Tokyo Bekana Chinese Cabbage
Brassica rapa var. chinensis 'Tokyo Bekana'
Height: 15 inches
Spacing: 6 inches
Sunlight:
Hardiness Zone: (annual)
Description:
A fast growing variety that produces light green, wavy leaves with creamy white ribs and veins; crunchy with a mild flavor; baby leaves make a nice addition to salads, while mature leaves are delicious lightly cooked; great for home or market gardens
Edible Qualities
Tokyo Bekana Chinese Cabbage is an annual vegetable plant that is commonly grown for its edible qualities. The crinkled oval green leaves with distinctive creamy white veins are usually harvested from late spring to early fall. The leaves have a mild taste and a juicy texture.
The leaves are most often used in the following ways:
- Fresh Eating
- Eating When Cooked/Prepared
- Cooking
Planting & Growing
Tokyo Bekana Chinese Cabbage will grow to be about 15 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 8 inches. When planted in rows, individual plants should be spaced approximately 6 inches apart. This fast-growing vegetable plant is an annual, which means that it will grow for one season in your garden and then die after producing a crop. Because of its relatively short time to maturity, it lends itself to a series of successive plantings each staggered by a week or two; this will prolong the effective harvest period.
This plant is typically grown in a designated vegetable garden. It does best in full sun to partial shade. It does best in average to evenly moist conditions, but will not tolerate standing water. It may require supplemental watering during periods of drought or extended heat. This plant should not require much in the way of fertilizing once established, although it may appreciate a shot of general-purpose fertilizer from time to time early in the growing season. It is not particular as to soil pH, but grows best in rich soils. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. Consider applying a thick mulch around the root zone over the growing season to conserve soil moisture. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America.
Tokyo Bekana Chinese Cabbage is a good choice for the vegetable garden, but it is also well-suited for use in outdoor pots and containers. It is often used as a 'filler' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination, providing the canvas against which the larger thriller plants stand out. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.
