[supervegman]

Hi all some of my parnsip sseds have started to germinate on damp papaer in the airing cupboard what do i do now the sprout are about 5mm long how do i sow and do i need to sieive the compost and warm it a little first

[DD.]

Dare I say it - you're way too early in my opinion.

Your only hope is to get them into paper pots/cardboard tubes, somewhere cooler with plenty of light. The need planting out before the tap root gets to the bottom of the pot. Therein lies your problem as they'll probably have to go out in really cold weather from a warm enviroment.

It'll be another 3 months before I think about parsnips. What sowing times did it say on the packet?

[mumofstig]

so you tried even though nobody thought it was a good idea when you asked about it

[DD.]

Ah, yes. I'd forgotten about this:

http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=69221.msg791281#msg791281

What was the point in asking?

Not only that, why go ahead when you'd got no clue what to do next?

[gobs]

lol, bored, must be

[gillie]

5mm is far too long for the roots, you will damage them when you sow them.  Bin this lot and start again, later and somewhere cooler and sow them directly you see the roots beginning to appear.

[Kristen]

If you want to plant them this is what I do (in mid March though)

Fold a sheet of tabloid in half and roll it around a thin (i.e. 2" diameter) tall spray can, leaving a bit sticking out at the bottom.

Fold the bottom bit in under the can and pull it off and you will have a newspaper-pot.

Should be about 6" tall.

Fill with multipurpose compost, and loosely put your hand around the pots and drop them 4" onto the bench to get the compost to settle.

Put them in a gravel tray or similar (all bunched up tightly) and transfer the seedlings to them. You will have to be dexterous and gentle. If the root has grown through the kitchen paper you can tear the paper and plant paper-and-seedling together.

Plant out AS SOON as the first true leaf appears (that will be the third actual leaf, and it will look different to the first two). If you wait any longer the tap root will be coming out of the bottom of your paper pots and when you harvest your Parsnips they will look like gloves

In march it takes NO MORE than 3 weeks from putting the seedling into the pot before they  need to be planted out

Use a bulb planter to make a deep planting hole and fill it with sifted soil - any stones will make the parsnips "fork" too). Tear of the top inch or so of newspaper when you plant so none sticks out of the ground (it acts as a wick and makes the paper underground dry out too)

Other people put the little seedlings straight into prepared soil outside (I've never tried that)

And sow some more at the time it says on the packet just-in-case these ones snuff it, or "bolt" during the Summer.

[DD.]

April.

A pinch every 8".

Thin to one when big enough.

Wait for frost.

Eat.

Simples.

[Kristen]

Thin to one when big enough.

That bit is important Here's what I got when I missed thinning one

[bigben]

Kristen that is indecent!

[Comfortably Numb]

April.

A pinch every 8".

Thin to one when big enough.

Wait for frost.

Eat.

Simples.

Pretty much the same for me. Sowed on the 23rd and 27th April last year. Covered with fleece, and had virtually 100% germination. Still got over 30 left in the ground now 

[savbo]

I did this last year and most of my parsnips are horribly malformed, if rather amusing

[JayG]

I did this last year and most of my parsnips are horribly malformed, if rather amusing

What, like this one?

Think it might have been over-watering; it appears to be desperate for the loo!