G'day Everyone, I hope you are all getting into it! Honestly, water chestnuts are a HUGE hit with the family here at our home - these tasty little crunchy water veggies add that extra X factor to homemade Asian food. Thanks for your support! Cheers :)
I live in a heavy mosquito area. Yes, the mosquitos are QUITE LARGE & HEAVY! As well as very numerous. They're SO THICK around here that I can not wear short sleeves or shorts outside during the EXTREMELY HOT Texas Summers!! (humid too!) 108°f (42°C) on a daily basis starting in June & lasting FOR MONTHS!! Ugh. (It never used to be this way...) Yeah, let's ALL go outside and work in the garden WITH LONG SLEEVES & LONG PANTS!!! Not. And, just to keep the little flying buggers away from me altogether, I use a box fan pointed right at me, AT ALL TIMES! It's a hassle, yes. But using a fan means I'm not always swatting at them, & no more are they biting my eyelids & elbows! Yes, I said eyelids. It's not a typo. They really LOVE my EYELIDS!! WHAT'S UP WITH THAT???? Does anyone else have eyelid issues w mosquitos? Or Is it just me?! That's how it always was... UNTIL - I found THE VERY BEST way to ELIMINATE almost all of those biters - (99.99%) using Mosquito Dunks! I only say ALMOST because I'm thinking there are 1 or 2 biters that float in from the neighbor's yard. What can you do?? 🤷🏼♀️ I use the mosquito dunks in a bucket of water, as a sort of bait. The biters don't seem to mind the Mosquito Dunks, or rather, the BT in the water. To be clear, the standing water IN the bucket IS THE BAIT. The egg laying mosquitos easily find the standing water, and lay their eggs in it. And because the Mosquito Dunks, which last 30 days, are in the bucket too, the eggs never hatch!! Haaa!!!! It works a TREAT!!! At the 1st of every month, because of evaporation, I add more water to bring it up to 2 gallons. (I randomly chose 2 gallons of water. Less will work too.) And then I add the appropriate number of Mosquito Dunks per water ratio. Just toss those little donuts into the bucket! Easier than pie! And they float, so they're easy to spot if you ever want to come back and check on them during the month. btw- there's no need to add extra Dunks, even though I always want to!! Job DONE. It's JUST that easy!!! How AMAZING is THAT!!! (There are instructions on the package to tell how many Dunks to add for the amount of water in question.) And now, I'm outside working in the garden with a short sleeve t-shirt, and shorts too!! I don't even NEED the fan for eyelid protection! However, I do still need the fan for the intensive heat protection... But that's a whole other bucket of non-viable mosquito eggs... I'm also buying 2 new buckets to give to the neighbor on each side of me. And I'll be starting each of them off with a couple Mosquito Dunks to go in it! Let's hope that takes care of those 2 random biters that I seem to attract like a magnet! 🤞 Here's a few BT tips- P.S. Bacillus thuringiensis = BT ● Google "BT, insects" to find out ALL the information on it. It's always best to be informed of anything you're adding to your garden, don't take MY word for any of it!! BT = AKA - Mosquito Dunks ● Put your mosquito bait bucket in the shade! Sunlight breaks down the effectiveness of BT. ● It's safe for all pets & humans to ingest - but really DON'T do it, just bcuz. But if your pets drink the water, there's no worries. They're fine. ● BT works on a list of several insects, mostly larvae. Caterpillars are a big target. SO - if you have bunches of pollinators, it's best to cover your mosquito bait bucket with a screen that has big enough holes for the mosquitos to get in, but small enough holes to keep the butterflies and moths OUT. (I use a half inch metal screen bcuz my mosquitos ARE Texas sized!) That screen also keeps the thirsty birds out too. ● BT is also great for controlling: ▪︎ fruit flies in the soil, ▪︎ earwigs ▪︎ aphids - just to name a few. Here's a sentence I copied from the internet: "Bt proteins are allowed in organic farming as a insecticide because Bt is a natural, non-pathogenic bacterium that is found naturally in the soil." But seriously, there's more info out there about BT. So - research, research, research! It's best for you to read about it for yourself. It's easy to find the info too. Thanks for making it all the way through my super long message! I just can't help myself - bcuz DETAILS COUNT!! Over & Out ! 👋
I love to see your lessons and passion for growing food. I'm not is the same growing zone but try to adapt to my area. You are a good guy. Thank you for being honest and sharing the love of food growing with the world.
On the webspoon utube I watched he roasted some nuts in a pan and then used a vegetable net( like around store bagged onions) to remove their husks/skins . He put the whole panful into the bag, scrunched close, and rubbed the nuts. All the husks fell through the netting, and the peeled nuts remained in the bag. I wonder if you could roast or if it works if you boil the chestnuts, like dipping tomatoes in boiling water so you can peel off the skins, only maybe use the netting since chestnut are a bit "sturdier"? Just a thought. Also, how long did they need to grow? What are their temperature requirements, high/ low? And WHERE DID YOU purchase your starter chestnuts from? Learn a lot from your show. Just need to adjust some for the desert southwest of the USA. growing zone classification 6a.
Hi Mark as someone who grow this year by year you do need quite a big pond for it i use IBCs and 1 1000L IBC is enough for around 10 to 15kg of harvest year by year, secondly they thrive on fish poop so any fish inside the pond will do wonders, but same as you i am in Queensland Greenbank so fish might attract predators in open IBCs so i keep them under a netted structure, they do require fairly clean filtered water otherwise they will give you a bad stomach (when eaten raw) as they will absorb toxins from the water, they require water all year round and never let them dry out, you have to harvest it like lotus roots, lastly you harvest a bit too late, it is normally done in autumn and a fresh chestnut should be sweet and crisp way more crisp than the canned ones. And dont worry most canned chestnut is from warmer areas of Asia, China barley have enough to sustain its own population.
For my ponds I go down to the local streams and scoop a bucket of water from the side bank. I get several fish eggs and small minnows, sometimes some crayfish. Crawfish.
You new family member is ADORABLE!! He's a big ball of fur and looks like he's enjoying every minute bouncing around with you in your beautiful farm garden! Water chestnuts! Who knew!?
They’re growing on great. The globe artichokes are blooming, they didn’t get real big so I let the bees have them, and the Jerusalem artichokes haven’t started blooming but they’re about 6ft tall. 🌻
@@NordeggSonya I got mine from my local Asian food store. I’d saved my sweet potatoes to try to get slips, but they rotted. So I saw the small purple ones and they made at least 20 slips between them. I’ve got sweet potatoes all over. I just made a seafood pizza with sweet potato leaves, peppers, basil and purslane. Also just made hush puppies with the sweet potato leaves.
I couldn't get used to eating Jerusalem artichokes as they give me terrible painful stomach cramps & flatulence. Maybe I ate too much at once or maybe the gut microbiota needs time to adapt to them?
Those mosquito dunks (BTi) also control fungus gnats. If you have indoor plants with fungus gnats, grind up one of your dunks and work it into the first inch of soil. 2-3 weeks later they are gone. Works like a charm.
Hey mark, if you want a non-water version that is similar to the plant featured here, you should look into "chufa" also called "tiger nut" or "earth almond". It's a type of bunching sedge grass that has a similar tasting "nut" that grows underground. It's a touch smaller, but the nuts aren't as hard to find and you can harvest them from the root ball and still plant the clumps back into the ground afterwards. They survive year round in Ireland, which is a touch colder than your location. Could be a good off-season cropper to keep in the ground for a while longer than the water chestnuts to spread your harvest a tad. You should also look into south american dishes and drinks that use chufa. Pros: They don't need as much water. They are slightly drought tolerant. They love the heat. They can survive aussie winters. You can replant clumps after lifting the nuts from the root ball. No mosquitos. Cons: They produce late in the season. They can be a tad invasive if you let them out of your sight for too long.
G'day Mark. From my experience as a chef (many moons ago) and cooking at home since, cutting the top and bottom off with a sharp knife and then going around the side in a circle with a veggie peeler has been the easiest way for water chestnuts and less waste. 👍 Scraping with the edge of a butter knife of teaspoon works too, but the peeler is a cleaner finish in most cases. That's for the common Asian water chestnuts and not the Indian and Pakistani variety, which are different. Loved this video Mark and it's not something I have ever tried to grow or honestly knew how. Fascinating and inspiring as always. We use then tinned ones and I'll have to use your video as a guide if I have a go myself. Much appreciated Mark. All the best. Daz.
Hallo and thanks for the qualità content. To keep mosquitoes away it is also possible to put copper in the water. This prevents the opening of the eggs and the formation of larvae
That might work for metallic copper. If you use something like copper sulfate it will kill the plants too. Too much copper can be toxic to plants as it inhibits photosynthesis.
Great video. I have grown them just using my regular potting soil mix,in a food grade 55 gallon barrel, cut down to about 8-10 inches(about 20-25 cm). I started by growing water chestnuts from my local Chinese market,the fresh ones,not packaged.they grew great. one does not need to have a layer of water on top of them,I usually added water just to the top of the soil line,so no mosquito problems. The more space one gives them,the bigger they may get. Next time i am going to use a few "kiddy pools"for a bigger area/larger crop. Best wishes
They were in full sun,so I pretty much added water every day,sometimes every 2-3 days......they do not like to really dry out.i would add water to cover the soil about 1-2"(25-50mm),and check to see if it was still moist a bit below the surface of the soil.if it was dry,I would water. I used a many year old potting soil mix with lots of previous amendments,(worm castings,rock phosphate,coco coir,greensand,dolomite,etc.etc. that I had previously used for growing certain flowers.....then just added some regular generic organic garden/tomato fertilizer.
I must have manifested this video, because I’ve been searching for a vid about growing these the past few days and haven’t found any that helpful or enjoyable. Great content as always
Hi Mark, perhaps next time try an old trick for peeling veggies. Get either a steel or copper wool pad. Make sure it's one that does not have any soap in it whatsoever, then use this with water to gently scrub the veggie. You would be amazed at how this takes off potato skins, ginger skins, carrot skins, all kinds of vegetable skins quite easily. I imagine it would take off the skin to chestnuts just as easily. Perhaps if you have some chestnuts left you can give it a try and let us know how it goes.
What an excellent test for growing your own water chestnuts! My thoughts about getting the peel off is when getting the skin off a tomato. My grandmother always cut an X in the bottom of the tomato and then boiled. It made it so much easier when we started processing for canning.
That was interesting! I never thought about where water chestnuts grew. I just always kind of assumed they grew on trees like regular chestnuts. I love them. We make a dish called Texas Rice that has rice, shredded chicken, cheese, green chilies, celery and water chestnuts, and it’s delicious.
@@tripleaaakollektiv870 I’m so sorry for you that you hang with people who are not honest, and apparently are not honest yourself. Maybe find some new friends and take a look in the mirror. When I say interesting, it means interesting - not something dishonest.
So Did you? For me , I say just buy a pack of water chestnuts and give it to her. She probably knows best how It is Grown, just needs time and or a helping hand, such as you :)) p.s. sentimental guy I am , but am I really or are we just growing too stern this days? . anyways hope this wont be an advice and I hope this will be a rather "push" for you.
so glad you grew these ... great educational opportunity for people who haven't wondered about them too much outside of the canned version we use in our stir fry. thanks for getting us into it :)
Which hardiness zone is Singapore? I'm in Taiwan and we're also subtropical so it's pretty similar to Mark's growing zone... though the weather here is definitely not the same (much higher humidity and typhoons May to October). I'm thinking we'd be able to grow some of the stuff at the same time Mark does, but probably not everything. Let us know how it goes!! I'm curious as to how the timing works for planting in our region! 😊
@@bearswithglasses I'm not sure about the hardiness zone actually, but we are a tropical climate for sure. Typically our days are 32-35C, and humidity is almost always more than 80%. Our monsoon season is Nov-Jan :) Haha yeah I'll definitely give it a go! It's always so hard to find gardening videos for Asian regions I feel
Great video! Love water chesnuts, but they are hard to come by in this part of the world. I also do process my own olvies here in Spain and as you very well say, it does take a while to get them from the tree to edible.
👍 I grew them years ago as you done in tubs and even foam boxes, I found that they send out runners to fruit on,the first couple of sets you will get the fully formed nuts, sets after will be more inclined to be the smaller skinny one. As well in the planting, if you plant out the small ones as your stock you are more likely to have more small skinny fruit forming than if you use fully formed ones. Might have to have a go with them this year in aquaponics ibc. I can't quite remember the best way I found to pealed them, I think it was rolling them in the palm of your hands then finish off with a knife, the other way was blanching them first.
Very fascinating, now I know how water chestnuts are grown! I will have to try this out next summer. It would be lovely to have them fresh to add to my Korean stir fries. They add a wonderful texture and crunch to stir fries, soups and stews.
Maybe inbetween the rocks and compost underlayer and the upper layer and nuts ... you put in a metal mesh, like a bucket shape, and then be able to pull out the upper layer and shake down the rocks and compost, and leaving the corms inside the mesh.
This right here is why I love the UA-cam comment section; so many great insights and ideas. I wonder how difficult it would be to put the screen back under the soil after harvest.
Mark, I have to agree with everything you said 100%. I have the same idea as to why I grow water chestnut. I am from the northern river NSW -Subtropical and I am enjoying growing water chestnut. My children need to know they are not from cans or any big green supermarket or big red supermarket. Thanks for growing these kinds of food. Let’s keep backyard gardening growing to generations.
I love water chestnuts, using in cooking but also in my chicken salad for the nutter flavor but softer crunch. I would've never thought to grow my own. I use those mosquito dunks anywhere I have water like bird bath. They come in a crumble as well and can be used on top potted plants to help with gnats. Great video of inspiration 👏
Hi Mark. Just googled how to peel chestnuts. Score one half through skin (she dragged a pair of scissors through them), soak in water for 2 hours then add to boiling water for 2 minutes. Then add the chestnuts to a dry hot skillet with lid on. The change in humidity combined with dry heat will open them up, then just pop them out.
Fantastic video! I'm glad you were successful with this! I love the idea of home-grown chestnuts grown nice and clean. I don't know if I'll ever be able to eat canned chestnuts again, after hearing your objections to them (yuck). Anyway, it's wonderful to see another full video from you! Best to you and everyone you love! Hugs and kissies for the puppy!
🌺Aloha, we tried growing water chestnut, but we followed a gentlemen who grew it on the Hawaii island and in non-scented kitty litter. It grew for a while, but then it died, maybe because of no fertilizer. We will try it again but use hydroton(clay pellets), it has a similar color to what you used. Hope we can find more water chestnut, our originally source no longer carries them. Enjoy your video and oops hope your pup okay? Mahalo
G'day, plants need nutrients, so fertiliser is necessary, and kitty litter is usually clay-based. The plants may have died due to a lack of nutrients and oxygen. Most water plants still grow best in lighter mediums, so straight clay might not be the best mix. I used volcanic rock or Scoria, which is light and porous, mixed with some potting mix (good quality with added fertiliser). You can still use some clay in the combination, but I wouldn't use only clay. All the best :)
And kitty litter is made to suck out all the liquids, so we use it here, in old paint cans, to dry it up before it can be safely dumped. I suspect the cat litter dried out the plant, like being in a desert, as it does require a lot of water to thrive ... like growing rice.
I'm in NZ and Koanga sells them. I've been thinking of getting some for a while but was not sure how to grow them. Thanks, Mark, now I will give them a go!
Hello 😄 I've been using those mosquito pucks for years. It even looks like the same brand we have in America. They work great. On the water chestnuts, have you ever heard of paludariums? It looks like the water chestnuts would be a great plant to grow in them on a mid level, shallow water shelf right below the terrestrial plants. Thanks for sharing how to grow them. This is the first I've ever heard of somebody growing their own.
I've used mosquito dunks for years here in San Diego. It's always very clear when I've forgotten to add them (itch, itch). So glad you've discovered this great product. Good to see you again, Mark!
AWSOME AGAIN!!! You taught me how to establish a raised bed with old logs,compost from years of making &It all starts with the SOIL ! GREAT RESULTS STILL after years 👏 ❤ Thank you for ALL the knowledge &im in Grand Rapids Michigan ❤😊Love all you do my AUSSIE FRIEND 😀
It's a great project for next summer here in Canada. It would have to be when the temps are really high. But it could, now, try and find the starters. It's hard enough to see the canned ones in the grocery stores here. The Pupper was a great sidekick of a "helper."
I loved this video! I always wondered how water chestnuts were grown. Someone on another food channel I watch said chestnuts weren't tree nuts, and I disagreed because I have chestnut trees on my land. Later, I realized later they were talking about the kind you grew. I think your experiment was brilliant, and I'd love to know your source for the "seed" tubers that you started with.
Try slicing some Jerusalem Artichokes very thin, and use them like water chestnuts. They are very crunchy. Just add them to your food after it is cooked or they will get mushy. I have done this for years in stirfry, etc.
Love your videos. I'll be in Australia next month, but unfortunately the wrong part. Your videos were a big part in me building an indoor garden over the last two years that has provided me with a lot of joy and food. Keep it up!
This video was really fascinating! As much as I enjoy them, I'd never thought about how water chestnuts were grown, so this was a real eye-opener. I imagine a little research would give an interesting list of what can be done with the reeds. (There's a tiny fish sold to keep ornamental ponds free of mosquitoes. I'll have to see if they're recommended for something like this.)
from an Aussie living in Canada, I so love to watch and listen to you...becomes more and more precious as time passes....as importantly I enjoy your instruction and use it....can you mention in which area you garden...just so I can imagine where it is...I am from Melbourne originally but my father's ancestors and still today have a 5,000 acre prooerty in Stockinbingal ....it is all in my blood...thank you
Thanks Mark you’ve inspired me to grow them again.. we did grow them successfully a decade or so ago and then reorganised our garden and have forgotten about growing them again.. I love them and will start growing them again now 🙏 thanks for the detailed instruction , really helpful ! Love your new pup, looking forward to watching its adventures in your garden 😂
Mark, water chestnut and sugar cane boiled together, strain the water and drink chilled. It's a good natural rememdy the chinese use for sore throat and dry cough. Only need to cut the water chestnut in half if you don't want the hassle of peeling it. Personally I find this drink works when you know you are going to get a sore throat, the swelling subside and it goes away. Doesn't work when the sore throat is already more than a day and fever start developing.
Steaming the chestnuts - in the proverbial Asian bamboo steaming unit or European/American folding steaming collander - this should soften up the husk so that it can be easily pulled from the corm by twisting in the hands with some cotton-rubber fishing gloves (American orange cotton fabric with rubber meshing on the fingers).
I’ve been following you for years Mark and although I can see a little more age on your face I can say that the longer I’ve followed you the healthier you look. Whatever you’re doing is doing you good. Love from your UK brother
Super cool video Mark!!! I’ve never thought about growing those. I’m in Canada, so probably not an option for me anyway, but it was so interesting to see you do it!😊
This was really cool information - never would have thought to grow water chestnuts. Never cease to amaze me what you're able to grow and share with us. Thanks!!!
Besides water chestnut, you can also grow arrowroots. It is cold hardy to zone 6 here in Toronto, Ontario because I have seen them growing big area in the wild. Its starchy roots texture is different with water chestnut but also good in stir-fry! One more thing when you are doing water plants you can grow is watercress. This year I also start my rice plants from store bought brown rice.
So good to see another Australian on UA-cam! A joy to watch your videos. Always inspiring and I admire your imagination to keep coming up with great ideas and sharing your knowledge. Well done. One Handed Maker - Australia
Thank you. Hope you are doing well. You are always posting interesting videos. Love the puppy. Is he or she a new addition? Seems to love to help you garden. ❤🇨🇦
What a fun thing to grow! I love how you are always adding new and interesting foods to your garden. So much fun! Thank you! Do you grow lemon grass and kaffir lime for Thai cooking? Delicious!!
Thank you! Yes, we also grow kaffir lime and lemongrass plus galangal, coriander, ginger, Thai chillies, and lots more. The Asian influence here in Australia is HUGE, and for good reason - the food and recipe ideas are tasty and easy to grow in this part of the world. All the best :)
I LOVE water chetnuts!!!!! I cut them up smaller and mix them with cooked peas (FROZEN not canned) slilce them and add them to tuna salad and so the list can go on and on. To me they're like garlic and onions, you can never have too much. Yummy. I hope they'll grow in Chicagos short summer. 🤞
Hi Mark, in Brisbane I grew them in flexitubs in just 3 or 4 inches of cheap compost/potting mix, but only 3 corms to a tub if I want decent sized ones. And I stop watering in April so they dry out to stop them reshooting, and harvest when the reeds start to die down or go brown, not until completely dead, so harvest in June, not August. In your tub I wouldn’t put in more than 10 corms to get decent sized corms, rather than maximum produce. Still enough small ones to replant next season. Bigger makes peeling easier, but never easy. I was hoping you’d have an easy way! Maybe someone else in the comments will have something helpful. Thanks for reminding me I need to get them set up again for next season.
Frequently, when I watch your videos: I wish I lived next door. You have a Great channel w/ loads of useful information and quite a sense of humor. PLUS, the cutest little 'pal' helping you. Who could ask for more? Thanks, would have never thought of growing water chestnuts, but I most certainly agree with your reasoning! Bye for now~
G'day Everyone, I hope you are all getting into it! Honestly, water chestnuts are a HUGE hit with the family here at our home - these tasty little crunchy water veggies add that extra X factor to homemade Asian food. Thanks for your support! Cheers :)
Where did you get your starter bulbs to grown the water chestnuts?
And how long did it take to grow them?
I live in a heavy mosquito area.
Yes, the mosquitos are
QUITE LARGE & HEAVY!
As well as very numerous.
They're SO THICK around here that I can not wear short sleeves or shorts outside during the EXTREMELY HOT
Texas Summers!!
(humid too!)
108°f (42°C)
on a daily basis starting in June
& lasting FOR MONTHS!!
Ugh.
(It never used to be this way...)
Yeah, let's ALL go outside and work in the garden WITH LONG SLEEVES & LONG PANTS!!!
Not.
And, just to keep the little flying buggers away from me altogether, I use a box fan pointed right at me, AT ALL TIMES!
It's a hassle, yes.
But using a fan means I'm not always swatting at them,
& no more are they biting my eyelids & elbows!
Yes, I said eyelids.
It's not a typo.
They really LOVE my EYELIDS!!
WHAT'S UP WITH THAT????
Does anyone else have eyelid issues w mosquitos?
Or
Is it just me?!
That's how it always was...
UNTIL -
I found
THE VERY BEST
way to
ELIMINATE
almost all of those biters -
(99.99%)
using Mosquito Dunks!
I only say ALMOST because I'm thinking there are 1 or 2 biters that float in from the neighbor's yard.
What can you do?? 🤷🏼♀️
I use the mosquito dunks in a bucket of water, as a sort of bait.
The biters don't seem to mind the Mosquito Dunks, or rather, the BT in the water.
To be clear,
the standing water
IN the bucket
IS THE BAIT.
The egg laying mosquitos easily find the standing water,
and lay their eggs in it.
And because the Mosquito Dunks,
which last 30 days,
are in the bucket too,
the eggs never hatch!!
Haaa!!!!
It works a TREAT!!!
At the 1st of every month,
because of evaporation,
I add more water to bring it
up to 2 gallons.
(I randomly chose 2 gallons of water. Less will work too.)
And then I add the appropriate number of Mosquito Dunks per water ratio.
Just toss those little donuts into the bucket!
Easier than pie!
And they float, so they're easy to spot if you ever want to come back and check on them during the month.
btw- there's no need to add extra Dunks, even though I always want to!!
Job DONE.
It's JUST that easy!!!
How AMAZING is THAT!!!
(There are instructions on the package to tell how many Dunks to add for the amount of water in question.)
And now, I'm outside working in the garden with a short sleeve t-shirt, and shorts too!!
I don't even NEED the fan for eyelid protection!
However, I do still need the fan for the intensive heat protection...
But that's a whole other bucket of non-viable mosquito eggs...
I'm also buying 2 new buckets to give to the neighbor on each side of me.
And I'll be starting each of them off with a couple Mosquito Dunks to go in it!
Let's hope that takes care of those 2 random biters that I seem to attract like a magnet! 🤞
Here's a few BT tips-
P.S. Bacillus thuringiensis = BT
● Google "BT, insects" to find out ALL the information on it.
It's always best to be informed of anything you're adding to your garden, don't take MY word for any of it!!
BT = AKA - Mosquito Dunks
● Put your mosquito bait bucket in the shade!
Sunlight breaks down the effectiveness of BT.
● It's safe for all pets & humans to ingest - but really DON'T do it,
just bcuz.
But if your pets drink the water, there's no worries. They're fine.
● BT works on a list of several insects, mostly larvae.
Caterpillars are a big target.
SO - if you have bunches of pollinators, it's best to cover your mosquito bait bucket with a screen that has big enough holes for the mosquitos to get in, but small enough holes to keep the butterflies and moths OUT.
(I use a half inch metal screen bcuz my mosquitos ARE Texas sized!)
That screen also keeps the thirsty birds out too.
● BT is also great for controlling:
▪︎ fruit flies in the soil,
▪︎ earwigs
▪︎ aphids
- just to name a few.
Here's a sentence I copied from the internet:
"Bt proteins are allowed in organic farming as a insecticide because Bt is a natural, non-pathogenic bacterium that is found naturally in the soil."
But seriously,
there's more info out there about BT.
So -
research,
research,
research!
It's best for you to read about it for yourself.
It's easy to find the info too.
Thanks for making it all the way through my super long message!
I just can't help myself -
bcuz DETAILS COUNT!!
Over
&
Out !
👋
I love to see your lessons and passion for growing food. I'm not is the same growing zone but try to adapt to my area. You are a good guy. Thank you for being honest and sharing the love of food growing with the world.
On the webspoon utube I watched he roasted some nuts in a pan and then used a vegetable net( like around store bagged onions) to remove their husks/skins . He put the whole panful into the bag, scrunched close, and rubbed the nuts. All the husks fell through the netting, and the peeled nuts remained in the bag. I wonder if you could roast or if it works if you boil the chestnuts, like dipping tomatoes in boiling water so you can peel off the skins, only maybe use the netting since chestnut are a bit "sturdier"?
Just a thought. Also, how long did they need to grow? What are their temperature requirements, high/ low? And WHERE DID YOU purchase your starter chestnuts from?
Learn a lot from your show. Just need to adjust some for the desert southwest of the USA. growing zone classification 6a.
"That's a little knife in Australia", always a tad of humor and the pup falling over. Thank you for the morning laugh.
Wait, did I miss the new dog introduction video?
Hi Mark as someone who grow this year by year you do need quite a big pond for it i use IBCs and 1 1000L IBC is enough for around 10 to 15kg of harvest year by year, secondly they thrive on fish poop so any fish inside the pond will do wonders, but same as you i am in Queensland Greenbank so fish might attract predators in open IBCs so i keep them under a netted structure, they do require fairly clean filtered water otherwise they will give you a bad stomach (when eaten raw) as they will absorb toxins from the water, they require water all year round and never let them dry out, you have to harvest it like lotus roots, lastly you harvest a bit too late, it is normally done in autumn and a fresh chestnut should be sweet and crisp way more crisp than the canned ones. And dont worry most canned chestnut is from warmer areas of Asia, China barley have enough to sustain its own population.
you should make a video
@@Covid-me1xfyes that would be so interesting
IBC rootbeer?
Lots of helpful info thanks. How many do you plant in one IBC? How deep is your substrate?
For my ponds I go down to the local streams and scoop a bucket of water from the side bank. I get several fish eggs and small minnows, sometimes some crayfish. Crawfish.
You new family member is ADORABLE!! He's a big ball of fur and looks like he's enjoying every minute bouncing around with you in your beautiful farm garden!
Water chestnuts! Who knew!?
I’ve tried growing Jerusalem artichoke, globe artichoke, taro, and purple sweet potatoes 🍠 because of your encouragement
They’re growing on great. The globe artichokes are blooming, they didn’t get real big so I let the bees have them, and the Jerusalem artichokes haven’t started blooming but they’re about 6ft tall. 🌻
purple sweet potatoes!? ya I want some! Where did you acquire them??? I am in Canada.
@@NordeggSonya I got mine from my local Asian food store. I’d saved my sweet potatoes to try to get slips, but they rotted. So I saw the small purple ones and they made at least 20 slips between them. I’ve got sweet potatoes all over. I just made a seafood pizza with sweet potato leaves, peppers, basil and purslane. Also just made hush puppies with the sweet potato leaves.
ooooh must check this out@@Gardeningchristine
I couldn't get used to eating Jerusalem artichokes as they give me terrible painful stomach cramps & flatulence. Maybe I ate too much at once or maybe the gut microbiota needs time to adapt to them?
Those mosquito dunks (BTi) also control fungus gnats. If you have indoor plants with fungus gnats, grind up one of your dunks and work it into the first inch of soil. 2-3 weeks later they are gone. Works like a charm.
A layer of leca/expanded clay on top of the soil in my pots got rid of them forever for me.
Wow, thanks ❤
Great info., Thanks!
Oh cool I really hate those things!
Heading off to google fungus gnat!
Hey mark, if you want a non-water version that is similar to the plant featured here, you should look into "chufa" also called "tiger nut" or "earth almond". It's a type of bunching sedge grass that has a similar tasting "nut" that grows underground. It's a touch smaller, but the nuts aren't as hard to find and you can harvest them from the root ball and still plant the clumps back into the ground afterwards. They survive year round in Ireland, which is a touch colder than your location. Could be a good off-season cropper to keep in the ground for a while longer than the water chestnuts to spread your harvest a tad. You should also look into south american dishes and drinks that use chufa.
Pros:
They don't need as much water. They are slightly drought tolerant. They love the heat. They can survive aussie winters. You can replant clumps after lifting the nuts from the root ball. No mosquitos.
Cons:
They produce late in the season. They can be a tad invasive if you let them out of your sight for too long.
Love water chestnuts! Easy to peel, slice the top and bottom, then use a vegie peeler.
Thanks for the tip!
This is super exciting, I love diversity in my foods so this opens up the imagination
Yummy
I've never seen anyone growing Water chestnuts before, you have a wonderful garden.
you could get small mosquito fish in there. they would probably thrive and also fertilize the plants. wouldn't be a bad experiment to try honestly.
Yep the Mosquito fish are quite hardy and adapt all grades of fresh water, especially stagnant or muddy water! 👍🏻
Oh cool. Almost like an aquaponics experiment. ☺️
That’s the cutest puppy 🐶 ever!
We love chestnuts 🌰 in our stir fries and curries!! 😋👍🏻
That CRUNCH is awesome!
G'day Mark.
From my experience as a chef (many moons ago) and cooking at home since, cutting the top and bottom off with a sharp knife and then going around the side in a circle with a veggie peeler has been the easiest way for water chestnuts and less waste. 👍 Scraping with the edge of a butter knife of teaspoon works too, but the peeler is a cleaner finish in most cases.
That's for the common Asian water chestnuts and not the Indian and Pakistani variety, which are different.
Loved this video Mark and it's not something I have ever tried to grow or honestly knew how. Fascinating and inspiring as always. We use then tinned ones and I'll have to use your video as a guide if I have a go myself. Much appreciated Mark.
All the best.
Daz.
Nice one Daz - thanks for the great tip mate! Cheers :)
You're such an inspiration Mark!♥
How about a recipe for that stir fry dish? Sure looked delicious!😊
Hallo and thanks for the qualità content.
To keep mosquitoes away it is also possible to put copper in the water. This prevents the opening of the eggs and the formation of larvae
That might work for metallic copper. If you use something like copper sulfate it will kill the plants too. Too much copper can be toxic to plants as it inhibits photosynthesis.
Great video. I have grown them just using my regular potting soil mix,in a food grade 55 gallon barrel, cut down to about 8-10 inches(about 20-25 cm).
I started by growing water chestnuts from my local Chinese market,the fresh ones,not packaged.they grew great.
one does not need to have a layer of water on top of them,I usually added water just to the top of the soil line,so no mosquito problems. The more space one gives them,the bigger they may get. Next time i am going to use a few "kiddy pools"for a bigger area/larger crop.
Best wishes
How often did you water & fertilize with what? Full sun? Further details?😊 thanks
They were in full sun,so I pretty much added water every day,sometimes every 2-3 days......they do not like to really dry out.i would add water to cover the soil about 1-2"(25-50mm),and check to see if it was still moist a bit below the surface of the soil.if it was dry,I would water.
I used a many year old potting soil mix with lots of previous amendments,(worm castings,rock phosphate,coco coir,greensand,dolomite,etc.etc. that I had previously used for growing certain flowers.....then just added some regular generic organic garden/tomato fertilizer.
I must have manifested this video, because I’ve been searching for a vid about growing these the past few days and haven’t found any that helpful or enjoyable. Great content as always
I LOVE your assistant, he's doing his very best to help Dad with the produce! Great show, I always learn lots from you...thanks Mark...and floofball.
I'd never really thought about how water chestnuts are grown and harvested. That was cool! Thanks!!
Hi Mark, perhaps next time try an old trick for peeling veggies. Get either a steel or copper wool pad. Make sure it's one that does not have any soap in it whatsoever, then use this with water to gently scrub the veggie. You would be amazed at how this takes off potato skins, ginger skins, carrot skins, all kinds of vegetable skins quite easily. I imagine it would take off the skin to chestnuts just as easily. Perhaps if you have some chestnuts left you can give it a try and let us know how it goes.
Your furry garden supervisor is trying to steal the show! Your stir fry looks totally pro! Thanks for another interesting food plant idea.
What an excellent test for growing your own water chestnuts! My thoughts about getting the peel off is when getting the skin off a tomato. My grandmother always cut an X in the bottom of the tomato and then boiled. It made it so much easier when we started processing for canning.
We call them apulid here in the Phils. It's delicious. And yes, we eat them raw as a snack.
That was interesting! I never thought about where water chestnuts grew. I just always kind of assumed they grew on trees like regular chestnuts. I love them. We make a dish called Texas Rice that has rice, shredded chicken, cheese, green chilies, celery and water chestnuts, and it’s delicious.
did you know, ppl nowadays use "interesting" for baad
@@tripleaaakollektiv870 and some people mean what they say
@@tripleaaakollektiv870 literally who the hell do you hang out with that uses Interesting to mean Bad???
You know most of us speak what we mean! No need to put words in our mouth and stir crap up!
@@tripleaaakollektiv870 I’m so sorry for you that you hang with people who are not honest, and apparently are not honest yourself. Maybe find some new friends and take a look in the mirror. When I say interesting, it means interesting - not something dishonest.
Gonna have to show this to my mother, she LOOOOOVES water chestnuts.
So Did you? For me , I say just buy a pack of water chestnuts and give it to her. She probably knows best how It is Grown, just needs time and or a helping hand, such as you :)) p.s. sentimental guy I am , but am I really or are we just growing too stern this days? . anyways hope this wont be an advice and I hope this will be a rather "push" for you.
I do too, yummy 😋 ❤
so glad you grew these ... great educational opportunity for people who haven't wondered about them too much outside of the canned version we use in our stir fry. thanks for getting us into it :)
This is so informative! I live in Singapore and just started my home gardening journey. Excited to try planting all these plants :)
Which hardiness zone is Singapore? I'm in Taiwan and we're also subtropical so it's pretty similar to Mark's growing zone... though the weather here is definitely not the same (much higher humidity and typhoons May to October). I'm thinking we'd be able to grow some of the stuff at the same time Mark does, but probably not everything. Let us know how it goes!! I'm curious as to how the timing works for planting in our region! 😊
@@bearswithglasses I'm not sure about the hardiness zone actually, but we are a tropical climate for sure. Typically our days are 32-35C, and humidity is almost always more than 80%. Our monsoon season is Nov-Jan :) Haha yeah I'll definitely give it a go! It's always so hard to find gardening videos for Asian regions I feel
I have NEVER KNEW how they were grown. Ive always liked them
Great video! Love water chesnuts, but they are hard to come by in this part of the world. I also do process my own olvies here in Spain and as you very well say, it does take a while to get them from the tree to edible.
You Sir are worth more than a thumbs up. You deserve a standing ovation.
Not something I'd have thought to grow, but interesting watch and informative comments by those who have taken the effort to grow water chestnuts
👍 I grew them years ago as you done in tubs and even foam boxes, I found that they send out runners to fruit on,the first couple of sets you will get the fully formed nuts, sets after will be more inclined to be the smaller skinny one.
As well in the planting, if you plant out the small ones as your stock you are more likely to have more small skinny fruit forming than if you use fully formed ones.
Might have to have a go with them this year in aquaponics ibc.
I can't quite remember the best way I found to pealed them, I think it was rolling them in the palm of your hands then finish off with a knife, the other way was blanching them first.
Always informative as well as entertaining! 💚
Best gardening channel on youtube as far as I'm concerned and I've learned plenty over the years.
Very fascinating, now I know how water chestnuts are grown! I will have to try this out next summer. It would be lovely to have them fresh to add to my Korean stir fries. They add a wonderful texture and crunch to stir fries, soups and stews.
Maybe inbetween the rocks and compost underlayer and the upper layer and nuts ... you put in a metal mesh, like a bucket shape, and then be able to pull out the upper layer and shake down the rocks and compost, and leaving the corms inside the mesh.
This right here is why I love the UA-cam comment section; so many great insights and ideas.
I wonder how difficult it would be to put the screen back under the soil after harvest.
@@FebbieG you dig out the top layer again, reapply the screen, and drop in the mixture again, and plant your new sets of bulbs.
I absolutely love your content! Thank you so much for all you do 😊
i'm glad you showed us what it takes to grow water chest nuts, It gives you an idea of how much you have to do.
Because of your channel me and my wife started tomatoes this year. We also started beans, okra, and cucumber.
Mark, I have to agree with everything you said 100%. I have the same idea as to why I grow water chestnut. I am from the northern river NSW -Subtropical and I am enjoying growing water chestnut. My children need to know they are not from cans or any big green supermarket or big red supermarket. Thanks for growing these kinds of food. Let’s keep backyard gardening growing to generations.
So glad you opened your heart and home to the fur kid. Hope to see him/her often helping you.
Thank you and she (Bella) is fitting in well! She's a real Tom girl lol... Cheers :)
@@Selfsufficientme 🐾💕🐾
I love water chestnuts, using in cooking but also in my chicken salad for the nutter flavor but softer crunch. I would've never thought to grow my own. I use those mosquito dunks anywhere I have water like bird bath. They come in a crumble as well and can be used on top potted plants to help with gnats. Great video of inspiration 👏
That's good to know. Do you know if they are safe for bees? My birdbath attracts both honey bees and native solitary and bumblebees.
@karladenton5034 it says safe for wildlife but not sure of bees. Probably can research the product/label
@@teenagardner3623 will do. Thanks for the quick response.
Hi Mark. Just googled how to peel chestnuts. Score one half through skin (she dragged a pair of scissors through them), soak in water for 2 hours then add to boiling water for 2 minutes. Then add the chestnuts to a dry hot skillet with lid on. The change in humidity combined with dry heat will open them up, then just pop them out.
I love how garden-tube gets me excited to watch grass grow.
Fantastic video! I'm glad you were successful with this! I love the idea of home-grown chestnuts grown nice and clean. I don't know if I'll ever be able to eat canned chestnuts again, after hearing your objections to them (yuck). Anyway, it's wonderful to see another full video from you! Best to you and everyone you love! Hugs and kissies for the puppy!
🌺Aloha, we tried growing water chestnut, but we followed a gentlemen who grew it on the Hawaii island and in non-scented kitty litter. It grew for a while, but then it died, maybe because of no fertilizer. We will try it again but use hydroton(clay pellets), it has a similar color to what you used. Hope we can find more water chestnut, our originally source no longer carries them. Enjoy your video and oops hope your pup okay? Mahalo
G'day, plants need nutrients, so fertiliser is necessary, and kitty litter is usually clay-based. The plants may have died due to a lack of nutrients and oxygen. Most water plants still grow best in lighter mediums, so straight clay might not be the best mix. I used volcanic rock or Scoria, which is light and porous, mixed with some potting mix (good quality with added fertiliser). You can still use some clay in the combination, but I wouldn't use only clay. All the best :)
And kitty litter is made to suck out all the liquids, so we use it here, in old paint cans, to dry it up before it can be safely dumped. I suspect the cat litter dried out the plant, like being in a desert, as it does require a lot of water to thrive ... like growing rice.
One again an awesome video! Thanks so much for consistently making such great content, we all appreciate it!
Loved learning about this.
What a helper you have!!
I'm in NZ and Koanga sells them. I've been thinking of getting some for a while but was not sure how to grow them. Thanks, Mark, now I will give them a go!
Hello 😄 I've been using those mosquito pucks for years. It even looks like the same brand we have in America. They work great. On the water chestnuts, have you ever heard of paludariums? It looks like the water chestnuts would be a great plant to grow in them on a mid level, shallow water shelf right below the terrestrial plants. Thanks for sharing how to grow them. This is the first I've ever heard of somebody growing their own.
G'day, I can't recall hearing about paludariums but I Googled them and saw what you mean. Cheers :)
I've used mosquito dunks for years here in San Diego. It's always very clear when I've forgotten to add them (itch, itch). So glad you've discovered this great product. Good to see you again, Mark!
Hi.... Mark nice to see you thanks you for showing your video growing vegetables and fruits bye
Thank you so much for sharing this, I've never even considered how water chestnuts grow. I'd like to give it a go!
AWSOME AGAIN!!! You taught me how to establish a raised bed with old logs,compost from years of making &It all starts with the SOIL ! GREAT RESULTS STILL after years 👏 ❤ Thank you for ALL the knowledge &im in Grand Rapids Michigan ❤😊Love all you do my AUSSIE FRIEND 😀
Love your helper
It's a great project for next summer here in Canada. It would have to be when the temps are really high. But it could, now, try and find the starters. It's hard enough to see the canned ones in the grocery stores here. The Pupper was a great sidekick of a "helper."
Enjoyable video Mark - always learning from you! Love the pup too :)
The puppy has gotten big. What a cutie pie!
I loved this video! I always wondered how water chestnuts were grown. Someone on another food channel I watch said chestnuts weren't tree nuts, and I disagreed because I have chestnut trees on my land. Later, I realized later they were talking about the kind you grew. I think your experiment was brilliant, and I'd love to know your source for the "seed" tubers that you started with.
Thank you Sherry! I got the corms/plants from "Green Harvest" online here in Oz. Cheers :)
Try slicing some Jerusalem Artichokes very thin, and use them like water chestnuts. They are very crunchy. Just add them to your food after it is cooked or they will get mushy. I have done this for years in stirfry, etc.
Very interesting. Thank you for sharing.
Love your videos. I'll be in Australia next month, but unfortunately the wrong part. Your videos were a big part in me building an indoor garden over the last two years that has provided me with a lot of joy and food. Keep it up!
Enjoy your trip down under! All the best :)
Very nice!!! So happy to see how you grow your water chestnut!!!Happy Growing 💚💚💚
The dog falling off is so cute 😭🫶
This video was really fascinating! As much as I enjoy them, I'd never thought about how water chestnuts were grown, so this was a real eye-opener. I imagine a little research would give an interesting list of what can be done with the reeds. (There's a tiny fish sold to keep ornamental ponds free of mosquitoes. I'll have to see if they're recommended for something like this.)
Hey Jack, I'm very happy to hear from YOU, all the very Best, a Big hug from Perú
Mark you are a funny bloke.
Thanks for the video
And that stir fry looks super yummy.
from an Aussie living in Canada, I so love to watch and listen to you...becomes more and more precious as time passes....as importantly I enjoy your instruction and use it....can you mention in which area you garden...just so I can imagine where it is...I am from Melbourne originally but my father's ancestors and still today have a 5,000 acre prooerty in Stockinbingal ....it is all in my blood...thank you
Thank you so much. I always wondered why people didn’t grow these around ponds and lakes… yours looked lovely. ( that puppy is adorable 🥰💫💖)
Thanks Mark you’ve inspired me to grow them again.. we did grow them successfully a decade or so ago and then reorganised our garden and have forgotten about growing them again.. I love them and will start growing them again now 🙏 thanks for the detailed instruction , really helpful ! Love your new pup, looking forward to watching its adventures in your garden 😂
Mark, water chestnut and sugar cane boiled together, strain the water and drink chilled. It's a good natural rememdy the chinese use for sore throat and dry cough. Only need to cut the water chestnut in half if you don't want the hassle of peeling it. Personally I find this drink works when you know you are going to get a sore throat, the swelling subside and it goes away. Doesn't work when the sore throat is already more than a day and fever start developing.
Steaming the chestnuts - in the proverbial Asian bamboo steaming unit or European/American folding steaming collander - this should soften up the husk so that it can be easily pulled from the corm by twisting in the hands with some cotton-rubber fishing gloves (American orange cotton fabric with rubber meshing on the fingers).
I’ve been following you for years Mark and although I can see a little more age on your face I can say that the longer I’ve followed you the healthier you look. Whatever you’re doing is doing you good. Love from your UK brother
Thanks for your support Antonino! Love back mate - cheers :)
Super cool video Mark!!! I’ve never thought about growing those. I’m in Canada, so probably not an option for me anyway, but it was so interesting to see you do it!😊
Thank you Rebecca! Cheers :)
I use water chesnuts in my thanksgiving stuffing to add a tiny crunch. I dice them really tiny pieces! I love the crunch of them.
This is such an interesting video. I don’t plan on growing water chestnuts but seeing how they grow was fascinating. Hmmm. Maybe I will give it a try.
How wonderful! I love them & would love to grow them. Yep Mark, use the "straw" for a sunhat. Perfect
This was really cool information - never would have thought to grow water chestnuts. Never cease to amaze me what you're able to grow and share with us. Thanks!!!
You motivated me buddy! Thanks for another informative video. Now I gotta find me a website that sells seeds/shoots. 👍
Try local Asian markets for fresh ones - might still be hard to find though
Never eaten or grown them. You are amaizing Mark.
Hey Mark, thank you for what you do. I live in a pretty urban area and I love escaping and learning through your channel!
Besides water chestnut, you can also grow arrowroots. It is cold hardy to zone 6 here in Toronto, Ontario because I have seen them growing big area in the wild. Its starchy roots texture is different with water chestnut but also good in stir-fry! One more thing when you are doing water plants you can grow is watercress. This year I also start my rice plants from store bought brown rice.
That is so incredibly labor intensive, I could never
So good to see another Australian on UA-cam!
A joy to watch your videos.
Always inspiring and I admire your imagination to keep coming up with great ideas and sharing your knowledge.
Well done.
One Handed Maker - Australia
Thank you. Hope you are doing well.
You are always posting interesting videos.
Love the puppy. Is he or she a new addition? Seems to love to help you garden.
❤🇨🇦
What a fun thing to grow! I love how you are always adding new and interesting foods to your garden. So much fun! Thank you! Do you grow lemon grass and kaffir lime for Thai cooking? Delicious!!
Thank you! Yes, we also grow kaffir lime and lemongrass plus galangal, coriander, ginger, Thai chillies, and lots more. The Asian influence here in Australia is HUGE, and for good reason - the food and recipe ideas are tasty and easy to grow in this part of the world. All the best :)
@@Selfsufficientme
When I grow up I want a garden like thus channel.
I love those!!
Thank you for sharing this. Absolutely love your sense or curiosity and enthusiasm , an inspiration to all. 🎉
I LOVE water chetnuts!!!!! I cut them up smaller and mix them with cooked peas (FROZEN not canned) slilce them and add them to tuna salad and so the list can go on and on. To me they're like garlic and onions, you can never have too much. Yummy. I hope they'll grow in Chicagos short summer. 🤞
Good substitute for chopped celery which I use in chicken, tuna , Salmon, potato salad, etc😊
Great project Mark and your meals look delicious too ( I’m hungry now ) I love water chestnuts, bamboo shoots and pea shoots 👍❤️🇦🇺🇬🇧
great stuff! im currently trying your ginger tips to grow from a supermarket bought one . lets hope something comes out next season!
Great Job, I always wondered how they were grown, Thanks a million!
I despise water chestnuts but I still watched your video, that's how wholesome you are, Mark.
ooooh that stir fry looks yum yum!!!
Your pup stold your show on this video. Always fun! Enjoyed your video.
Hi Mark, in Brisbane I grew them in flexitubs in just 3 or 4 inches of cheap compost/potting mix, but only 3 corms to a tub if I want decent sized ones. And I stop watering in April so they dry out to stop them reshooting, and harvest when the reeds start to die down or go brown, not until completely dead, so harvest in June, not August. In your tub I wouldn’t put in more than 10 corms to get decent sized corms, rather than maximum produce. Still enough small ones to replant next season. Bigger makes peeling easier, but never easy. I was hoping you’d have an easy way! Maybe someone else in the comments will have something helpful. Thanks for reminding me I need to get them set up again for next season.
Frequently, when I watch your videos: I wish I lived next door. You have a Great channel w/ loads of useful information and quite a sense of humor. PLUS, the cutest little 'pal' helping you. Who could ask for more? Thanks, would have never thought of growing water chestnuts, but I most certainly agree with your reasoning! Bye for now~
Very interesting! Thank you Mark. Tour lottle dog trying to help you was adorable. 💜