Two Cool Weather Vegetables To Try –- Turnips and Rutabagas

by Pat Dickey, Fairfax Master Gardener

turnips

Turnips

Turnips (Brassica rapa) and rutabagas (Brassica napus) are two root vegetables that many of us may have never eaten. They are relatively easy to grow, and surprisingly, both are packed with many vitamins and other nutrients. They have edible leaves and roots. Turnips have a crisp white flesh with a slight peppery taste. Rutabagas are sweeter and less strongly flavored, especially when cooked. They are slightly larger and more elongated than turnips, with yellow colored flesh. Turnip greens have a spicy mustard-like flavor.

According to the University of Wisconsin, turnips have been consumed by humans for 3,500 to 6,000 years. They were likely discovered near the Hindu Kush mountains, near present day Afghanistan. They eventually would be bred to give us broccoli, bok choy and mizuna (Japanese mustard greens). Rutabagas are hybrids of wild cabbage and turnips. They were first developed in Sweden and are often called Swedish turnips.

Turnips and rutabagas like a sunny location in the garden with well-worked soil that is moist but not waterlogged. Their soil should have a pH of 5.5 to 7. Add lime if a soil test recommends it. Both grow best at 60 to 65 degrees Fahrenheit (15 to 18º C). Do not plant either of these vegetables where brassicas (bok choy, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, cabbage, collard greens or kale) have been planted in the last three or four years.

In Zone 7a, turnips are planted between March 10 and May 1 for a spring crop and August 20 and September 20 for a fall crop. In Zone 7b, plant turnip seeds from March 1 to April 10 for a spring harvest and from August 20 to September 20 for a fall harvest.

rutabagas

Rutabagas

It is not recommended to plant rutabagas in the spring because they need a longer season to produce a root crop in their first year. If there are early, warm days in the spring, their taste is not as sweet. They need 80 to 100 days from planting to harvest. Count approximately 90 days back from your first fall frost date to determine when to plant them. Sow them in August in both Zones 7a and 7b for a fall/winter crop. They will store longer than turnips and can also be waxed to prevent the skins from shriveling.

You will discover that turnips and rutabagas are biennials, since they require two years to complete their life cycles. They are usually grown as annuals and harvested after the first year. However, they both need a cold period to begin their reproductive phase throughout the winter. In the second year, the plants use energy to grow tall stalks, produce yellow flowers and set seeds.

Tilling and loosening the soil will allow for the best root size and formation. Both turnip and rutabaga seeds are very small. Plant them 1/4 to 1/2 inch deep (6 to 12 mm) and 3 to 5 inches apart (7 to 10 cm) in the row. They can also be broadcast and lightly raked in. There is no need to fertilize them if you add compost throughout the season. You can thin the seedlings and use them in salads. They will become misshapen if they grow too close together. Keep weeds under control around seedlings, or they will become entwined around the roots.

These root vegetables need frequent light watering for good germination and growth. If the soil becomes crusty, the seedlings will not emerge. Turnip roots will split after a heavy rain follows a dry period. A soaker hose or drip irrigation is best for them. Harvest the turnips when they are small, 2 to 3 inches (5 to 7 cm) and when the rutabagas are 3 to 5 inches (7 to 10 cm). They will become pithy if overmature. Dig them before the ground freezes. Heavy straw mulch will extend your harvest through early winter.

Turnips club root

Club root in turnips

Turnips and rutabagas have two possible problems that you should be aware of. Club root is a soil-borne disease and is the reason for the crop rotation with brassicas. The roots swell into large club-like galls, leading to stunted growth. Cabbage root maggots are hump-backed gray-brown flies that are very difficult to distinguish. Maggots overwinter as small brown pupae in the soil near the roots of the fall brassica crops, where larvae feed. Adults emerge in the spring and search for host plants. A late summer flight may damage fall root crops.

Turnip cultivars are ‘Purple Top White Globe,’ ‘Amber Globe,’ ‘Tokyo Market,’ ‘White Egg,’ and ‘Seven Top,’ grown for greens. Rutabaga cultivars are ‘American Purple Top Yellow,’ ‘Gilfeather Turnip’ and ‘Nadmorska.’

Why not give these two root vegetables a try?

Recipes

References