Endive and Escarole - Growing Information
PLANTING INFO:
Baby leaf days to maturity are from direct seeding, full size is from
transplant. Seed depth: 1/8”. For baby leaf- Seeding rate: ~30 sds/ft;
Row spacing: 3/4” between bands. Full size open heads- Plant spacing:
10-12”; Row spacing: 12-18” apart or 3 rows, 10” apart on 36” beds, 5’
centers.
CULTURAL INFO:
Members of the chicory family, endives and escaroles are hardy biennials
that prefer cool temperatures and short days. Plants are tolerant to
heat as well as cold and are grown like lettuce. Endives have frilly and
serrated leaves, while Escaroles have broad leaves and Catalogna
endives (dandelion greens) are long and thin with softly serrated edges.
Start transplants 6-8 weeks before planting date. Plant heads closer
together for self-blanching technique or cover centers for 3 days before
harvest. Harvest as you would lettuce. Light frosts in fall will
improve flavor.
SEED SPECS: endive- 17-20M seeds/oz, escarole- 13-16M seeds/oz. M= 1,000, MM=1,000,000
SEEDING RATE:
Baby Leaf Endive - 96M seeds/100’ bed (~ 4 oz), 960M seeds/1,000’ bed
(2.5 lbs), 7.7MM seeds/acre (~20 lbs), using ~960 seeds/ft, 16 rows/bed,
36” beds, 6’ row centers. Full Size - 360 plants/100’ beds (~1/32 oz),
3,600 plants/1,000’ beds (1 oz), using 10” spacing, 3 rows/36” bed, 5’
center beds. 31M plants/acre (~2 oz), using 10” plant spacing, 18” row
spacing.
