More reliable way for growing parsnips?

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AlaninCarlisle

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More reliable way for growing parsnips?
« on: January 20, 2019, 12:19 »
I sowed them four times last year and still only got about eight usable roots. I'm wondering if the following would work?
I have a number of stout cardboard tubes that were originally inside wrapping paper. If I cut these up, I'll have about 40 tubes. each about 4cm diameter and maybe 15cm long. I have a very large home-made heated propagator on a bench in the greenhouse.
What I thought of trying was to fill each of these tubes with garden-soil and sow a couple of seeds in each, stand them on end with some kind of support in plastic trays in the propagator and then remove the weaker seedling from each tube and plant the tubes out in Spring.
Any thoughts?
« Last Edit: January 20, 2019, 12:52 by AlaninCarlisle »

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tangojulie

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Re: More reliable way for growing parsnips?
« Reply #1 on: January 20, 2019, 13:15 »
In theory this should be OK, but I tried it one year and was astonished at the length of the tap root compared to the size of the seedling. As I recall the root was at the bottom of a toilet roll tube when the seedling barely has its seed leaves. If you're going to give it a go I'd suggest starting with a test one or two and judging the length of the tube you need from that.

Good luck!

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snowdrops

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Re: More reliable way for growing parsnips?
« Reply #2 on: January 20, 2019, 13:20 »
Lots on here do just that Alan but as Tanjoulie says the root grows at a great rate, often out the bottom almost before the leaves appear, & any damage to the end of the root & you’ll have forked roots, possible but with caution. Also you need to take care when planting that you bury the top of the cardboard otherwise it wicks moisture away.
Some people prechit the seeds on damp kitchen roll in a polybox & plant the chitted seeds out.
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AlaninCarlisle

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Re: More reliable way for growing parsnips?
« Reply #3 on: January 20, 2019, 13:47 »
Thanks for the hint. I've cut the tubes at about 30% longer than toilet-roll tubes. I'll fill up the tubes with soil  but delay adding seeds for a few weeks
« Last Edit: January 20, 2019, 13:49 by AlaninCarlisle »

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Mr Dog

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Re: More reliable way for growing parsnips?
« Reply #4 on: January 20, 2019, 17:06 »
My suggestion would be to hang fire till late April / early May until the ground has had some chance to warm up no matter which method you go for. I'm convinced people sow parsnips (and leeks which then tend to run to seed) far too early.

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Stewarty

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Re: More reliable way for growing parsnips?
« Reply #5 on: January 20, 2019, 17:06 »
I've done surprisingly well with parsnips for the past 2 or 3 years, first by sowing them into old car tyres filled with the contents of last year's greenhouse grow-bags. Then by sowing them into bits of my giant raised beds that I constructed out of pallets on end part-sunk into the ground to make a 4 foot by 20 foot  rectangle, lined with mypex woven plastic sheet, and filled with large quantities of newspapers (about a foot depth - we read a lot of heavyweight newspapers here), then horse poo, then spent grow-bag contents, then B & Q cheap large bales of multi-purpose compost. The aim was to get very fine soil for them to dive down into. It's working well with lots of other things, too  -  beetroot, spinach, carrots, lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, onions, etc.
It's quite a lot of work, and a bit of expense (especially for the newspapers!), to build these beds, but the aim is to overcome the problems I have in working at ground level  -  hand-weeding, even cropping - because of chronic problems with back and knee joints. Now I find the cropping much, much easier, beautifully clean, very satisfying.
I've been running two of these large raised beds for 3 or 4 years now, and it's just coming round to time again to clear out the remains of last years crops, and top-up with a bit more horse poo (free), the spent grow-bags from 2 greenhouses (free, now), and some more B & Q multi-purpose compost (bought a few weeks ago, and waiting by the beds  -  those big bails are heavy to shift, and tricky to load into a car, especially when wet and slippery!)

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AlaninCarlisle

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Re: More reliable way for growing parsnips?
« Reply #6 on: January 20, 2019, 17:13 »
My suggestion would be to hang fire till late April / early May until the ground has had some chance to warm up no matter which method you go for. I'm convinced people sow parsnips (and leeks which then tend to run to seed) far too early.
Yes, I made my four sowings in May last year and had very poor results which is why I'm determined to start some in the propagator in March and plant out when ready, probably by April

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snowdrops

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Re: More reliable way for growing parsnips?
« Reply #7 on: January 20, 2019, 19:11 »
My suggestion would be to hang fire till late April / early May until the ground has had some chance to warm up no matter which method you go for. I'm convinced people sow parsnips (and leeks which then tend to run to seed) far too early.
Yes, I made my four sowings in May last year and had very poor results which is why I'm determined to start some in the propagator in March and plant out when ready, probably by April

Consider how quickly you’ll need to plant them out if you put them in the propagator

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Plot 1 Problems

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Re: More reliable way for growing parsnips?
« Reply #8 on: January 20, 2019, 23:43 »
I dib out 12" deep holes in the ground and fill them with MPC. In each hole I sow 3 or 4 seeds and then just pinch out to leave one seedling per hole. I get plenty on long broad shouldered snips that way, with pretty much no forking. I do the same with my carrots too.

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Mr Dog

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Re: More reliable way for growing parsnips?
« Reply #9 on: January 21, 2019, 09:39 »
Yes, I made my four sowings in May last year and had very poor results which is why I'm determined to start some in the propagator in March and plant out when ready, probably by April

I take it last year's parsnip failure was unusual then? If so, why change a method that's served you well? Remember it was an odd year - my parsnips were considerably smaller than normal and most of my neighbours got very few or none.

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JayG

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Re: More reliable way for growing parsnips?
« Reply #10 on: January 21, 2019, 10:14 »
Parsnips nearly always present a few challenges for me, although I usually get there in the end.

Just a few thoughts based on my experiences:

1) If your main problem is poor germination, even though you are not sowing too early, it is worth chitting the seeds in a plastic box on damp paper - plant out as soon as you see the root appear (fiddly, helps if you're a brain surgeon!)
2) If your soil is stony it may well be helpful to sow or plant out into deep holes filled with MP compost (or sieved soil if you're prepared to go to that much trouble.)
3) If you insist on unblemished snips you may want to consider growing under enviromesh to keep the carrot flies away (canker is usually a consequence of carrot fly attack.)

I usually sow direct in late April, 3-4 seeds to each station, and if necessary I do transplant thinnings to fill any gaps, although you need to do this as early as possible, and transplanting into deep MP compost does reduce the risk of subsequent forking.

I've attached a pic of one I dug up yesterday (took pic because a friend didn't believe me when I said it was a foot long!) Alas, not all my snips are as well shaped as this one.  ;)
p.jpg
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