Well, interplanting the caulis worked pretty well because they grew quickly and were out of there quickly. Here is what the parsnip patch looks like where the cauliflowers were:
Thursday, August 1, 2013
An Interesting Experiment
In the spring when I plant my garden I find that I quickly run out of space for all the different vegetables I want to grow for the year, even though by many standards I have a pretty large garden. So this year when I realized I would have no room for my parsnips I decided to try interplanting them between a faster growing crop. I chose to plant between my early cauliflowers and the red cabbages.
Well, interplanting the caulis worked pretty well because they grew quickly and were out of there quickly. Here is what the parsnip patch looks like where the cauliflowers were:
They are healthy, large and thriving plants! And here is where the red cabbage were:
Of course, the cabbage were just pulled last week. The spindly parsnip plants had been blocked from the sun by the large cabbage leaves so they are a bit anemic. That is what the parsnips looked like on the cauliflower side a month ago when the caulis were pulled, so I have hopes that in a few weeks time the parsnips on the cabbage side will pick up. Time will tell. And ultimately, the result of the experiment will depend on whether I have nice large parsnip roots. I've never grown successful parsnips, so I had nothing to lose by trying this. If it works, I'll do it again, but not with slow-growing red cabbage. I'll stick to early cauliflowers or lettuce. I'll let you know in a few months how the experiment turned out!
Well, interplanting the caulis worked pretty well because they grew quickly and were out of there quickly. Here is what the parsnip patch looks like where the cauliflowers were:
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This is a good idea. I have planted one row of parsnips this year and it is my first time growing parsnips. They are so slow, but I can't wait to roast them up in the fall :)
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Welcome Bacon! Thanks for the comment. Time will tell if this was a good idea or not! The last time I planted parsnips voles got to them so I had to pull what they didn't get before there was any kind of good size to them. Hope I get some this time!
DeleteThat is a good idea to inter plant. I hope your parsnips turn out really well. Nancy
ReplyDeleteThank you Nancy! I'm always up for trying new ideas, at least once!
DeleteVery interesting. Most of my interplantings don't turn out right because I misjudge the size of the plants. It looks so good when I plant them but then later....well to crowded.
ReplyDeleteI agree Becky, I always think things will either grow slower or quicker than they actually do. What looks good in theory doesn't always work. In this case it was either try or no parsnips at all, so I'll be interested to see the final results.
DeleteParsnips are a regular feature of my veg plot - very characteristic of the Winter garden. I have never tried interplanting them with anything else, simply because they take such a long time to mature. I'll be interested to learn whether your spindly ones tuyrn out OK in the end.
ReplyDeleteI will certainly let the results be known when I have them! It is because they grow so slowly that they ended up interplanted. I was reluctant to give them a whole patch of their own when they take so long to mature and yet give questionable results here.
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