Parsnips when to plant

[jarve 10]

hi all, please can anyone give me some advice on when to sow my parsnip seeds, can you sow now or is it too early ?

[Hopman 46]

Sowing Parsnip Seed

The traditional time to sow parsnip seed is late winter but, unless the winter is mild, the soil is often frozen hard or too wet at this time. In most years you will probably have to wait until early spring before sowing. Although parsnips appreciate a long growing season, you can sow later, up to late spring if you have to, and still get a worthwhile crop. Ensure that the seed is fresh this year because parsnip seeds do not keep well.

 

Before sowing make sure the soil is well dug and free from stones to a spade's depth. Make a shallow drill in the soil about 2cm (�in) deep. Where you require more than one row, make the rows 30-45 cm (12-18 in) apart. Sow one seed every 5cm (2in).

 

Make sure you don't plant into freshly manured ground.

[low_carbon 10]

Try sowing smaller amounts every couple of weeks/month. Parsnip are notoriously difficult to get to germinate. Successional sowing means you're more likely to get some to eat rather than a boom or bust crop. If your soil is warmed by the sun at this time of year you could try now, my soil isn't too wet or cold but the weather could easily change again. Give it a go but keep some fresh seed back to sow again in a months time.

[mc55 10]

we've got the builders in at the moment, so I'll be pretty late starting anything - I'm planning to get going at the end of March with most of my seeds / planting. Having said that plants soon catch up once the days lengthen and the soil starts to warm up.