Black Carrots

Root crop, which has additional names such as scorzoner, scorzonera, scrooge, black root, is known to man for a long time. It is edible, moreover - it is a curative herb and is widely used for medicinal purposes in Europe and the USA. We do not have the same popularity yet, although there are gardeners who successfully grow the plant on their plots.

Scorzonera plant - description

Black carrots or scythes have fragrant yellow flowers. The pulp at the root is white, dense, all full of milky juice. With cultivation, the root thickness can reach 35 cm in length and 3-4 cm in diameter.

In nature there is a mass of wild plant varieties that grow not only in the southern regions, but also occur in the Baltic countries and even in Siberia. There are few cultivars of black carrot: Russian giant, Vulcan, Giant and Ordinary. All of them are successful samples of breeding.

Healing properties of the black root

The composition of the root includes a large amount of insulin, which consists of fructose. So root is just perfect for diabetics . In addition, it contains minerals such as potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and iron. Still in the plant a lot of protein, vitamins, biologically active substances.

Scorzonera restores metabolism, copes with diabetes mellitus, increases immunity. On the basis of the plant, medicinal preparations are made, but the root is particularly popular in Chinese and Tibetan folk medicine.

Use of a goat in food

In cooking, the roots of the plant are successfully used. They have a very pleasant vanilla flavor. Also prepare and bleached leaves - from them make a vitamin salad.

Roots before cooking cleaned, pre-scalded with boiling water (as the peel is removed more easily). Of these, you must remove the milky juice, for this purified roots soaked in water for a couple of hours. And so that the color does not darken, the water is slightly acidified.

Scorzonera perfectly combines with meat, fish, vegetables. Roots can be stewed, boiled, added to soups , omelettes, sauces, dough and used as a side dish.

In the confectionery industry, dried root crops are used. Also, they make coffee substitute. And if you add a small piece of the goat to the conservation, the vegetables will be strong and crunchy.

Scorzonera or black carrots - cultivation

Growing black carrots is not difficult. The plant is rather unpretentious and undemanding, very cold-resistant and can even winter in the soil. But it does not tolerate shady places and thickened planting.

Like ordinary carrots, the black root is cultivated in a two-year culture - in the first year it gives a rosette of leaves and root crops, in the second year the seeds ripen. Seeds of the first year are unsuitable for planting, because of them grow rough roots.

Cultivation of scorzoners from seeds involves the use of second-seed seed. The seeds themselves have a dense shell, so before sowing they need to be soaked. The vegetation period, that is, the period from planting to maturity, is 120-140 days.

Plant seeds either in early spring, or at the end of summer, or in late autumn under winter. If you plant in the spring, then the harvest will be in the first year. If planted in summer, the plant will take root and yield crops and seeds for the next year. Autumn plantings yield a crop of root crops earlier than in the spring planting.

Dig up the roots before the very frosts. In this case, one must be extremely cautious, since the roots damaged during the collection process are not stored for a long time. After pruning the leaves, the roots should be dried well. Store them in a vertical position in wet sand at a temperature of 0-1 ° C. And you can leave root crops in the ground for the winter and dig right after the snow falls. In the spring, when the diet is not rich in vitamins, black carrots will be very handy.