[green jack]

hi all, a couple of days ago i put some toms, carrots and parsnips in trays in the conservatory at home to try and get them going but yesterday while out shooting a pal who is on the same site as myself said that maybe i put the parsnips in a bit early, i do trust his judgement by the way but just thought i'd see some different oppinions,
thanks
jack

[brewerboy]

hi all, a couple of days ago i put some toms, carrots and parsnips in trays in the conservatory at home to try and get them going but yesterday while out shooting a pal who is on the same site as myself said that maybe i put the parsnips in a bit early, i do trust his judgement by the way but just thought i'd see some different oppinions,
thanks
jack

Parsnips are notoriously difficult and unpredictable to germinate so I place them between blotting paper, or kitchen roll, on a tray above the radiator until they sprout. When big enough to handle, i transplant them into modules, then plant into out when about 2 inches tall. Works every tim

[sunshineband]

I have found that no matter how careful I am, transplanting parsnips leads to deformed and twisty roots 

I sow mine a bit later than sometimes recommended ie towards the end of April. I warm up the soil by covering it with black plastic for two weeks first, water the drill well before sowing and have no problems with germination

Last week we ate the last of the crop sown like this in April 2012. Used the same method now for a couple of years and

                                                                    it werks fer me 

[green jack]

thanks, the conservatory is heated and the parsnips are the strip/tape type 

[sunshineband]

thanks, the conservatory is heated and the parsnips are the strip/tape type 

Once they germinate and the tap root starts to grow, it will deform itself if it meets any resistance

Planting out the seedlings is, in the parsnip world, resistance 

[Growster...]

Sunshiners is absolutely right!

I do sow mine in paper pots, and make sure I inspect them every day for seed leaves, because by then, they'll be having roots near the bottom of the pot and will need to be planted out PDQ!

Last year (this year's cropping too) we had about 75% perfectly straight, and a few squonky ones, which actually are pretty good as they roast as thin plants and taste pretty damn good!

[Wiltshire Worms]

WHY WERE YOU OUT SHOOTING YOUR PAL?

[sunshineband]

WHY WERE YOU OUT SHOOTING YOUR PAL?

 

[Salmo]

I always sow directly in the ground. I shall probably do so in the next week if it continues dry and the temperature rises a little.

Seed is cheap and does not keep from year to year. Water the bottom of the drill if it is dry. Plant 4/5 seeds together at 4inch starions. Tamp down the soil with the back of a rake to ensure good contact with the soil.  Thin out to 1 per station when they have the first true leaves.

They can take some time to emerge so I usually sow radishes between the stations as they emerge quickly and mark where the row is. Pull the radishes as they swell. Bonus crop and usually the best radishes of the year.

[JayG]

10 years ago: sowed in early March in drills as the packet suggests, and if any did eventually germinate it took at least 2 months and it was hard to tell them apart from the weeds.

8 years ago: sowed in late April in drills and got better germination (4 weeks) but still had problems with competing weeds.

6 years ago: tried sowing radishes in late April in drills along with the parsnips - it's s*ds law that the most vigorous radishes grew alongside the parsnips which therefore got disturbed when pulling the radishes.

4 years ago: sowed in "stations" as Salmo (and DD) do - still get weeds but it's quite easy to tell the difference because the parsnips are at 4" intervals whereas the weeds are random!

2 years ago: as 4 years ago but dug each planting hole out with a trowel, sieved stones out and replaced before station sowing. Sowing radishes between the stations is a possibility but it's just too much faff for me - a couple of sticks mark the rows.

Run out of new ideas now, but I think I may have just about cracked it! 

[Growster...]

Although I'm sowing parsnips in paper pots again, I think that this year will prove a problem for germination anywhere - even in a greenhouse.

I'm thinking that this year as we're so late, that parsnips will all be smaller, as we've lost a month already!

[Totty]

Had trouble with forking until last few years. I always germinate in loo rolls. It's the easiest way to provide the right conditions as I just keep them in the cold greenhouse, when each tube has a seedling, I'll drive a metal bar down a few foot and fill with something stone and lump free then plant the loo roll flush with the soil.
A bit of a hassle I know but I don't grow hundreds.
Trying some in a very deep greenhouse border this year though....

Totty