One of my favorite root crops is Parsnips. I leave them in the ground over winter, as it seems they are sweeter when you do this. I'm waiting for the ground to thaw so I can dig them. (It's 0 degrees here this morning so it will be a while). I like to slice them the long way and roast them in a covered dish with real butter and S & P. They have a very unique and distinctive flavor different from other root veggies. People either love them or hate them it seems.

crisper drawer comments
DH and I are looking around for a new fridge (ours is pushing 20 years old) and I'm enticed by the 4-drawer models because I never have enough room for fruits and vegetables. And DH likes to collect condiments. OK - I admit to having a jar of preserved lemons and different Asian sauces for cooking. During the summer, he'll have 3 or 4 bottles of different BBQ sauces.
Growing beets sounds tempting but I'm going to master carrots first this year.

I do want to remind seed savers that the crisper drawers are the MOST humid part of the fridge, not a drier part.

Vegetables, especially leafy ones, get limp when they dry out, and crisp when turgid and full full of water.

Unlike paper and seeds that get crisp when very dry and limp when humid.

Plus, the higher humidity keeps the green slime slimy!

Ric,
No slime in mine, but yes to the vegetables!
When we bought the fridge I mentioned hiding things in there and the girl said ''that's where we keep our lunchmeat and hot dogs.'' OK....NO processed foods in my fridge. Well, except for an OCCASIONAL ham and packet of bacon. It has to be a special occasion.

Tom,
I had store bought parsnips long ago and could leave them. I don't know if I'll ever try again.

Cindy,
Actually the over flow of condiments end up in the second crisper, lol! I guess you could call that processed food too. Asian here, plus the BBQ and pickle relishes.

Rick,
Mine has sliders for more or less humidity. Unless I spill something sticky on them they slide all over.
I'll bet, slime is full of nutrients....

Sally - I hide the "guilty" bacon in the freezer. And I forgot to add two bottles of wine for cooking (red and white).
I'm not sure about parsnips either. Same with rutabagas. I didn't grow up eating them so maybe an acquired taste?

I grew up with both and love them!
I do not always grow them, but now might do some this year.

RickCorey said:I do want to remind seed savers that the crisper drawers are the MOST humid part of the fridge, not a drier part.

Vegetables, especially leafy ones, get limp when they dry out, and crisp when turgid and full full of water.

Unlike paper and seeds that get crisp when very dry and limp when humid.

Plus, the higher humidity keeps the green slime slimy!

And be sure to cut the leaves off carrots etc. before storing!

I grew up with Rutabagas, but only started eating Parsnips as an adult. The difference in taste from store bought and those that have been in the ground all winter is incredible.

I need to try them again this year and leave them in the ground... last year they grew okay for me, but then DH was helping clean up the garden and dug the carrots, beets and parsnips before i could tell him to leave the parsnips alone (hopefully golf season will last longer and he won't be so antsy this year ). Then, my fault -- they were in a bucket in the garage and I never "got around" to taking care of them, and they got pretty limp, so the deer profited.

tveguy3 said:I grew up with Rutabagas, but only started eating Parsnips as an adult. The difference in taste from store bought and those that have been in the ground all winter is incredible.

I tried one year to grow Parsnips but I simply could not get the seeds to germinate. Nothing came up. And I planted the entire packet of seed.

They are finicky about germinating, but they do best if the seeds are really fresh. They don't seem to keep long.

I don't think I will try Parsips again and my seed by now is old. Not going to buy more seed. I do really want to plant turnips again but am not sure if I should try spring sowing. After all they get woody in the heat. I have always grown in the fall into winter and that had turned out well. Still I might try a few just to see how I do.

I have two types of really nice looking turnips from Seeds of Italy that I would love to grow.

I do some carrots every year...real easy to grow here as long as the soil is nice and loose. Carrots hate hard, compacted soil. Rocks can be an issue as well, if getting them to grow nice and straight is a concern.

I never grow carrots. They are so cheap in the supermarket and I really don't use many. I would much rather grow turnips and beets for my root veggies. I love beets and really like turnips also.

One old timer that I really like I have not been able to grow here is the oyster plant ( Salsify) Grow beets, carrots, rutabagas, turnips. Parsnips in my youth was the starvation root. I n the dead of winter when nothing else was available, they were pretty good, but I have not been hungry enough to eat them since.

LOL, Farmerdill -- you're not going to make much of a parsnip seed salesman!

I don't think that I have ever seen Salsify growing,
and I have never tried it.
Now, I will be looking for seeds.

Does Salsify taste like Oysters? If so count me out!

Cindy,
Laughing over the ''guilty'' bacon! I gave up wine. I'd have to have someone hide it from ME!
I like rutabaga. It might need a longer growing season than I have.

Tom,
And yes, my parsnip was a bitter store bought one. Leaving them in the ground isn't something I've done with carrots because I don't have a good mulch.

Sandy,
It happens to the best of us!

Farmerdill,
Nice looking root crops!

tveguy3 said:Does Salsify taste like Oysters? If so count me out!

I

I've never eaten an oyster (unless you want to count "oyster crackers") so I have no preconceived ideas about that!