Parsnip
Pastinaca sativa
Sweet root vegetable that improves in flavor after frost. Needs deep, stone-free soil and patience, as germination is slow.
Overview
Companion Planting
Radish
Onion
Carrot
CeleryToxicity
Foliage and sap contain furanocoumarins (psoralen, xanthotoxin, bergapten) that cause phototoxic burns (phytophotodermatitis) when skin contact is followed by UV exposure; the cultivated root itself is safe to eat.
Planting Tips
1 cm of water per m² equals 10 liters. Use the Watering Calculator for exact amounts.
Care Tip: Thin seedlings to 10-15 cm apart, mulch to retain moisture and suppress weeds, and remove any stones or debris that could deform the roots.
Common Pests
Carrot Rust Fly (Psila rosae)
Symptoms: Small pale-yellow maggots tunnel into roots, leaving rusty-brown scars and making roots susceptible to secondary rot.
Treatment: Remove and destroy affected roots; apply approved insecticide or beneficial nematodes to the soil around plants.
Prevention: Use fine-mesh insect netting (enviromesh) over crops, delay sowing until late May to miss the first egg-laying generation, and avoid thinning in still air as the scent attracts flies.
Aphids (Willow-Carrot Aphid and others)
Symptoms: Colonies on leaves and stems cause curling, stunted growth, honeydew deposits, and can transmit viruses such as parsnip yellow fleck.
Treatment: Spray with insecticidal soap or neem oil, targeting leaf undersides every 5-7 days until cleared.
Prevention: Encourage natural predators like ladybugs and lacewings, avoid excessive nitrogen fertilization, and remove weed hosts nearby.
Celery Leaf Miner (Euleia heraclei)
Symptoms: Larvae mine within leaves creating brown or white blister-like tunnels, reducing photosynthesis and weakening the plant.
Treatment: Pick off and destroy affected leaves promptly; use a systemic insecticide only for severe infestations.
Prevention: Cover crops with fine mesh from mid-spring, remove affected foliage early, and clear plant debris at season end.
Common Diseases
Parsnip Canker (Itersonilia perplexans)
Symptoms: Brown, black, or orange-brown lesions develop on the root shoulders, eventually turning soft and rotten; often enters through carrot-fly damage or cracks.
Treatment: No chemical cure; cut away affected tissue before use if damage is minor, and remove heavily infected roots from the garden.
Prevention: Grow canker-resistant cultivars (e.g. 'Javelin', 'Gladiator'), avoid root damage when weeding, earth up crowns in autumn, and rotate crops on a 3-year cycle.
Powdery Mildew (Erysiphe heraclei)
Symptoms: White powdery coating appears on upper leaf surfaces, causing yellowing, reduced vigour, and premature leaf drop.
Treatment: Apply sulfur-based or potassium-bicarbonate fungicide; remove and destroy badly affected foliage.
Prevention: Space plants adequately for air circulation, avoid overhead watering, and practise crop rotation to reduce spore carryover.
Downy Mildew (Plasmopara nivea)
Symptoms: Angular yellow spots on upper leaf surfaces with greyish-purple fuzzy growth on undersides; leaves may wilt and drop in wet conditions.
Treatment: Remove infected leaves promptly; apply copper-based fungicide in persistent damp weather.
Prevention: Ensure good drainage and air flow, avoid overcrowding, water at soil level rather than overhead, and remove crop debris after harvest.