwin: a short dry-season window only, around May to July.

Choosing a variety

• Witlof (Belgian endive) types are grown for roots that are forced in the dark into pale, tightly wrapped chicons.
• Catalogna types, including puntarelle, have long, toothed leaves and crisp shoots for salads and cooking.
• Coffee chicory is grown for its large roots, which are dried, roasted and ground.
• Sugarloaf types form large green heads like a cos lettuce. Radicchio is a red-leaved chicory.

How to plant

1. Sow seed 1 cm deep in rows about 30 cm apart, or in punnets.
2. Keep the soil moist; seedlings appear in one to two weeks.
3. Thin forcing types to about 15 cm apart and leafy types to about 30 cm.
4. Mulch once plants are established.

Watering and feeding

Water steadily so plants never dry out, especially in warm weather; dry plants turn very bitter and bolt. Chicory needs little feeding, and too much nitrogen gives soft leaves and, in forcing types, smaller roots. Feed potted plants every fortnight with a liquid fertiliser.

Pruning and care through the year

• For milder leaves, blanch leafy and hearting types for the last week or two by covering the centre of the plant to exclude light. Inner, self-blanched leaves are naturally less bitter.
• Remove flower stems if they appear on leafy types, and pick the plant soon after.

Harvesting and forcing

Pick leafy types as needed, taking outer leaves or cutting whole heads. Cut-and-come-again salad types can be picked within one to two months of sowing.

To force witlof: in late autumn or early winter, dig up the roots and discard any thinner than about 2.5 cm across the crown. Cut the leaves off about 2.5 cm above the crown. Stand the roots upright in pots of moist potting mix or sand with the crowns just exposed, cover them with an upturned bucket or black plastic so no light gets in, and keep them somewhere cool, about 10 to 15°C. The pale chicons are ready to cut when about 15 cm tall, usually in about four weeks. Roots can be stored in sand in a cool place and forced a few at a time through winter.

Growing in pots

Leafy chicory grows well in a pot at least 30 cm wide and deep with a quality potting mix. Water regularly and feed every fortnight in warm weather.

Using it

• Eat witlof chicons raw in salads or braised, baked or grilled.
• Use young leafy chicory in salads, and older leaves wilted, sautéed or added to soups and pasta.
• Roast and grind dried chicory root as a coffee substitute or to blend with coffee.