Turnip Talk

General Gardening
1

I gained a new appreciation for turnips this year after growing Asuka Akane. I like how versatile it is. I’ve been eating them raw in salads as a radish substitute, and cooked alongside carrots and other root vegetables in some of the sheet pan recipes I make. It’s been great either way. Anyone have any other turnip varieties they’d recommend or recipes to share?

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2

I’ve only ever grown purple top. I like that they overwinter and I am able to harvest from fall until spring.

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3

@SMC_zone6

My mom just adds some to soup or salad or to cut mashed potatoes a bit etc.

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4

Vertus Marteaux is an excellent turnip both for turnip greens and for the long turnips that can weigh over a pound. If you want to try something a bit different, make turnip fries by slicing and frying them then adding a bit of salt. There are other outstandingly good turnips, most of which are grown in other countries so are not readily available in the U.S. If you have only grown purple top, give some others a try!

https://www.theheirloomseedstore.com

Also, Sandhill Preservation has a few interesting turnips.

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5

‘Hakuri’ is a great salad turnip. its about as mild as kohlrabi, with a nice crunchy texture.

Its technically a rutabaga or turnip/rutabaga cross, but if you haven’t tried ‘gilfeather’ yet, you really should. Theyre huge and have the most excellent mild flavor. The texture is distinct too. They make the best kraut.

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6

Purple Top. I also like a turnip raw or in a salad.

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7

I grew up on purple tops but I much prefer Hakuri or Tokyo cross. Those white turnips just melt in your mouth.
I’m gong to check out that vertus marteaux turnip though.

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8

You’re missing half the fun if you don’t plant turnips in March or April…August and Sept are great of course.

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9

I plant them then too, but that’s not significant, because we expect them to be growing at that time. It’s a wonder to me when I go out and pull a turnip in January, after snow has melted, to see that the turnips are just fine.

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10

I have just one kohlrabi in the garden. Planted them in spring and the rabbits ate them all, and all the beans too. This one plant either survived, or more likely the seed didn’t germinate until later in the year.
Eager to try…been a couple decades since I grew kohlrabi.

11

Turnips are definitely underappreciated. I like white egg; good for greens and roots.

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