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Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
							P	P	P

(Best months for planting Parsnip in New Zealand - temperate regions)

P = Sow direct in garden where they are to grow.

• Harvest in 17-20 weeks. Best flavour if harvested after a frost..
• Sow in garden. Sow seed at a depth approximately three times the diameter of the seed.
• Best planted at soil temperatures between 6°C and 21°C.
• Space plants: 8-10cm

Best grown in deep sandy, loamy soil. After planting keep seeds moist - can cover with a wooden plank or mulch - until seeds germinate. Difficult to grow in summer as the seed dries out fast and won't germinate. Leave in the ground until after frost or at least a couple of weeks of really cold weather. The cold results in the starch in the roots being converted into sugars which give the parsnip its sweet taste. Use a spade to dig the parsnip out of the ground.

Germination rates of parsnip seed are not great so sow about 3 seeds per inch and at a depth of around half an inch. Germination may take up to 20 days. Thin seedlings down so they are about 8cm (4in) apart. If you are planting in rows then space the rows about 50cm (20in) apart.

Culinary hints - cooking and eating Parsnip

Peel and roast with vegetables or meat. The sweetish flavour of parsnips enhances most other vegetables.

Your comments and tips

11 Jun 10 Matty (Australia - cool/mountain climate)

Just harvested a great crop of parsnips, it helps to grow them in well drained soil, (keep the water up to them) and in raised garden beds are ideal.

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19 Mar 10 Peter G (Australia - temperate climate)

I now grow my seedlings in 3-4 inch pots.Take a stryropor brocolli box,cut off to make it about 4-5 inchs high. place in pots, sieve in and around to fill all spaces. mix ; mush compost, my own compost and garden soil in equal proportions. always keep moist and best covered until germination. plant out when roots poke through base of pot.result, good even rows, no gaps. when planting , add your choice of fertiliser in base of hole, cover a little and back fill with your best growing soil.It is worth the trouble Thanks Muddy knees - who also has his own method of transplanting.Have not tried it with parsnip , but I know it will work!

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29 Dec 09 Bill Marshall (Australia - cool/mountain climate)

I have difficulty getting parsnips to germinate - can you help me

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22 Nov 09 Kiwi Exile in Melbourne (Australia - temperate climate)

Parsnip Germination: I've not had any issues in two years, and have used packet seeds 2 years running with success (I always roll up the inner foil packet tightly after opening. I plant in a narrow drill & cover with seed raising mix. I keep surface damp AT ALL TIMES long after germination. (damp down night & morning, even more often if very hot.) - Thanks to my water tank. Easier to get started in spring and Autumn than in a hot dry summer. I find parsnips easy to grow than carrots.

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15 Aug 09 Sara (Australia - temperate climate)

The biggest problem I have with them is greenheads stealing the seeds before thay germinate. The damper the soil seems to be the less trouble with the ants

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13 Aug 09 Bobbi (Australia - temperate climate)

What are the nodules which I find on my parsnip roots? ... disease?? - I have just been scraping them off prior to using, but is there a treatment to stop them occuring?

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01 Aug 09 MuddyKnees (Australia - cool/mountain climate)

Parsnip germination?? Has vexed me for the last 2 years.. I have tried soaking them in water overnight but no apparent advantage.. I've taken to only use fresh seed and to plant half the pack at a time ( see other's comments). Pretty hopeless trying during hot/warm weather, for me the "shoulder" months like autumn & spring offer the best balance between moisture and warmth. I have a well structured seed raising tub just for these and carrots. I've read where you should not try transplanting either of these but I have no problems doing so.. Carrots are a little flukey with it as you get the odd misshapen root ( probably not transplanted neatly enough.. bent root.. happens..) but at least my carrot rows are complete and all at the same stage. As mentioned by others.. watch the soil texture and composition..carrots are the fusspots of root crops.. Parsnips on the other hand transplant famously. I've never lost one and the roots grow true.. It's frosty down here in Central Vic but the snips are bounding ahead.. Germination time during cold months anything from 3 -6 weeks.. you just have to keep watching and moving them when at the 3-4 leaf stage.. Hope this helps..

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21 Jul 09 venkat (Australia - temperate climate)

How many days will take for Parsnip seeds to germinate? Two weeks gone still no signs of germination. Cheers Venkat

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14 Jul 09 Arnie (New Zealand - temperate climate)

Pastinaca sativa

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15 Jun 09 (Australia - temperate climate)

what is the scientific name for a parsnip

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