How to grow parsnip

Pastinaca sativa · Apiaceae · Vegetable

Parsnip is a cool-season vegetable in the Apiaceae family, almost always sown straight into the ground where it will grow. It wants full sun, though it tolerates a little afternoon shade in hot regions and steady, even moisture. From sowing to first pick is about 100–130 days. It is one of the toughest crops here, standing through hard frost and often improving for it.

Grower’s note: Buy fresh seed every year - parsnip seed is nearly dead by its second birthday. Slow to germinate; keep the row damp for a month. Sown in spring, harvested from fall through winter; frost turns it sweet and it stores in the ground.

Sowing

Sow about 0.5″ deep, into soil between 45–75°F — germination is quickest near 65°F. It is slow and often erratic to germinate (14–28 days). It does not transplant well, so sow it in its final position rather than starting it in pots.

Spacing & layout

Give each plant about 4″ along the row with roughly 18″ between rows. On a square-foot grid that is 9 per square foot. Allow at least 18″ of loose, workable soil for the roots. It grows well in containers at least 16″ deep.

Fitting it to your season

As a cool-season crop, parsnip does its best growing in the mild weather of spring and fall and tends to bolt or turn bitter in summer heat.

Quick facts

When to plant parsnip

Companions

Common problems

Pests: carrot rust fly, aphids.

Diseases & disorders: parsnip canker, leaf spot.

Same family (Apiaceae)

Rotate these so they don’t follow each other in the same bed year to year.

Figures are typical home-garden ranges from Cooperative Extension planting guides, cross-checked against multiple state sources. Your variety and conditions will vary.