The Rural Voice, 2001-08, Page 10Perth Dust
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6 THE RURAL VOICE
Robert Mercer
What's a Wasabi plant doing in Canada?
If you eat Sushi or Sashimi you
may have eaten Wasabi. It is part of
the green ingredient in an expensive
Japanese sauce or condiment. Lijen
Hau, formally of Taiwan is now
growing Wasabi
in the Comox
Valley of BC. It
is the first
commercial crop
of its kind of
Vancouver
Island.
When fresh
this plant, that
takes two - three
years to mature
to harvest, can
sell for 1000 yen
per stem. That's
about $14
Canadian. Lijen has planted out
20,000 seedlings that are about a year
old. Each plant can produce more
than one stem, but for top price the
ideal size is given as 10 - 15 cm. in
length and two centimetres in
thickness. This would weigh in at
about 80 - 100 grams.
Wasabi is a perennial plant
(wasabia japonica) sometimes known
as Japanese Horseradish. To grow
under optimum conditions it requires
a coot area that gives 30 - 40 per cent
shaded sunshine. The leaves are
heart -shaped and may be 30 - 50 cm.
in length.
The Wasabi that I saw was grown
under shade cover much like
ginseng, and planted to give total
cover to the soil thus reducing weed
encroachment. Lijen used drip
irrigation from a pond on his 63 -acre
farm to give moisture as required in
the summer months. Cattle manure
from a local dairy farm is used for
much of the soil structure and
nutrient content.
Canada is well placed to supply
the Asian market Lijen says, and the
Comox Valley is well suited to this
Asian crop as the annual average
temperature at I2°C is perfect and
the spring and fall rains ideally
suited. Lijen has to be careful if
winter conditions threaten to drop
the temperature to -5°C, because it is
then best to protect the plant crowns
with a mulch.
The Valley also offers the right
amount of sunshine and the soils are
manageable to a pH range of 6.5 to
7.0.
This is not a crop that would grow
in Ontario, but the diversity of the
ethnic market could find a home for
Wasabi in any Asian store.
A major potential problem in BC
are the slugs on the island that can be
devastating in size and numbers. To
combat this on an organic basis,
Lijen has installed an "L" shaped
copper strip around the cultivated
area that is about 50 cm tall. So far,
no problems. The other natural
predator that might have given a
problem was the deer. So far the
local deer have not taken a liking to
this culinary delight.
Lijen Hua who was a civil
engineer in Taiwan before he came
to Canada in April 2000, is confident
that the Wasabi can be grown
profitably here. He is also sure of the
demand in Japan and hopes to be
able to sell a premium product in
Asia. This is because he aims to
apply for organic status and the
purity of the air on Vancouver Island
is well known in Japan.
There is no immediate plan to
increase his 0.7 acres of crop until he
has confirmed his production
practices. In the meantime he is
investigating the possibility of
growing Wasabi on the forest floor
where soil is naturally moist and the
sunshine naturally filtered. Lijen also
says that if the conditions are right he
will research the potential for
growing Chinese herbs for nutritional
and medicinal purposes.0
Robert Mercer was editor of the
Broadwater Market Letter and a farm
commentator in Ontario for 25 years.