Asian Greens
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Tatsoi mustard is a cold-hardy Asian green that brings both elegance and culinary versatility to the garden. This rounded, non-heading mustard produces distinctive spoon-shaped leaves in deep green rosettes, earning it the alternate name 'Spoon Mustard.' It matures in just 50 to 59 days, making it one of the quickest greens to harvest, and thrives in hardiness zones 4 through 10, adapting well to spring planting and even overwintering in milder regions. Whether grown in the ground or containers, tatsoi mustard delivers tender, flavorful leaves perfect for salads and stir-fries.
Full Sun
Moderate
4-10
?in H x ?in W
Annual, Biennial
Moderate
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Tatsoi mustard grows into strikingly beautiful dark green rosettes of spoon-shaped leaves that look as good in the garden as they taste on the plate. The leaves are tender enough for raw salads yet substantial enough to hold up beautifully in a hot wok, making this one of the most elegant and culinarily flexible mustard varieties available. It's remarkably efficient in the garden too, reaching harvest size in under two months and thriving in containers, so even gardeners with limited space can grow it.
The tender spoon-shaped leaves are equally at home raw in salads, where their mild mustard flavor adds interest without overwhelming delicate greens, or cooked in stir-fries, where they wilt quickly and absorb flavors beautifully. They work wonderfully in soups, particularly Asian broths where their texture remains distinct, and can be lightly sautéed with garlic as a simple side dish. The entire plant is edible and harvestable, making it efficient to use from garden to kitchen.
Transplant seedlings outdoors after the threat of frost has passed in spring. Space plants 10 inches apart in rows to allow the rosette form to develop fully. Ensure soil temperature is warm enough for good establishment.
Direct sow seeds in spring after frost danger has passed, or in late summer in mild-winter regions (zones 8-10) for fall and winter harvest. Press seeds into well-prepared soil with compost mixed in.
Begin harvesting leaves when the plant reaches full rosette size, typically 50 to 59 days after planting. Harvest outer leaves first, allowing the center to continue growing for continued picking, or cut the entire rosette at soil level for a one-time harvest. Pick leaves in the morning when they are crisp and full of moisture. Young leaves are most tender; avoid harvesting after the plant has begun to bolt.
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“This variety journeyed from China, where it developed as a traditional green, to Japan, where it became established as a tender culinary herb and gained the local name 'Tat Choy.' Its close kinship to bok choy and Chinese cabbage varieties reveals its origins within Asian brassica breeding traditions, where growers selected for the plant's cold hardiness, compact rosette form, and tender leaf texture. The fact that modern seed catalogs still call it an heirloom speaks to how gardeners have preserved and valued this variety across generations and continents.”