One Alaskans greenhouse

[Alasgun]

Today i brought in the first of the 2nd crop Broccilli and it’s a beauty!
Then i lifted the Parsnips and while they are very uniform with only 2/3 distorted ones; they are quite small. I’m attributing this to a very late, cold Spring and more rain than i’ve ever seen. About the size of small carrots.
Still a thank you Lord day; even though this work was done in a drizzling rain.

 

[akroberts]

Today i brought in the first of the 2nd crop Broccilli and it’s a beauty!
Then i lifted the Parsnips and while they are very uniform with only 2/3 distorted ones; they are quite small. I’m attributing this to a very late, cold Spring and more rain than i’ve ever seen. About the size of small carrots.
Still a thank you Lord day; even though this work was done in a drizzling rain.

Can you tell me what the parsnips taste like? I want to plant some next year but don't want to have it be a waste of good garden space.

 

[Alasgun]

Well, the usual answer would be “it taste like Chicken”!

I believe Parsnips are more popular in G. Britain than here and there are numerous ways to cook them. We steam ours and eat them with a little butter. They have a somewhat sweet flavor that improves with frost. They say you can leave them in the ground thru the winter and pull them as you want. Not up here!!
As i pen this, im realizing how inadequate i am at describing how something taste simply because i have nothing to compare them to.
If you can find some locally or at a farmers market, you'd be able to see for yourself.
As you can see they are deep rooted and require fairly loose soil. Due to our short season; early on id start them inside and transplant them out. This was very time consuming and resulted in a LOT of distorted roots, which are hard to store. They take 2-3 weeks to germinate too so if you plant some, be patient.
A long germination period and a short season keep us from getting nice Parsnips. I’ve seen them at our specialty grocery that were as big around as my fist and 18 inches long.
You are in a great geographic area and i’d imagine you can grow nice ones, with a little effort.

 

[akroberts]

Well, the usual answer would be “it taste like Chicken”!

I believe Parsnips are more popular in G. Britain than here and there are numerous ways to cook them. We steam ours and eat them with a little butter. They have a somewhat sweet flavor that improves with frost. They say you can leave them in the ground thru the winter and pull them as you want. Not up here!!
As i pen this, im realizing how inadequate i am at describing how something taste simply because i have nothing to compare them to.
If you can find some locally or at a farmers market, you'd be able to see for yourself.
As you can see they are deep rooted and require fairly loose soil. Due to our short season; early on id start them inside and transplant them out. This was very time consuming and resulted in a LOT of distorted roots, which are hard to store. They take 2-3 weeks to germinate too so if you plant some, be patient.
A long germination period and a short season keep us from getting nice Parsnips. I’ve seen them at our specialty grocery that were as big around as my fist and 18 inches long.
You are in a great geographic area and i’d imagine you can grow nice ones, with a little effort.

Thank you for the info. I will try to find some

 

[digitS']

Yes, parsnips and carrots don't compare that well, except for texture, somewhat.

How about this? They are somewhat nutty and have caramel-like flavors.

Not for parsnips but I sometimes see a flavor description of "earthy." I don't really know what that means. I think that it might just mean that "my imagination ran to where they grow and were harvested." Personally, I may have willingly tasted dirt as a 3 or 4 year old but don't remember having done it since ... well, there was that time in early elementary school when someone, and it may have been me, was tasting the sand in the sandbox ...

 

[Alasgun]

A while back we had a bad wind that layed all my 2nd crop Broccoli flat! Not wanting to admit defeat or loose the plants; i gently stood them back up and supported them. They seemed to do just fine except that from then till now they’ve had that hot day wilted look all day everyday, even on days of full rain! Ironically all of them set fruit and are developing the heads just like they normally would. After taking that first head yesterday i pulled the plant; expecting the normal dinner plate size root ball. You can imagine my surprise to see just a few, scraggly roots on this stem! I’m sure the wind caused this damage but it blows me away to realize the tenacity for life these plants are showing. Thank you Lord for the Broccoli to eat And some food for thought! ‍

 

[Alasgun]

Today we lifted the Carrots and are very pleased with the yield, uniformity, size and quality. Since i use a dibble board to space and plant all this stuff i don't have more or less of anything but the total mass changes some depending on the year. The Bolero’s are still at the top of the leader board with us!
And another Thank you Lord; we will still be eating these next year when the new crop is ready, about this time!
I’m also very careful to pick any bad pieces out of the tops before bundling them for the rabbits. This year i put up 20 of them. This will provide green’s long after everything else is frozen and gone! One peculiarity i noted years ago, this stuff does not mold in bundles like this; it will wilt but that’s all and the Rabbits love it.

 

[heirloomgal]

Those carrots are just beautiful.