Cool-Season Vegetables: How to Grow Parsnips
This unfairly maligned root vegetable is the ideal choice for a winter garden, sweetening with the frost and having a long storage life
Marianne Lipanovich
January 1, 2000
Houzz Contributor. I'm a California-based writer and editor. While most of my projects are garden-based, you might also find me writing about home projects and classical music. Away from the computer, I'm found in the garden (naturally), on my bike, or ice-skating outdoors (yes, that is possible in California). I'm also willing to taste-test anything that's chocolate.
Houzz Contributor. I'm a California-based writer and editor. While most of my projects... More
If you’re looking for something that can handle the cold, the parsnip is your vegetable of choice. Unfortunately, it has a reputation similar to the turnip as something not worth eating. What many people don’t realize is that parsnips have a sweet and creamy taste and are perfect on their own, whether boiled, roasted, mashed, sautéed or baked. They're also good mixed with potatoes.
Most of all, these vegetables are hardy. They taste much sweeter after the first frost and can be stored in a cool, damp place for several months. They can even be left in the ground until you're ready to cook them in a savory fall or winter dish.
More: How to grow cool-season crops
Most of all, these vegetables are hardy. They taste much sweeter after the first frost and can be stored in a cool, damp place for several months. They can even be left in the ground until you're ready to cook them in a savory fall or winter dish.
More: How to grow cool-season crops
When to plant: Late winter, early spring or fall
Days to maturity: 90 to 130
Light requirement: Full sun or partial shade
Water requirement: Regular
Favorites: Albion, Half-Long Guernsey, Hollow Crown, Javelin, Lancer
Planting and care: Like their carrot relatives, parsnips need a fine soil that's free of lumps or stone. Break up the soil at least 1 1/2 feet deep and till in sand and fine compost a few weeks before planting.
The seeds themselves are very small and fine; pellated seeds are a good choice, as they won’t blow away quite as easily. Sow seeds 1/2 inch deep and 1 inch apart; thin seedlings to 3 inches apart. Keep the soil consistently moist and the area around the plants weed free. Mulching will help preserve moisture and keep weeds down. Potential pests include armyworms, cabbage root maggots, flea beetles, leafhoppers and nematodes.
Harvest: Dig up roots using a spade or a spading fork, then store them in a cool, damp place. If you want to leave them in the ground through a cold winter, cover them with a foot of hay or straw to keep the ground from freezing. Mark with tall stakes so you can find them when the snow falls. In the coldest climates, it’s better to harvest the roots before the ground freezes and store them.
Days to maturity: 90 to 130
Light requirement: Full sun or partial shade
Water requirement: Regular
Favorites: Albion, Half-Long Guernsey, Hollow Crown, Javelin, Lancer
Planting and care: Like their carrot relatives, parsnips need a fine soil that's free of lumps or stone. Break up the soil at least 1 1/2 feet deep and till in sand and fine compost a few weeks before planting.
The seeds themselves are very small and fine; pellated seeds are a good choice, as they won’t blow away quite as easily. Sow seeds 1/2 inch deep and 1 inch apart; thin seedlings to 3 inches apart. Keep the soil consistently moist and the area around the plants weed free. Mulching will help preserve moisture and keep weeds down. Potential pests include armyworms, cabbage root maggots, flea beetles, leafhoppers and nematodes.
Harvest: Dig up roots using a spade or a spading fork, then store them in a cool, damp place. If you want to leave them in the ground through a cold winter, cover them with a foot of hay or straw to keep the ground from freezing. Mark with tall stakes so you can find them when the snow falls. In the coldest climates, it’s better to harvest the roots before the ground freezes and store them.
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I'm very excited!! I have just sown the first seeds for parsnips, one of my favorite veggies. Fingers crossed they grow :)
I'll be trying them for the first time this coming fall. I love them slow-roasted with turnips, potatoes, and onions. A must as a Thanksgiving side dish.
People, even children, who have said they don't like parsnips have them gobbled down when prepared as my friend taught me. Cut them in 3-5 inch lengths, then cut lengthwise like they are julienne-cut. Brown them slowly in butter, and at the very end, sprinkle a small amount of brown sugar on them. Let the brown sugar cook a few seconds and slide it onto a platter like fries. I suppose all the butter and little bit of sugar ruin them as a heath treat except I'd rather have parsnips this way than any cake or pie.