Compact pak choi
Brassicaceae · Direct sow · compact garden planning guide
| Bed spacing | 8 × 8 in (203.2 × 203.2 mm) |
|---|---|
| Minimum sun used | 4 hours per day |
| Root depth used | 200 mm (7.9 in) |
| Container volume used | 10 L |
| Spring preparation | -21 to -7 days from your last frost |
| Maturity estimate | 40–55 days from sowing |
Square-bed spacing, root-space and sun thresholds, spring offsets, germination check ranges, harvest occupancy and clearance days are selected planning settings. They are not universal cultivar rules or a guaranteed harvest schedule. Packet, nursery and local guidance take precedence.
Before planting
Choose a small-heading pak choi; heat or cold stress may trigger premature flowering.
Establish
Thin toward single plants and avoid damaging neighboring shallow roots.
Tend and harvest
Inspect the center for bolting and check leaf undersides; flowering plants will not resume normal heads. Cut a small usable head at soil level; clear roots before filling its position again.
Plans using this crop
Spring starts · 4+ hours sun
Spring greens with a thinning check
Keep long-lived kale separate from whole-head pak choi and count survivors before buying replacements.
Compact kale · Compact pak choi
Fall planting · 4+ hours sun
Fall pak choi with a whole-head finish
Schedule one harvest-and-clear decision for pak choi heads and a separate sample-root check.
Compact pak choi · Small round radishes
Multiple beds · 6+ hours sun
Two beds with different crop finish dates
Keep the long tomato harvest in one bed while a second bed changes to fall greens.
Tiny Tim dwarf tomato · Small round radishes · Compact pak choi
No indoor seed starting · 5+ hours sun
Direct-sown fall restart after missed spring
Start a new cool-season plan from seed when the spring planting window has already passed.
Arugula for young leaves · Small-root turnips · Compact pak choi
References
- UMD Extension: Growing leafy greens in a home garden
Kale and pac choi can be direct sown or transplanted; partial shade is possible. Fall planning adds 10–14 days to maturity for shorter days. We select 14 days and compact-cultivar bed cells; dates are conditional.
- UMD Extension: Growing vegetables in containers and salad tables
Sun exposure, drainage, growing media and crop-specific minimum volumes; our thresholds are conservative planning settings.
- UMN Extension: Planting the vegetable garden
Cool and warm season establishment; weather and soil readiness matter. Minnesota month dates are not used as global dates.
- UMN Extension: Planting for fall harvest
Maturity is a cultivar-dependent estimate; our extra 14-day fall buffer is an explicit planning assumption.
Updated 2026-10-13. We have not field-tested the plan in your climate.