PARSNIPS

[littlefish 588]

I have pulled up some parsnips today. It was my first attempt at growing them. They grew loads of big green healthy leaves but the roots were quite small and round, like sort of stunted

 

Anyways, i scraped them and chopped them into cubes. They are roasting in the oven now with a few home grown onions and some herbs.........they smell delicious, can't wait til they are cooked.

 

Has anyone else had parsnips grow like this before?

[SportingShooter 0]

When I was stuck with clay soil then they used to grow small and roundish, same with Carrots. But now I have light sandy soils they grow quite well. The ground needs to be well turned and fairly light soiled if you want the Big thick long roots.

 

Regards

SS

[mackem 28,740]

For a tap-root to achieve its full potential you need a decent aerated loam

[mattydski 560]

Yeh, i used to pack parsnips for my living, 3-400 tonne an week for Asda.

It might be that you took them a bit early. They last quite well until a frost, then they tend to get strawed to protect from the cold.

If you have any left, leave em a bit..

Matt

[littlefish 588]

Thanks for the replies. I still have some more left, so i will leave them for a while to see what happens. I have some carrots growing now, so hopefully they will grow downwards and not outwards. The carrots are in tubs about 18 inches deep. I grew the parsnips in compost from B&Q, maybe this is why they were squat, maybe a rougher soil might have got a better result? Thanks for your advice so far. The parsnips tasted ok by the way, just looked a bit rare.