Awful Gardener

Dear Caretakers,

Most of all wasabi eaten at restaurants is fake!!!! Ground up horseradish with green dye is the most popular imposter.

I’ve only had “real” wasabi at a high class restaurant once! The waiter came out and ground a bit of the root and I was so confused.

Now if you’re wondering real wasabi does not burn your sinuses and melt your brain. That’s a clue you’re eating horseradish, which I still love. The flavor is subtler and enhances what you’re eating rather than covers it up.

Now after eating the “real” stuff I wanted more! Of course research entails that it’s one of the hardest, slowest growing crops. It takes two years for the rhizome to become harvestable

When researching the plant, there is very little care info and a whole lot of plant fraud. Do not buy seeds…. Almost every seed will have you growing horseradish or mustard. Not wasabi.

I only found two reputable places to buy wasabi…

https://www.thewasabistore.com/shop/qce5g8s7fdyyhhs4i09qq242vz0z9r

Real Wasabi Plant Starts | Wasabia japonica | Rare, Hard to Find

Also wasabi even though it is not an aquatic plant, is grown in the rivers of Japan. I think it’s for humidity and temperature control.

Now wasabi is one of the strangest plants I have come across it hates sunlight and water and heat….

I took the chance and ordered my plants and you’ve guessed it I have already killed two bareroot starts!

I over watered one and it inflated like a balloon. Like it swelled and became mooshy… I then decided to place it on an air vent to dry out it’s soil a bit. Some where I read they like air flow around their roots. I dried out and fried the roots. When I finally decided to repot it, it had slimy dried goo coming out of it.

The second one my kid fed apple juice to it….

I’m now on my last attempt waiting for it to come in the mail. Subscribe to see how it goes.