Drunken radish

My bok choy, radish and lettuce are coming up nicely, but seem to have long curved stems before the plant starts.  What could be causing this?  We have had a lot of rain lately and consequently very little sunshine.  Here you can see the detail on the radish stems.  They also dont seem to be developing a bulb.
I went though all the bok choy and mounded up the soil around the bases, so they were no longer falling over drunkenly, and removed some and planted them elsewhere so that they have room to grow.  I just left the radish alone, should I do the same thing to the radish?  Did I plant the seeds too close to the surface? I also have a cucumber already - wow they are quick!
The garlic chive flowers are so pretty and attract bees and butterflies.

Comments

  1. I had same experience when I planted radish before. I guess the seeds are too shallow? Or maybe lack of sun and plenty of water made them leggy? But again, I am no expert at all. Will see if other experienced ones can offer any answer. Interesting to know as well. Your cucumber looks good. It is always exciting to see the harvests from own garden.

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  2. We are just a beginners with a veggie patch and haven't had much success, so I can hardly give advice. However, our beans went curly and a friend told me it was because they had a root disease.

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  3. I had a good laugh when I read the title of this post! :D
    I think it could be the inadequate sunshine that's caughing the long curved stems. That happens very often with most seedlings.

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  4. Lack of sunshine and too much water might cause it. Maybe try reseeding? I've had a terrible time with the spring radishes this season because it was so cold and wet and cloudy, and I've had several "drunken" ones, myself.

    Now some radishes (like Spanish Black and Daikon) can grow their shoulders up out of the earth as they get fat, and it's even okay to cover them up as they do, so you might try firming up the soil all around those curvy stems. :)

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  5. Thanks for all the advice,
    Ami, we ate the cucumber last night - couldnt wait any longer - it was delicious, a pale green inside, so I guess it had lots of nitrogen!
    Meredith, actually the bok choy that I moved and "hilled up" have taken off like wildfire, so maybe building up the soil around them as they grow is what I will do. Diane, There is a disease that attacks the very base of plants - someone suggested using a half a toilet roll to protect the young stems, and I have done that with my little pepper plants.
    Sunita - I often find the older specimens at the nursery go like that - that is normally when they put them on clearance!.

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