Were they woody to the core? I discard the outer leaves often and enjoy the tender heart part of the bulb. Perhaps you could have harvested them earlier in the season?

Sorry to hear it. I grow a lot of fennel, all season and never had that problem. My biggest problem is under-sized bulbs or bolting.

If the plants seemed healthy but tasted poorly, i'm stumped.
Which variety did you grow? Direct seed or transplant? Any other details you can think that could have caused it?

-Mark

Yeah, which variety?

Bulbing fennel is the one usually used as a vegetable. The other types are more used as an herb, especially for the seeds.

It was an afterthought seed purchase at Home Despot... I'm guessing Burpee seed. It was definitely bulbing fennel. I direct sowed into good soil and they got regular water and occasional fish emulsion. Planted in June, and harvested when the bulbs were the size of a hwalnut up through the size of an apple. No part, inner or outer part of the bulbs were palatable. Trying to think what other info would help... Full sun... Grew in the hottest part of our growing season. Real nice looking plants. Just bad tasting.

No chance of growing fennel in Zone 6, just none. At best miserable bulbs (though usable, chopped up or minced, in soups, roasts and stews), more often bolted stalks. Zone 8b and above? Easy, plant in August, harvest all winter.

Glib may have it. You said "Grew in the hottest part of our season".

Fennel is certainly not a heat lover and that may be the reason for the failure.

Glib, I do find it unrealistic that there is no time at all in zone 6 that bulb fennel can be grown. It is a fairly short term crop after all.
Maybe starting seed inside,at the end of march and transplant out late-april?
Just a thought.

I don't have a hard time buying that the heat had something to do with my problem. I am curious, though, as to why that is the case. Anyone have thoughts on the matter? I mean, the plants were not heat-stressed in any discernible way. They looked very healthy and robust... got regular water and appropriate fertilizing. Maybe this is more of a (boring!) plant biology question? As always, thanks for the thoughtful replies! I will try to repay the kindness in my turn with other posters' questions.

I grow bulb fennel twice a year, spring and fall. To get the spring crop growing early, I set out month-old seedlings under cloches a week or two before my last frost date. In spring I use a fast, uniform hybrid. The fall crop gets started indoors in July, set out in early August. Those babies keep going until the first hard freeze. For the past two years I've used Supersmeltz in the fall with good results.

As quick guess as to the reason heat = woody: water retention. Many plants firm up different tissues to prevent loss of water during heat. Healthy and robust they were, having taken care to get tough and woody to keep themselves moist on the inside. Just a guess, though fairly educated.

Planatus, isn't supersmeltz a kohlrabi variety, the giant one?
Maybe it's also a fennel i've never heard of.

I'm also confused how a perfectly good looking plant could be so bad.
I usually put in a late spring planting that matures when temps are sometimes getting into the 90's. If they don't bolt, they usually are fine. Not woody at all but the fennel flavor is always stronger on this planting.

Maybe if the temperature was hot when the plants were just starting, they respond like sunnibel7's suggests.

Also, Burpee seed bought at home depot is not really the best source, but i'm sure we all know that......

Sunnibel7, your educated guess sounds pretty plausible to me. In general, a mystifying growing experience. I suspect the unexplainable is often the thing that keeps me interested, though! Madroneb... you are correct btw. It's those impulse buys that get me every time. I need to stick to planning ahead with the reputable seed sources I typically source from!

In its natural habitat (the Mediterranean coast) fennel is a Zone 9 winter vegetable. It is eaten December through March and makes bulbs that can be five inches across . It is the cooler temperatures that keep it from bolting, and it keeps fattening the bulb through the winter.There are coastal areas where it can be grown, but not here.

If it was an open pollinated fennel you grew (and it probably was if you used burpee seed), it just probably was a pretty poor variety or maybe just a bad year.

I have grown fennel in Southern New England for years and it always worked. The trick is timing the planting. Most fennels are 75-80 days and they need to mature when the weather is cool. So, in Massachusetts (and Connecticut), direct seed them June 15th or so. They need fairly loose soil, good fertility and a good regular supply of water. Thin them to a final distance of seven or eight inches. (I would usually do an initial thinning of one inch or so, and then go back several times, eating the thinnings in salad or cooking them.

They are ready by mid September when things cool off. They will hold in the field and take a pretty good frost.

I thought I had some photos of some growing, but can not find them; only thing I can find is a photo of some Romanesco Fennel (italian open pollinated variety).

Get some good seed. They are really a nice vegetable.

Regards
Bill McKay

Mandroneb, you're right. Supersmeltz is the kohlrabi that holds on so long in the fall. The long-standing fennel is Victorio, from the Territorial fall/winter catalog. Lately I've been growing Trieste in the spring.

One note. On the spring crop, I cut the bulbs high, leaving the root and basal plate. Two to three little fennel-ettes grow from the stump in about two weeks. I wait to pull the plants until after I've cut those ratoons.

I grew some fennel one year and within two days it was completely destroyed(and covered by) caterpillars. I took one to the extension office here in North Florida and they told me that they are often planted here in butterfly gardens. Needless to say I had lots of blue butterflies.

PS, wasn't sure how long to grow the fennel and it had to be about 4 or 5 feet tall, those pictures look much smaller.

This post was edited by rrleesb on Fri, Mar 1, 13 at 7:50

Had a thought about this recently... is it possible I should have hilled the bulbs to blanch them like I do with my leeks?

I've never known anyone to actually hill them.
You could try some straw mulch up around the plants for some more cooling and moisture retention.