If you’re fairly skilled in the kitchen, then we’d think that you like to grow your own fresh herbs.
While many Americans are busy growing your average herbs like basil, oregano, lavender, etc, we think it is a good idea to think outside the box.
If you’ve ever wanted to grow something a little more exotic, you might have been thinking about how to grow korean perilla leaves.
If you find it difficult to get a decent quality perilla outside of Korea, you might find it easier to grow your own.
It’s very easy to do and it gives you a brand new ingredient for your cooking adventures.
In this ultimate guide to growing your very own Korean perilla leaves, we’ll tell you everything you need to know to go from seed to a plant.
What Are Korean Perilla Leaves?
The plant that produces perilla seeds creates perilla leaves which are called Kkaennip in Korean.
This is a plant from the mint family but it is only native to Asia so it is difficult to find in the United States and in some parts of the world.
There are two types of perilla leaves. One has a purple underside and the other does not. The perilla leaf has serrated edges and is slightly fuzzy in texture.
Sometimes people use the term sesame leaves instead of perilla leaves, again, that’s totally wrong. While they are used as an herb in Korea, many chefs use perilla leaves as a type of vegetable; they are quite versatile.
Planting Perilla Leaves From Seeds
In the United States, it’s probably low chances that you’ll find yourself with a sapling perilla seed plant so you will need to grow from seed for sure.
But let me put your mind at ease, it’s no where near as scary as it sounds and even easier for you if you’ve never grown from seed before – we will let you know everything.
First off, it’s critical to make sure you find a good supplier for your seeds. Going to a Korean based store, you can snag some seeds that are of a very good quality.
Let’s say you can’t find a store in your area, you can always find reputable online options.
But, don’t get seeds confused with Japanese shiso, while everyone seems to mix the two spaces, it definitely does not taste the same and the leaves look different too.
Next, if you are harvesting seeds from an existing perilla plant, you’ll have to ensure that you use them up quickly since they do not store very well.
If you are going to a supplier that’s usually the best way.
But either way, provided the conditions are right, you can definitely sow the perilla seeds outdoors.
However, if it’s not quite stable, our best recommendation is always to go indoors first for the highest chances of success, before transitioning outdoors.
If it’s not stable for plant life someone typically would not have outdoor temperatures that drop to below 45ºF at nighttime.
Best Time to Plant Seeds
The best time to plant your perilla seeds is between March and May, with April being the ideal time.
Please remember that the seeds can take as long as 21 days to germinate if the temperature is above 70ºF.
If you are growing the seeds indoors, general rule is to plant them 4 to 6 weeks before the last spring frost, in order to transplant your seedlings when the time it right.
For best results, soak the seeds in water for around 24 hours before planting- this will allow for a swifter germination process.
Once the time has elapsed, you can then put the seeds in a 25cm container or directly into the ground, what’s best is largely dependent on your conditions and what will grow better in your environment.
Remember that seeds should be planted at least a quarter of an inch into the soil and covered lightly, but well.
If you are planting indoors, consider using some grow lights to ensure the plants are getting enough light.
If you have seedlings, you may want to transplant them from their container to the garden.
When transplanting – allow for a spacing of 10-12 inches between plants.
The soil should be moist but not too wet, the plants are susceptible to fungal disease that can be somewhat avoided if the conditions do not facilitate overwatering.
However, if the issue arises, we can address that further in the watering section.
What Are The Best Conditions For Korean Perilla Leaves?
If you want to achieve the most successful results when growing Korean perilla leaves, then you need to make sure that you use ideal conditions.
The great thing about these plants, however, is that they are quite tolerant of most environments.
Like I said before, you will want to make sure that you monitor temperature since this is a warm weather plant.
Korean perilla leaves will grow best in zones 2 to 11 but being that it is native to regions of the Himalayas, it won’t suffer all that bad if summer is slightly cooler than warm temperatures.
The best place to plant is a sunny location but not full sunlight. If you are in a warmer climate then a partial sun location is OK, but if you are planting in a cooler climate then the perilla will usually prefer full sun in the summer months.
In any case – of course, it is important to give the plant at least 6 hours of sun every day.
Korean perilla leaves are also not that sensitive to soil types.
They will grow well in multiple soil types but as with anything, and especially from experience, there are ideal conditions.
From experience, I would suggest a pH of atleast between 5.5-6.5 for kran perilla leaves and naturally, you want to make sure that it drains well so the plant doesn’t catch any disease from too much moisture.
While it is not necassary to heavily fertalize the soil to grow well, you may want to add fish emulsion, compost liquid, and other organic matter.
From experience again, you can do this, if you want, every 4 weeks from growing. When Korean perilla leaves are well taken care of, you can expect them to grow about 60cm.
Watering Requirements
As we mentioned previously, the perilla seed plant can have issues from excessive moisture so it is very important not to over water these plants.
You want to keep the soil moist but not wet.
If the soil was to dry out, like if you are on vacation, there is no need to panic. Korean perilla leaves are very tolerant to drought. You may see that the leaves sag a little in the afternoons, but this is completely normal.
This is just the plant’s way of conserving water from transpiring. As long as it perks back up in the evening, don’t worry. If these leaves also have a wrinkly appearance, then this is a sign that you need to give the plant some water.
When your perilla seed plants are young, you may notice that they exhibit moisture stress which will usually show by the leaves turning brown or have dry leaf tips. If the soil is too wet, the leaves will yellow and droop.
The plants do become a little more resilient as they age.
Harvesting Korean Perilla Leaves
Korean perilla leaves are wonderfully quick to grow.
You’ll find that you get a few harvests every growing season relatively easily!
Just be sure to wait until the leaves are about the size of your hand, as picking them before can hinder the next harvest.
And when it comes time to pick the leaves, cut them right at the stem and pick them by hand.
When you pick the leaves, be sure to pinch back the growth tips on the stalks as this will lesson and demote obstruction of growth.
It also helps to pick clusters of leaves instead of picking them one by one as this will lead to the healthy beautiful bushy growth of Korean perilla leaves and you will be so happy that you did!
How To Store Perilla Leaves For Cooking
Once you’ve harvested your perilla leaves, you’ll need to store them correctly.
Fresh leaves will stay good in the refrigerator for up to three days, although the sooner you use them the better quality the leaves will be.
If you would like to use the kkaennip recipe to marinate your leaves, this will help to extend the lifespan of the fresh leaves.
Propagating Perilla Leaves
The perilla seed plant is an annual self-seeding plant that flowers during late summer into fall.
If you allow this process of nature to happen, you do not need to worry about propagating the plant because it will do all the work for you.
It is possible to grow plants from the seeds if you are so inclined to harvest them, but you could also leave them until they are just about to go to seed.
Then, allow them to dry out until they turn brown.
At this time, you can just shake out the seeds and put them away into a paper bag.
But since the seeds are delicate, you need to make sure you keep them in a good, cool dry storage place if you want to plant them next year.
Diseases And Pests To Be Aware Of
Resiliency to pest-related problems is a great thing about perilla seed plants.
However, a few bugs will still want to ruin your hard work for some of your precious leaves. Generally, you will find that the greatest nuisance comes in the form of aphids which will be present on the undersides of the perilla leaves.
Aphids will deposit honeydew on the leaves that will spoil the leaves and in some cases, lead to sooty mold growth. Once you start to see sooty mold, it can spread like crazy to the whole plant.
Predators like lacewings and even ladybugs can help you control your aphid population instead of trying to treat them with sprays.
You may also see that you have spider mites attacking your plant and they are responsible for problems with perilla.
Spider mites feed on the plant juice in the perilla leaves and will produce white spots on the leaf and eventually the leaf will become unusable.
So it is necessary to get rid of spider mites and the best way to do that is just spraying them off with water.
Finally, you might have problems with cutworms in the garden. Cutworms cut through the stork and kill the seedling. You can collar your plant to keep them out, but you should also pay close attention to weed control in and around the planting area.
When it comes to diseases, the problem most found, specifically to Korean perilla leaves, is fungal bacteria, or factor, and will cause serious problems.
Damping off is the fumus problem we have seen and it doesn’t appear until germination stage. It comes from the fungus that will stop the germination process.
Damping off is usually triggered when you put too much nitrogen or it is too wet of a soil and too much anything isn’t a good thing.
When the temperatures are correct you will also notice gray patches on the undersides of the perilla leaves. This is downy mildew which is a condition caused by too much moisture.
This will be an active condition not just a loss of plant leaves. You would like a nice wheel to make sure that your plants are well spaced.
Finally, if the leaves start to get rusty looking patches, it could be any combination of fungus and they usually attack the stems and leaves. If you remove the materials and plant it again, they will recover.
Conclusion
While Korean perilla leaves should definitely be an ingredient that you have on hand in your experimental kitchen, most people will find that acquiring them in the US is difficult since they are native to Asia.
However, you can buy the seeds to grow your own Korean perilla leaves, which means a constant supply of these fresh, mint family leaves for your all your experimental cooking, snacking calls, and garnishes.