Celeriac - removing the tap root

[Snoop Puss]

I've been looking at French seed suppliers and came across this advice on growing celeriac:

Start off in a cold frame in March to April, prick out and then plant out. When planting out, remove the tap root to ensure a bigger root bulb.

I'd never heard this about the tap root. Does anyone do this? Does it make a difference?

I might try an experiment next year to see if it works.

[bramble]

Snoop Puss, never heard of this and suppose its worth a try.
You could leave a few without removing the tap root and compare.
I have grown celeriac from seed for the past few years.
Looked after it really well, watered regularly, leaves and side shoots trimmed off and still get just a little root and a bundle of tangled roots.
I mwill be really interested to see how you do with yours.

[burnie]

I'm failing miserably growing this so far, this years are looking good so far, it is last chance saloon , if they fail this year there could be a lot seed available in a month or so lol.

[Snoop Puss]

I've never had much luck before either. I've tried starting in paper pots and sowing direct, removing leaves and not removing leaves. Never had anything worth cooking.

So, this will be my experiment for next year, then.

[Snoop Puss]

Right, I've looked up a few other French sites. Apart from the YouTube videos I've watched, they say pretty much the same: sow in February to April, prick out at two leaves and again at four. Plant them out late April and make sure you trim the lateral and the tap roots. Other advice that occasionally crops up is: as they grow, trim any lateral roots and remove the leaves.

[Rudi13]

I grow celeriac every year and always have good or very good results. I sow in February in a heated greenhouse, prick out and grow on and plant the young plants out in early May in soil which got some manure or compost. I cover the young plants with fleece until about mid-June and water very regularly, from June onwards they get some comfrey-fertilizer as well every 2 weeks. Later I remove the outer leaves on a regular basis. That is really all I do. I have never trimmed any roots etc. So it is not really necessary to grow good celeriac.
The important things are in my opinion: Sow early, keep the plants warm, water well, plant in good soil.

The picture shows the size of celeriac I normally get each year with above method.

[burnie]

Well I have leaves close to 3 feet tall and I can't see any swollen root yet

[Snoop Puss]

Those look good, Rudi. What variety are you growing?

Three-foot-tall leaves, burnie... Maybe they'll really get going with the roots in the autumn. Plenty of leaf matter to feed them. Let us know how they turn out. What variety are you growing, too?

[Rudi13]

Thank you. I am growing mostly Brilliant from Dobies of Devon, but a few times had Monarch as well, turned out just as well.

[Snoop Puss]

Thanks, Rudi. I'll check them out.

Edited to add: I've just spotted that I should have added welcome to the Vine. Lots of jolly folk here. Thanks for sharing your expertise.

[Bren In Pots]

I've tried a few times to grow celeriac and its always been a disappointment I ended up using the seeds for micro greens.

[Snoop Puss]

Maybe we should have a growing celeriac challenge next year...