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Kang Kong Water Spinach Ipomoea Aquatica Seeds
Packet of 20+ fresh seeds from this delicious semi-aquatic plant!
First of all, I have a confession to make……..
All those folks who asked me for seeds ~8years ago, and I told them not to bother as they were really hard to germinate……
I was 100% WRONG, and for that I sincerely apologize!!!
Turns out they are super easy to grow from seeds!
If like me you tried to grow them by just sticking a seed in the ground you might get one come up in ~12months.
BUT, if you make a really shallow cut into the shell of the seed, just with a serrated/steak knife, or a quick gentle rub on the concrete, then drop them in a cup of water, in 1-3 weeks time, they will be sprouting!!!
The 10 with shoots in the picture are the first 10 I tested it out on. Every single one struck!
I tried 100 next and got 98, which isn’t bad at all!!
Super fast growing and great tasting fresh or cooked in stir-fries. Yields of up to 10kg a per meter have been reported in parts of SE- Asia where it is a very common food crop.
It grows up to 10cm a day when grown in greenhouses apparently, never tried it myself thought, as we get really great growth outdoors in pots or in the banks of the dam.
A $20 “kiddies wadding pool” can supply you with arm loads of the stuff, enough to supply you, your family and all your neighbours.
Not at all bitter as some other green vegetables can be, it has a sweet mild flavour, like a Brassica, but sweeter and juicier I guess?
In Vietnam, Kang Kong is eaten raw as part of a salad or included in soup. Elsewhere it is usually quickly cooked, such as stir-fried with a savoury paste or chillies.
Chuck in the stem first as the leaves and tips take only a few seconds to wilt.
Kang Kong is high in carotenoids, including Lutein and Pro-Vitamin A. It contains significant amounts of Calcium and Iron and many other Minerals.
Apparently “Eaten in very large quantities, Kang Kong can act as a mild laxative due to the fiber content”. Never had that issue myself, and I eat heaps, but you never know. Forewarned is forearmed I guess?
Super easy to grow, and we normally do it a couple different ways.
The easiest is to just wack it in a pot and sit the pot on a plate with water in it.
The second and best way is Aquaponics or self-watering pots. Pretty simple to buy the shop ones, or you can get a big bucket or tub, and half way up the side of it, wack in a drainage hole about as big as a pencil hole. There must be no holes in the bottom of the tub, as its important the water pools in the bottom, inbetween the spaces in the rock and rubble filler.
Just like a little spring or soak.
Half fill the tub with stones, gravel broken pottery, glass or concrete chips or even cut up plastic chips or some other chunky bulky, cheap, slow degrading filler. Place a bit of shade cloth or fly mesh, or any other man made (so it doesn’t rot too quickly) netting type material on top to stop the roots going all the way to the bottom and filling all the little spaces that are going to be filled with water.
Fill with the rest up with soil as normal, add the plant and really water well. No mozzie issues at all ever, and super low maintenance. Trim the overhanging shoots and leaves for salads, teas, and tonics, and water once a blue moon!
The third way we grow them is we just shoved it in the ground on the shore line of the dam/pond. That’s it.
Now there is a mat of it. If the water level rises and falls heaps with the weather/drought (like ours does) just rip out a handful and shove it in the shore line as the dam level retreats. The dried out stuff will come back to life easily with the rising water in the next rain and the submerged stuff grows really well and is a great food and habitat for the frogs and fish!
Great for stabilizing dam walls and banks!
Well there you go, another useful, low maintenance edible herb, to add to the collection.
Grown by us organically, no nasties, no chems, no problems!!!
