No wonder parsnip is a swear word

[Brengirl]

Do I really have to wait 9 months to enjoy the fruits of my labour. Think I will stick with babies. Hopefully they last a lifetime

[Bren In Pots]

Hang in there Brengirl parsnips are well worth the wait.

[Brengirl]

Of course I will. The tops are about a foot high and one that has flopped over shows signs of thickening. Not big enough for roasting though

[leicestershirelass]

Hi - at least you've got tops on yours , so know they are growing ....

I'm still waiting to determine whether I've got the early stages of parsnips or weeds so any growing tips appreciated

[Nicos]

When in doubt...wait a while longer until you can recognise the leaves!
This may be of help

[leicestershirelass]

Thanks Nicos ... fingers crossed that there are some parsnips amongst the weeds !!

[ginger ninger]

My parsnip's are doing really well...for a change, normally they don't make an appearance at all .

[maytreefrannie]

The Parsnip:
Tricky germinating
Tricky growing
Long wait

Then

Delicious eating.

[RedThorn]

leicestershirelass, my parsnips last year took almost 10 weeks to germinate, but once they got going, there was no stopping them..oh and they were delish too

[Shadylane]

Last year I started them quite early, absolutely loads germinated and they were easy to grow after that. Just left them to it. This year started them later and they've not done so well. We have a few teeny seedlings randomly scattered about and an entire row of no shows. I think that was the row that I didn't cover with compost as I forgot to take some with me. Having said that there are a couple that quite obviously were ones I dropped as they're not in the row, probably had no compost on them probably not watered. They'll probably be the best ones

Next year I think I'll experiment with pre-chitted ones and maybe expose some to the cold (stratification ?) first as I don't think it's coincidence that the ones started last March, while taking ages, had better germination than the ones I sowed this April when it was warmer.

[Brengirl]

This year is my first attempt. I had no problem at all with germination in fact I must have dropped some seed in the bottom of the prop. and didn't notice them untill they popped their heads up from underneath. I scooped them up and tossed them outside. covered them a little with compost and much to my surprise they are growing well. A bit behind the first ones transplanted .....

[haza1981]

Hi - at least you've got tops on yours , so know they are growing ....

I'm still waiting to determine whether I've got the early stages of parsnips or weeds so any growing tips appreciated

I have the same problem. It just looks like a weed bed at the moment. Cant wait to see some parsnips. The annoying thing is that a plot next to me has been taken over by a guy who has not bothered since he got it and there are parsnips growing from the last person. They are about a foot high.

[Caro]

Mine are a no-show so far, sown outside on 3rd May. I've just read somewhere though that parsnip seeds do not last. I used last year's seeds, although I think the packet said they were still in date.

Should I a)wait b)buy new seeds and plant them or c)give up on p*****ps

[leicestershirelass]

Weeded my parsnip bed yesterday ... only 2 potential parsnips seemed to be there, although not convinced they were parsnips but weeds pretending to be parsnips ..........................

so pulled them out too ........... patience isn't one of my virtues

I've now got a weed-free bed ............... so any ideas what I could (successfully) grow in it would be appreciated.

[chris]

Salad stuff, Radish, peas, beetroot - all of them you can just bang in and let them do their stuff?