When to plant turnips and how to grow them
Miscellaneous / / May 31, 2023
Detailed instructions will help you get a lot of large root crops.
When to plant turnips
The root crop can be sown three times per season. To obtain a summer harvest, turnips are planted in the spring, when the soil warms up to at least 10 degrees. In the south, this can be done during April, in the regions of the middle lane - from mid-April to mid-May, in the north - during May.
If you sow in the summer, you can provide yourself with root crops for winter storage. The optimal time for the north is the second half of June, for the middle zone - the first half of July, for the south - mid-July - early August.
Winter sowing allows you to get an early harvest at the beginning of the next season. Seeds are buried in the soil when stable frosts are established. In the north, this can happen as early as September, in the regions of the middle lane - in October, and in the south - in November.
How to choose turnip seeds for planting
Turnips have different ripening periods. Early-ripening varieties give a harvest in 40-60 days from the moment of germination, mid-ripening - in 60-90 days, and late-ripening varieties will take more than three months to set root crops.
The shape of different varieties of turnips is generally the same - rounded or slightly flattened. But the color of root crops can vary: white, cream, yellow, pink, purple or white and pink.
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White turnip. Frame: Superfoods You Need / YouTube
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Yellow turnip. Frame: Interest Videos / YouTube
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Lilac turnip. Frame: Superfoods You Need / YouTube
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Bicolor turnip. Frame: California Gardening / YouTube
Pay attention to the packaging with seeds. Usually, the manufacturer, among the main characteristics of turnips, indicates the average weight of root crops and their taste - they can be spicier or sweeter. Also, along with varieties, turnip hybrids are also found, which are indicated by the F1 marking in the name. These varieties are usually more resistant to diseases and pests and better tolerate adverse weather conditions.
How to prepare a bed for planting turnips
To grow root crops, find a well-lit place that is not shaded by buildings and plants during the day. Do not plant turnips in the beds where they grew last season radish, cabbage, radish, daikon, horseradish and watercress. These plants have common diseases and pests that can ruin future crops. For the same reason, you should not grow turnips in the same place two years in a row. Permissible predecessors on the site are tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, eggplants, cucumbers and legumes.
For 1 m² of beds, pour 1 tablespoon of potassium sulfate and ammonium nitrate, 2 tablespoons of superphosphate and 100 g of wood ash. Dig the soil to a depth of 20 cm, breaking up earthen clods, and then level its surface with a rake.
How to plant a turnip
The process will only take about 10 minutes.
Make grooves
Their depth should be no more than 2 cm (for sowing before winter - 4 cm), and the distance between rows - 20 cm. To get even and neat grooves, make them with a long plank or plank.
Pour the rows with water and wait until it is absorbed.
Sow a turnip
At the bottom of the grooves, put 2-3 seeds at a distance of 10 cm from each other.
Fill the grooves with seeds with soil, lightly compacting its surface with your palms. And then moisten abundantly with water, using a watering can with a diffuser nozzle so as not to wash out the soil.
Wait for shoots
Before the appearance of sprouts, it can take from several days to two weeks. If you sowed turnips for the winter, wait for seedlings only in the spring, when the snow melts and the soil thaws.
After the seeds hatch, carefully remove the weaker specimens. There should be one sprout in the row at a distance of at least 10 cm from each other. Also at this stage, generously sprinkle the seedlings with ashes or tobacco dust. Such a trick will save young plants from the cruciferous flea, which loves to feast on turnip tops.
How to grow a large turnip
Water the plant
The vegetable needs good and regular hydration, otherwise the roots will turn out hard and bitter. The frequency of watering depends on the climate and weather. On average, from spring to autumn, you need to do this 1-2 times a week to prevent the soil from drying out on garden bed. Of course, it is not necessary to moisten the soil during rains, but in drought, on the contrary, you will have to water turnips more often.
Approximately 5-10 liters of water will be needed per 1 m² of crops. Try to pour it between the rows, avoiding getting on the roots and leaves of plants. Perform the procedure early in the morning or late in the evening at sunset so as not to burn the tops.
Loosen and weed the beds
Try to prevent the formation of a crust on the surface of the soil. Periodically loosen the soil between the rows with a chopper with small teeth, retreating from the root crops 2–3 cm. This procedure will provide them with better access to oxygen. Also, do not forget to delete everything in time weedsso that they do not take away nutrients from the turnip.
Feed the turnip
This vegetable can do without fertilizers if you properly prepared the bed for sowing. But if the fertility of the soil is in doubt, the turnip will need only two top dressings.
- When the seedlings have their first true leaves, provide them with additional nitrogen. Dissolve 10 g of ammonium nitrate in 10 liters of water. Pour the resulting solution into the aisles in moist soil. This volume is enough for about 2 m² of beds.
- After another 2-3 weeks, spend the second top dressing. Dissolve 2 g of potassium sulfate, 2 g of urea and 6.5 g of superphosphate in 1 liter of water. Pour the soil between the rows with this mixture (it should be wet). 1 liter of the mixture is enough for 2 m² of beds.
Apply nutrient mixtures early in the morning or in the evening at sunset and make sure that the solution does not get on the tops and root crops. Drops of fertilizer under the influence of sunlight can burn the plant.
When to Harvest Turnips
Focus on the ripening time of the vegetable indicated on the package with seeds. However, when the root crop grows to 6 cm in diameter, it can already be pulled out of the ground and eaten.
How to collect turnips
Grasp the base of the tops with your hand and carefully remove the root crop from the ground.
Then, cut off the tops of each turnip, leaving a 1-2 cm stump. The long spine does not need to be removed.
Clean the root crops from the ground with your palms. Spread them on a flat surface in the shade in one layer and leave for a while until the vegetables dry out.
How to store turnips
Pour a 10 cm layer of sand into the boxes. Lay the root crops on top so that they do not touch each other. Send the containers to a cellar or other room with a temperature of 0 to 3 degrees. Under such conditions, turnips will be stored for up to several months.
You can also put vegetables in plastic bags and send them to the refrigerator. There they will stay fresh for a month.
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