How to Grow Red Veined Sorrel
Red-veined sorrel, also known as red-veined or bloody dock, is a common garden plant with a flavor and appearance similar to that of lettuce. Growing red-veined sorrel in the home garden provides fresh, edible food that can be used in various recipes throughout the year. Sorrel is a beneficial plant to grow because it requires little targeted maintenance.
Prepare a garden bed for the red-veined sorrel. Grow sorrel in a well-drained, nutrient-rich soil where it will receive indirect sunlight throughout the day.
Add fertilizer to the soil bed where the bloody dock will grow. Fertilizer helps keep the soil healthy and filled with nutrients; healthier sorrel plants are better able to resist pest and disease problems.
- Red-veined sorrel, also known as red-veined or bloody dock, is a common garden plant with a flavor and appearance similar to that of lettuce.
- Growing red-veined sorrel in the home garden provides fresh, edible food that can be used in various recipes throughout the year.
Add pesticides to the garden as necessary to control insects like mites and aphids. Follow all directions on the pesticide containers for best results.
Water the red-veined sorrel regularly. Keep the soil around the plant moist. Do not saturate the soil completely or allow the sorrel to grow in standing water, as this can drown the roots of the red-veined sorrel and cause it to die off.
Irrigate the soil with a shovel if it begins to hold too much water; if a sorrel plant begins to wilt, this can be a sign that the soil is too moist.
Weed the garden bed regularly to prevent pest plants like dandelions from crowding out the red-veined sorrel. Remove and dispose of pest plants with a trowel or shovel.
- Add pesticides to the garden as necessary to control insects like mites and aphids.
- Weed the garden bed regularly to prevent pest plants like dandelions from crowding out the red-veined sorrel.
Harvest the sorrel leaves when they reach maturity or slightly before the plant is full grown to get the best flavor from the red-veined sorrel.
Grow Wood Sorrel
Select a sunny or partially shady outdoor planting site. Mix it in thoroughly to a depth of 10 to 12 inches with a rototiller or shovel. Place three or four wood sorrel bulbs or rhizomes into each hole. Water the planting site when its soil begins to dry. Divide the plants while they are dormant when they outgrow their planting area. Check the wood sorrel leaves each week for spider mites, which are indicated by small, brown or yellow speckles on the leaf surfaces and a fine webbing between the leaf stems. Spray the leaves thoroughly with water from a garden hose if spider mites are found. Use a miticide if increased moisture does not clear up the spider mite problem after one or two weeks. Plant a wood sorrel in a plant container with a drain hole in its bottom, using a peat-based potting mix containing sand and perlite for good drainage. Optimum light exposure varies depending on the wood sorrel species. Move the plant to a less bright location if its leaves wrinkle or turn brown. Remove dry, dead leaves after the wood sorrel plant goes dormant.
- Harvest the sorrel leaves when they reach maturity or slightly before the plant is full grown to get the best flavor from the red-veined sorrel.
- Spray the leaves thoroughly with water from a garden hose if spider mites are found.
Related Articles
References
- Washington State University Clark County Extension: Should You Make Room for Rumex?
- Minnesota Water Garden Society Plant Profile Views: Bloody Dock
- United States Department of Agriculture: Plants Profile for Rumex Sanguineus
- University of California Integrated Pest Management Online: Creeping Wood Sorrel and Bermuda Buttercup Management Guidelines
- California Invasive Plant Council: California Invasive Plant Inventory Database
- Floridata: Oxalis Latifolia
- Missouri Botanical Garden: Oxalis Violacea
- University of Minnesota: Sustainable Urban Landscape Information Service -- Amending Soils for Perennial Beds
- Auburn University Department of Horticulture, College of Agriculture: Greenhouse Fertilizer Calculations
- University of California Integrated Pest Management Online: UC Management Guidelines for Twospotted Spider Mite on Citrus
- Cornell University Department of Horticulture: Flower Bulb Research Program -- Update on Bulb Crops
- University of Vermont Extension, Department of Plant and Soil Science: The Green Mountain Gardener -- Shamrocks for St. Patrick’s Day
Resources
Writer Bio
Bailey Shoemaker Richards is a writer from Ohio. She has contributed to numerous online and print publications, including "The North Central Review." Shoemaker Richards also edits for several independent literary journals and the Pink Fish Press publishing company. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in creative writing from Ohio University.
