How much can the taste of your veggies be influenced?

[TeaMonsta]

I've got two lots of raised beds; one lot by the kitchen (partial shade but successful beds), another lot in full, uninterrupted sun. The radishes I grew in the kitchen beds were good quality, great tasting but quite mild. The ones I grew in the other beds (same seed packet) are "blow-your-head-off" hot, and have suffered from areas of brown flesh. They have also gone woody much sooner than the others. Also, before I started growing beetroot, the raw ones I got in the supermarket are sweeter than the ones I have grown and have no saccharin-like aftertaste. Is that just down to variety or is there anything that can be done to influence the flavour?

[Scarlet]

When radishes are about to go to seed they get hotter in flavour - I think you left it a bit late to pick them. Best to sow them little and often.
As for the beetroots, I think it's down to variety but I'm happy to be wrong

[Chippy Minton]

I think that's a really interesting question so here's a slightly long winded answer

There are so many influences, amount of water (herbs supposed to taste stronger when water stressed), amount of sun (energy availability to the plant I guess, ripening for those that need it), geology / soil (same grape variety from different part of the vineyard providing a different wine - couldn't believe it until I tasted it), different levels of nutrient / fertilisers in the soils, variety (who could forget variety ), etc. There are so many influences.

However I think there are so many, and then many more interactions, it would be difficult to control them to actually have a definable "influence" if that makes sense

Interesting what others make of it.....

[Penellype]

I think where you grow veg makes quite a bit of difference to taste. The Shirley tomatoes I grow on my west facing sitting room windowsill are nice but nothing special. The ones I grow in my friend's greenhouse (which are sideshoots off the sitting room ones, so genetically identical) are much more full of flavour. Its probably a combination of more sun throughout the day and more compost, although the compost I use is the same make (Westland tomato gro-bag compost).

[Alison]

You're right Penellype and watering and feeding also make a massive difference too. Too much water equals tasteless fruits

[Scarlet]

I think tomatoes have a very distinctive taste though, similar to radish. It's so obvious when they are super hot that they are inedible in a salad. The tomatoes off the same plant eaten at different stages of ripeness taste different. Although beetroot, much like broad beans or broccoli etc. I really dont think I could tell the difference whether theyve been watered too much or fed differently.

[Bill HH]

This is something I have often wondered, I have fed some of my tomatoes nearly double the amount of tomorite than others but can't honestly say they taste any better.

[Thelma Sanders]

Don't worry Bill, your sense of taste sounds just like mine! - but some people are Supertasters and can taste differences that most of us can't

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supertaster

[TeaMonsta]

Interesting stuff. Thanks, everyone. Well, there's certainly a difference between the amount of sun the two sets of beds get and it's highly unlikely both beds have received the same quantities of fertiliser. The beds behind the garage (the full-sun beds) were built much later this year and I used a different compost in them (same soil, though). The beetroot in both sets of beds has tasted identical so maybe the slight funny aftertaste is down to the variety - boltardy.