Cichorium intybus 'Variegato Di Castelfranco'

Chicory is a bitter-tasting vegetable, used as a winter crop and harvested to eat in autumn and early spring salads. The leaves can have a bitter taste, but blanching these before eating can help reduce this bitterness. It thrives in well-drained soil in full sun to partial shade. There are three different types of chicory: 'forcing' chicory, red chicory or radicchio and 'non-forcing' chicory.

Cichorium intybus 'Variegato di Castelfranco' is a glorious 'non-forcing' chicory which grows a lot like lettuce. It bears pretty variegated green leaves with maroon spots. Harvest young leaves on a cut-and-come-again basis or allow hearts to develop and use whole in stir-fries.

Sow Cichorium intybus 'Variegato di Castelfranco' seeds direct, 1.5cm deep in well-prepared soil, from April to August. Alternatively raise in modules under glass from March. Thin out to 25-30cm apart between plants. Module-grown plants can be transplanted to a cloche in autumn to extend the season.