Parsnip seeds
A few weeks ago we planted our first seeds indoors under grow lights. Most of them are up and thriving, although a few of the peppers may need to be replanted if they don’t sprout in the next several days.
The garden is officially underway for 2024 since we have now direct sown a few things outside.
We planted carrots, parsnips, lettuce, radishes, and a few onions in the front garden area.
I was hoping to sow seeds in the backyard in some of our grow bags, but unfortunately the soil in them was still frozen. The sun doesn’t shine much in the back of the house this time of the year.
I’ve never been able to grow parsnips. I think their seeds are pretty and they remind me of pumpkins (see photo above). Truthfully I’ve only tried a couple of times and I’m sure I didn’t plant them in the best manner.
After my carrot success of the last two years I thought I would try growing parsnips again.
I tried to grow carrots for many years with not much luck. A couple of years ago I heard someone say they had better germination for carrots when they planted them in early spring.
After learning of their experience I planted my carrot seeds in February and grew carrots for the first time ever! I followed the same practice last year and grew carrots again. I’m hoping the trend continues this year with carrots and parsnips.
Granny says one of her aunts made parsnip bread when she was a girl and everyone really enjoyed it. I had never even tasted parsnips until Chatter learned how to make parsnip stew in a cooking class she took. Her and Chitter are just crazy about parsnips. You can find the recipe here.
Many years ago I visited with Hubert Kirkland who was raised here in Cherokee County. He told me his mother always grew parsnips and that because of that he grew them too.
Last night’s video: Quick Supper: Hamburger & Beans, Roasted Taters, and Slaw.
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Parsnips! One of my favorites! We grew up eating them with New England boiled dinners, corned beef, cabbage, beets, onions, carrots and parsnips. Even as a small child I loved all these veggies.
Tipper, This is what my wife sent to our families and many friends just a few minutes ago. I will send you the full story when we get time and strength to put it together.
FYI: Jackie was allowed to come home this afternoon. There is more to the story but we will have to be better rested. A letter will come soon. Please continue praying – his liver has started to work again, the pancreatitis is clearing – slowly and two stones and the removal of his gallbladder has been completed. Novella.
Please send me your email address again. I had it on the gardner-webb email and can’t get into it.
Jackie-This is the email: blindpigandtheacorn@gmail.com I hope you are okay. Please let me know and I will be praying!!
Hi Tipper,
We’re 1000,120 miles north of Brasstown, with snow covering our frozen dirt, so we won’t be sowing anything until at least the middle of April. After watching your videos since last July and seeing your beautiful gardens, I’m very excited about my own gardens this year! I can’t begin to tell you how much I enjoy you and your whole family, and how I love reading all the personal comments from all your wonderful fans from around the globe. I’m beginning to feel like I know some of them. It seems like we all love you and wish we could actually meet you someday! Who knows?……..maybe some of us will!
Blessings, J.
P.S. This northern Yankee has fallen in love with all things Appalachian!!
I love mashed carrot and parsnip, with a little butter and salt and pepper.
Goes really well with sausages and peas
Tipper,
Glad your planting season is under! I live in the Midwest and unable to plant outdoors. I will start planting seeds indoors!
Praying for Granny and all of you.Take care and may God bless you. Hilary H
I do not think I have ever eaten parsnips but parsnip stew sounds good; I will have to look at that recipe.
All we have done is thought about the garden and that’s all. We can’t wait. We are definitely gonna have to get more top soil. we don’t have enough since we tore the beds down. Gonna have to fix all them to. I know we’re going to be behind this yr.
To Randy, Happy (Belated) Birthday yesterday. Psalm 118:24, This is the day the LORD hath made, let us rejoice and be glad in it!
parsnips are great, I love them in stews and really anywhere you would use carrots roasted vegetables, etc. have not tried them raw though so don’t vouch for that
So exciting!!! Blessings on your garden !!! & love to you all !!!
Good morning Tipper, parsnips are so good. My grandmommie fried them with tators (like tators and onions). Chunk them up just like the tators and fry them together. Fix a pone of cornbread and sour kraut. Fry some streaked meat too. You’ll be glad ya did!!!
You doing so well on your garden. Can’t wait to see the progress!
Many blessings. Still keeping ya’ll in prayer.
This is for Randy:
I believe yesterday was your birthday. I meant to wish you Happy Birthday but I forgot 🙁 Anyway I hope you had a great day and I’m sure all the other commenters on here hope the same for you as well. Take care!
Oh I didn’t know! Happy Birthday Tipper!! I hope it was all you could wish for!!
Lisa-it was Randy’s birthday 🙂 Mine isn’t till August but thank you for the kind words!!
Thank you, I don’t mind you being a day late at all. Slow as I move I’m probably running a day behind anyway. I cashed in my 3 score and 10 yesterday. Thank you again and anyone else that may have commented.
Tipper, your garden is way ahead of mine. The only planting I’ve done was in my aqua garden, black-seeded simpson lettuce made some fine winter eating. My second planting included two cherry tomato plants that just popped through the tubes. Mom always planted her lettuce bed on Valentine’s Day and the frigid weather we had this year wouldn’t have stopped her. The only time I have ever bought parsnips at the store was for a stew recipe that I wouldn’t say I liked so I never tried to grow any.
We planted sugar snap peas and radishes on Monday and will plant carrots before the end of the week. I’m getting supplies together (Solo cups, soil, etc) to start some seeds indoors but I have only tried once before & had no luck. Fingers crossed for this time.
I enjoyed your easy supper; I have made that for 50 years here in east central Indiana.
I always enjoy all of your videos. Your family reminds me of my own. Thank you.
God bless you and yours.
I enjoy parsnips roasted, but I don’t buy them very often. I need to utilize them more in my meal planning. I have never tried them in any type of soup or stew, but I bet they would be great!
I’m with you all except no parsnips and I planted Yukon Gold potatoes yesterday morning. All of what I’ve planted is outside. It is early but I know temperatures will rocket up probably as early as April and certainly in May. Good luck with the 2024 garden. Let us know please when you have discovered the secrets of growing parsnips. I tried twice and didn’t get a single plant.
That supper looks delicious & satisfying. I’ve never heard of adding baked beans to hamburger, but what a great idea! I think I’d put the slaw on top of the meat & beans 🙂
My mom always made a simple slaw of chopped cabbage, vinegar, salt & pepper (lots of pepper!)….she and I are the vinegar fiends in our family:)
Oh, I wish you good luck with the parsnips! I just LOVE parsnips, steamed and served with butter and salt, but they are always so expensive in the grocery store here, and always seem a little past their best. I very rarely buy them. Planted seed last year, but with all the rain I think the seed rotted. Maybe I’ll follow your example and try again this year.
Daddy grew parsnips but I don’t remember ever eating them. A couple of months ago you mentioned them on a blog or a video and I determined to try some. A few days afterward I spotted them at the grocery store and purchased three. I brought them home, put them in the refrigerator and promptly forgot about them. I just checked them and them seem to be fine. Maybe I’ll try them for supper if I don’t forget again!
I am approaching 74 years of age so now I have a good excuse for the forgetfulness that has plagued me for most of my life. It’s not my intellect, it’s my age! Let’s see what else I can get away with.
Think about the miracle of a seed. Nobody can make one and make it sprout. People can clone a sheep and make all sorts of things in a lab, from edible meat to starter babies ready for transplanting (using natural ingredients, of course) but they can’t make a seed that contains life. That feat is far above our pay grade.
I’ve never had luck with parsnips either, but they need a lot of time to even germinate. My mother had success with them one single time when I was about 10 years old. I remember they were sweet and good. However, my mother may have sweetened them herself, because she did that with turnips and other vegetables. Anyhow, I planted some a few days ago here in Missouri. I’ve also planted lettuce, of course, and spinach. I have a few spinach plants in my garden that I planted in September. They are still there, green and healthy, having even survived a week of zero temperatures. I grab a leaf to eat every time I’m out there. It’s the best raw spinach I’ve ever tasted, a little sweet even. So don’t ever worry about planting it too late or too early. The only thing it doesn’t like is hot weather.
Tipper, let me congratulate you for OFFICIALLY beginning the Appalachian spring planting!!! As you’re about 150 miles south of here (maybe more) I wish you a hearty harvest of carrots and parsnips! I might venture to plant carrots in March cause mine “dindu nufn” last year. Lol I think those parsnip seeds look like tomato seed with a flax seed wedged in each middle. Lol I’m planning to double my garden space this year. Tipper, you and the hippie from Baker Creek Seeds on Tik Tom are my inspiration! You gotta see and hear that guy! He’s a super excited hippie who cracks me up with I kid you not- 4 feet long Indian cucumbers, Chicago figs in winter and miles of plants literally for seed from around the world right in Boot Hill Missouri country. Please check him out and you will laugh and really love the guy!!!! He sang “Figgy pudding” as he had a mortar and pestle crushing fig for his wife a snack! He said listen to the beat and rhythm of my work! Totally cool and entertaining he is! Again, beautiful lady friend, May the Lord bless your garden bountifully this year! Those little wonderful grandsons of yours should be trying “granny’s” mashed green beans for the first time THIS time next year!!! What a beautiful and exciting year ahead for you, dear! SEEDS GROWING IS LITERALLY ALL AROUND YOU RIGHT NOW!!! God watch over granny and I command the spirit of infirmity to flee by road to wander in a dry arid desert-not there! He has no right to her whatsoever or her precious sealed for Jesus holy soul!!! Amen!
a friend of mine made parsnip pie and it was really good. I can’t remember if she gave me the recipe or not.
Congratulations! I’m excited for you that you’ve done the first planting of the season. I know you’ve been looking forward to it! Happy gardening!!!
How exciting for you to have planted seeds in your garden already! Our garden still has some snow hanging around here and there. Today is the day we have our three youngest grand babies all day. I found a couple of those little “greenhouses” at Dollar Tree and if we can get some loose dirt from the woods or the garden this afternoon, we are gonna plant something. I haven’t decided if it will be flower seeds or veggie seeds. I think it doesn’t matter. Digging in the garden or woods in search of good soil and planting will be fun. It’s supposed to be 53 this afternoon, so hopefully things will thaw out a little. Now if I can just find a good sunny spot to sit their little greenhouses, we can watch nature take it’s course. Of course they will have to be inside for a while yet. It’s so fun to garden with children. Last year, our 5-year old grandchild helped Pap plant onions. She was so proud of herself as we checked on their growth each day she was here. I think maybe they will all grow up to be gardeners. I love Winter, but I am sure getting in the mood for Spring!
I just love parsnips. Brown them up with carrots and potatoes and put them in stew or pot roast. So so good! I hope they grow for you!
I can’t remember if I’ve ever had parsnips or not. My mom grew all kinds of vegetables, but I don’t remember if she grew parsnips or not. I’ll have to check with my sisters to see if they remember eating parsnips or not.
I hope yours does well this year!
You always inspire me to do something different and yet comforting. I tried using parsnips in making my batch of veggie broth and when it was done I tried a bite of parsnips…nope, not a good taste that way. I will have to send an email and ask you to forward Chitter or Chatter, either one, that can give me a recipe that they like. Thanks for all your videos as your ‘Blind’ email is the one I look forward to every morning. Big hugs and prayers for Granny and you guys.
Chatter’s videos re-reminded me of parsnips! I’d love to plant some, I’m not sure if soon or in the fall is better where I live, but I’ll have to investigate. I’ve always liked them roasted in the oven, especially with a bit of brown sugar. So glad your planting season is underway!