Parsnip vegetable, photo, my experience of growing a delicious root vegetable. What kind of vegetable is parsnip: photo, care features and beneficial properties

Botanical name- parsnip.

Family- umbrella.

Genus- parsnip.

Predecessors- potatoes, cabbage, onions, cucumber.

Lighting- sunny place.

The soil- peat, sandy loam, loamy.

Landing- seeds.

Origin of the parsnip plant and its cultivation

The biennial vegetable plant parsnip is cultivated throughout the world. The south of the Ural Mountains and the Altai Territory are considered its homeland. Parsnips have been known since the end of the 12th century. It appeared in Russia even earlier than. It is quite easy to grow. It is cultivated and developed in the same way as carrots. Very often they are even grown together. During the first year, a root crop is formed; in the second year, the plant blooms and produces seeds. The main difference is that its roots are larger than those of carrots. This should be taken into account when planting seeds - the distance between them should be slightly greater than between carrot seeds. Seeds are planted in spring. For better germination, they should be soaked in water for two days. When true leaves appear, the crops are thinned out. The plant is cold-resistant and moisture-loving. To prevent root crops from cracking, you should ensure regular watering of the plants. In the fall, before the onset of cold weather, the harvest is harvested. In the case when root crops are left in the ground for the winter, they should be hilled up and the leaves trimmed. In winter, these roots will need to be dug up before they begin to grow leaves again.

The plant should be protected from wet bacterial rot, septoria, white and gray rot and black spot.

Beneficial properties of parsnips

The beneficial properties of parsnips have been known since ancient times. Ancient Greek doctors used it as an analgesic and diuretic. It stimulated appetite, improved sexual activity, and helped with colic. The medicinal properties of parsnips are also recognized by modern doctors. This vegetable is widely used in folk medicine. A decoction of the roots helps with cough, and a water infusion is used as a tonic for the rehabilitation of seriously ill patients. The vegetable improves digestion and strengthens the walls of capillary vessels. Decoctions help in the treatment of baldness. In medicine, it is also used for the prevention and treatment of vascular and heart diseases.

The vegetable is used in dietary nutrition. For kidney stones and cholelithiasis. For nervous diseases, bronchitis, gout, pneumonia.

Vegetable juice is rich in silicon, potassium, phosphorus, chlorine, and sulfur. Its use helps strengthen brittle nails. Chlorine and phosphorus have a beneficial effect on the functioning of the lungs and bronchi. Therefore, the juice is recommended for patients with emphysema, pneumonia and tuberculosis. Potassium improves brain function, which is why the juice is successfully used in the treatment of various mental diseases.

The fruits are used to make medicines that successfully treat various skin diseases. In particular, vitiligo. The leaves are used in dermatology.

The vegetable contains mineral salts, sugar, proteins, essential and fatty oils, many vitamins and microelements. Pectic substances, starch, fiber. The seeds contain coumarins and glycosides.

The roots and leaves are widely used in cooking. They are dried, boiled, stewed, and prepared into salads. Used as a spice and added to confectionery. Like potatoes, this vegetable turns black when cut. To prevent this from happening, the cut pieces should be immersed in water. The optimal cooking time for small pieces is ten minutes. For big ones - twenty. Then they will remain soft and will not have time to soften to the state of puree. Cooked roots resemble a sweetish nut. They can be baked or steamed. The parsnip vegetable can be a good side dish for fish or meat. In some dishes it is used instead of beets - for example, in vinaigrette.

Parsnip flowers, leaves, stems and roots, photo of parsnip

Flowers parsnips are bisexual. Regular shape, small. Five-membered. Collected into complex umbrellas of 5 - 15 rays. There are usually no wrappers. The calyx is invisible. The corolla has a bright yellow color. They can be seen in the photo of parsnips. Flowers appear in the second half of summer. The fruits appear in September. They are a flat-compressed, rounded, elliptical, narrow-winged two-seeded plant. Bees collect high-quality light honey from the flowers of this plant.

Root parsnip is white. It has a sweet taste and a pleasant smell. The shape can be like that of a turnip - round, or like that of a carrot - cone-shaped. When cut, the color is yellowish-brown or yellowish-gray.

Stem up to one meter high. Erect, branched, rough, pubescent, sharply ribbed, grooved-faceted.

Leaves Parsnips are odd-pinnate and large in size with blunt edges. They are smooth on top and rough below. Of several pairs of ovate, lobed or coarsely serrate pubescent sessile leaves. The lower ones are short-petioled, and the upper leaves have a vaginal base. The leaves release essential oils on hot days. They are quite hot and can burn the skin. For this reason, it is better to care for the plant either early in the morning or late in the evening.

Basil - a wonderful universal seasoning for meat, fish, soups and fresh salads - is well known to all lovers of Caucasian and Italian cuisine. However, upon closer inspection, basil turns out to be a surprisingly versatile plant. For several seasons now, our family has been happily drinking aromatic basil tea. In a flowerbed with perennials and in flowerpots with annual flowers, the bright spicy plant also found a worthy place.

Thuja or juniper - which is better? This question can sometimes be heard in garden centers and markets where these plants are sold. It is, of course, not entirely correct and correct. Well, it’s the same as asking what is better - night or day? Coffee or tea? Woman or man? Surely, everyone will have their own answer and opinion. And yet... What if you approach with an open mind and try to compare juniper and thuja according to certain objective parameters? Let's try.

Brown Cream of Cauliflower Soup with Crispy Smoked Bacon is a delicious, smooth and creamy soup that both adults and children will love. If you are preparing a dish for the whole family, including kids, then do not add a lot of spices, although many modern children are not at all against spicy flavors. Bacon for serving can be prepared in different ways - fry in a frying pan, as in this recipe, or bake in the oven on parchment for about 20 minutes at 180 degrees.

For some, the time of sowing seeds for seedlings is a long-awaited and pleasant chore, for others it is a difficult necessity, and others wonder whether it would be easier to buy ready-made seedlings on the market or from friends? Be that as it may, even if you have given up growing vegetables, you will probably still have to sow something. These include flowers, perennials, conifers and much more. A seedling is still a seedling, no matter what you sow.

A lover of moist air and one of the most compact and rare orchids, pafinia is a real star for most orchid growers. Its flowering rarely lasts longer than a week, but it can be an unforgettable sight. You want to look at the unusual striped patterns on the huge flowers of the modest orchid endlessly. In indoor culture, pafinia is rightly ranked among the difficult-to-grow species. It became fashionable only with the spread of interior terrariums.

Pumpkin ginger marmalade is a warming sweet that can be made almost all year round. Pumpkin keeps for a long time - sometimes I manage to save a few vegetables until summer, fresh ginger and lemons are always available these days. Lemon can be replaced with lime or orange to create different flavors - variety in sweets is always nice. The finished marmalade is placed in dry jars; it can be stored at room temperature, but it is always healthier to prepare fresh products.

In 2014, the Japanese company Takii seed introduced petunia with a striking petal color - salmon-orange. Based on associations with the bright colors of the southern sunset sky, the unique hybrid was named African Sunset. Needless to say, this petunia instantly won the hearts of gardeners and was in great demand. But in the last two years, the curiosity has suddenly disappeared from store windows. Where did the orange petunia go?

Our family loves sweet peppers, so we plant them every year. Most of the varieties that I grow have been tested by me for more than one season; I cultivate them constantly. I also try to try something new every year. Pepper is a heat-loving plant and quite whimsical. Varietal and hybrid varieties of tasty and productive sweet peppers, which grow well for me, will be discussed further. I live in central Russia.

Meat cutlets with broccoli in bechamel sauce are a great idea for a quick lunch or dinner. Start by preparing the mince and at the same time heat 2 liters of water to a boil to blanch the broccoli. By the time the cutlets are fried, the cabbage will be ready. All that remains is to collect the ingredients in a frying pan, season with sauce and bring to readiness. Broccoli needs to be cooked quickly to preserve its bright green color, which, when cooked for a long time, either fades or the cabbage turns brown.

Home floriculture is not only a fascinating process, but also a very troublesome hobby. And, as a rule, the more experience a grower has, the healthier his plants look. What should those who do not have experience do, but want to have indoor plants at home - not elongated, stunted specimens, but beautiful and healthy ones that do not cause a feeling of guilt with their fading? For beginners and flower growers who do not have much experience, I will tell you about the main mistakes that are easy to avoid.

Lush cheesecakes in a frying pan with banana-apple confiture - another recipe for everyone’s favorite dish. To prevent cheesecakes from falling off after cooking, remember a few simple rules. Firstly, only fresh and dry cottage cheese, secondly, no baking powder or soda, thirdly, the thickness of the dough - you can sculpt from it, it is not tight, but pliable. A good dough with a small amount of flour can only be obtained from good cottage cheese, and here again see the “firstly” point.

It is no secret that many drugs from pharmacies have migrated to summer cottages. Their use, at first glance, seems so exotic that some summer residents are perceived with hostility. At the same time, potassium permanganate is a long-known antiseptic that is used in both medicine and veterinary medicine. In plant growing, a solution of potassium permanganate is used both as an antiseptic and as a fertilizer. In this article we will tell you how to properly use potassium permanganate in the garden.

Pork meat salad with mushrooms is a rural dish that can often be found on a holiday table in the village. This recipe is with champignons, but if you have the opportunity to use wild mushrooms, be sure to cook it this way, it will be even tastier. You don’t need to spend a lot of time preparing this salad - put the meat in a pan for 5 minutes and another 5 minutes for slicing. Everything else happens practically without the participation of the cook - the meat and mushrooms are boiled, cooled, and marinated.

Cucumbers grow well not only in a greenhouse or conservatory, but also in open ground. Typically, cucumbers are sown from mid-April to mid-May. Harvesting in this case is possible from mid-July to the end of summer. Cucumbers cannot tolerate frost. That's why we don't sow them too early. However, there is a way to bring their harvest closer and taste the juicy beauties from your garden at the beginning of summer or even in May. It is only necessary to take into account some of the features of this plant.

Parsnip - the emperor's favorite side dish

History and geography of the product

Parsnips belong to a very numerous and widespread family of umbrella plants on the planet. Cultivated forms of parsnip are valued and cultivated throughout the world, and in the wild the plant is found throughout southern Europe, Siberia and Central Asia, the Caucasus, the Balkans, and other areas of Europe.

It is interesting that scientists are unable to determine for certain who first appreciated the qualities of parsnips. On the one hand, the discovery of plant seeds at the excavations of an ancient human site in Switzerland gives reason to believe that these were the ancestors of modern Europeans who had barely learned to gather. On the other hand, a plant similar to parsnip was in the diet of the Peruvian Inca Indians in no less distant times. True, the South American roots of parsnips are now difficult to document. But the European part of the history of this interesting plant has many pages.

So that Emperor Tiberius could see his favorite parsnip on his table, the plant was specially cultivated in the German colonies very close to the Eternal City. The fact is that root vegetables grown in the north turned out to be much tastier. Of course, the parsnips of that era cannot be compared with modern varieties, because they produce incomparably large and sweet root vegetables. But the plant faithfully served the culinary specialists of Europe, and was one of the main vegetable crops until potatoes appeared here.

There is a mention of parsnips in Russian history, and it also concerns the monarch. In the royal Izmailovsky garden, laid out by order of Alexei Mikhailovich, according to the chronicles, parsnip crops occupied three times the area than the carrot beds.

Until the 19th century, the plant really played a serious role in the nutrition of Europeans. But with the advent of new food plants and previously unknown products from countries discovered by travelers, parsnips, like turnips and rutabaga, turned out to be undeservedly forgotten. The only exception was Great Britain. Here and today, parsnip root is a welcome, frequent guest on the table. It is served boiled with meat, jam and original alcoholic drinks are made from it.

Types and varieties

When grown wild, the parsnip plant is very similar to its closest relatives: parsley, celery and carrots. But breeding work has made it possible to make modern varieties more powerful, producing not only large root crops, but also healthy spicy herbs. Moreover, all parts of the plant are equally edible and can be eaten.

Round or elongated root parsnip has a white or light yellow color, which becomes noticeably lighter towards the core. Parsnip root can be sold fresh or dried. In the first case, the buyer should receive dense, succulent rhizomes, cleared of traces of soil, without signs of disease, mold or rot.

The same requirements apply to root crops intended for drying. Dry parsnips are marketed in the form of small pieces of a milky or yellowish tint. A high-quality product retains all the qualities of a fresh root, while its degree of drying and color must be uniform. The smell of mustiness or rancidity is unacceptable.

Young leaves parsnips are also valued by culinary experts. Feathery greens can be sold fresh or dried, similar to the rhizome.

Beneficial features

Parsnips have one of the richest sets of useful substances in the plant world. The root and greens contain vitamins B, PP and C, as well as carotene, valuable essential oils, minerals and carbohydrates.

In terms of the content of vitamins, natural sugars and essential oils, parsnip is ahead of its closest relatives, celery, parsley and even carrots. The carbohydrates contained in root vegetables are especially valuable. They are absorbed extremely quickly and completely, while fiber helps digestion and remove toxins from the body. In addition to carbohydrates, fiber and vitamins, root vegetables contain protein, potassium, silicon and phosphorus, essential oils and pectins.

Potassium helps remove excess fluid and activates blood circulation. When eating parsnips, the likelihood of spasms and cramps is reduced, exacerbations of kidney diseases are easier, and swelling is reduced.

Parsnip leaves are a rich source of essential oils and furocoumarins. On the one hand, this allows you to use spicy herbs as an expectorant and analgesic. On the other hand, you need to be careful with the plant, especially in the hot season. When parsnips are consumed, there is an increase in skin sensitivity to ultraviolet radiation, and the greens release so many volatile substances that they can cause burns.

Parsnip seeds are also used in medicine. This is the raw material for medicines that help with vascular and heart diseases, intestinal problems and diseases of the nervous system.

Taste qualities

Parsnip root has juicy, dense pulp with a pleasant sweetish taste, reminiscent of parsley or carrot root. Sometimes the root vegetable can taste bitter, but with heat treatment the taste disappears.

The spicy aroma of the rhizome is much weaker than that of fresh herbs, which, thanks to their rich taste, are also a welcome guest on the kitchen table.

Use in cooking

Modern chefs more often see parsnips not as a vegetable plant, but as a spicy-flavoring addition to salads and soups, vegetable side dishes and meat dishes. Indeed, a few slices of the root will transform any broth or stew beyond recognition.

But parsnips have much more possibilities and uses. It is not for nothing that parsnip root, baked or fried in boiling oil, is traditionally considered a decoration for Christmas dinner in England. This dish will not only please sophisticated gourmets, but also those who are used to counting every calorie.

Parsnips can successfully replace potatoes in vegetable stews. You can also make an independent dish from this vegetable - an unusually tender and aromatic puree with a characteristic slightly sweet taste. Fried or boiled root vegetables can be served with spicy capers, pine nuts and olives, and sweet red onions. Parsnips are irreplaceable as a side dish for fatty fish and veal.

Root vegetables tolerate any culinary processing well; together with herbs, they are also used in home canning. Marinated tomatoes, mushrooms and cucumbers with this additive acquire an appetizing spicy aroma, remaining strong and juicy.

When you can buy any seeds, even artichokes or asparagus, you really want to buy everything, sow it in the garden, and then try what it tastes like. One day, precisely for these reasons, I purchased a simple bag of seeds, on which it was written: Parsnip (there was not even the name of the variety). I knew, of course, that there was such a vegetable as parsnip, I saw a photo, but I had never sowed it or tasted it.

Photo of vegetable parsnip in the garden

Knowledge about this vegetable was minimal - it grows like carrots, only the root vegetable is white. I heard - I heard, I even read that parsnips were eaten in Rus' from time immemorial, when potatoes were not yet known: “Eat turnips, rutabaga, parsnips this way and that.” That's all I knew.

Growing parsnips from seeds

The seeds turned out to be quite large, and it was easy to sow them immediately at the required distance (15-20 cm), so as not to thin out later. True, they have wings, and the wind during sowing can blow away the seeds. To avoid empty spaces in the beds, choose calm, windless weather for sowing this vegetable.

How to grow parsnips from seeds? I sowed parsnips at the end of March immediately in open ground: the day was warm, partly cloudy, the soil was soft, the furrows were watered before sowing and mulched with compost.

Before planting root crops (carrots, beets, radishes), I always make very deep furrows, fill them halfway with loose compost, water them well, and only after that do I sow the seeds. It is impossible to do otherwise on our Kuban heavy black soil. Dense soil will not allow root crops to grow deeper.

The vegetable seedlings were initially lost among the friendly weeds. Moreover, I saw parsnip for the first time and could not identify it. It was not immediately possible to identify the seedlings without knowing them by sight. A month and a half after sowing, I still saw a straight line of seedlings among the weeds.

After hand weeding, loosening, and careful watering from a mug, the seedlings began to grow actively. And after a while they were no longer afraid of anyone. Either the spreading leaves interfered with the weeds, but all summer and until late autumn the parsnip bed decorated the garden with carved greenery, without requiring special care.

The most interesting thing for me began when harvesting vegetables. The root crops turned out to be larger than carrots, conical and went very deep into the soil. It was not worth even thinking about pulling them out of the ground by their green tail.

At first I tried to dig it up with a shovel, but when digging, the roots broke and I pulled out only the upper part into the light, and half of the fruit remained in the ground, which had to be removed by going 30 centimeters deep.

Then I took a pitchfork, but it didn’t make it any easier. The effect was, of course, better - there were more whole root vegetables, but how much sweat came off me - I need to tell you separately.

Parsnip root crop harvest

The next year I again sowed a bed of parsnips from the same bag. The day was warm, partly cloudy, without wind, the ground was damp, deeply dug up since the fall with compost from the onions.

Some online publications note the relative heat-loving nature of parsnips. Either cold April affected germination, or the expiration date of the seeds had expired, but exactly twenty seedlings sprouted in a fairly long bed. They took advantage of their freedom and took plenty of everything: light, air, humus, irrigation moisture.

Knowing that parsnips do not like heat, I planted them in partial shade. It was open to the sun only from morning until 12 noon. At least 5 months must pass from germination to ripening of this vegetable.

The underground pests did not touch the parsnips: maybe they considered the root inedible and moved away from it - I don’t know. Although, according to the evidence of other gardeners, mice quite often damage root crops.

Before harvesting, I had to cut off the leaves: there was no point in even thinking about pulling it by the mane - the tops of the root crops turned out to be 5-7 cm in diameter.

Someone might smile when they see my parsnips. Since somewhere I came across reviews about the size of the top of the root vegetable being comparable to the diameter of the saucer. But remembering my previous harvesting experience, I realized that I couldn’t dig up this crop so easily.

By the way, the parsnips from this year's harvest turned out to be much sweeter. Then I read that it turns out to be a late vegetable, regardless of the ripening period. It needs to be removed from the garden as late as possible so that it remains in the cold soil for 1.5-2 weeks. Then the root vegetables become more intensely sweet in taste.

I cleaned it at the end of October. And at the beginning of the month there was an unexpected frost. My peppers and tomatoes immediately disappeared - they froze. Nothing happened to the parsnips. But I think that the fact that I harvested the parsnips after freezing influenced its sweeter taste and aroma.

I read on one of the forums that it turns out that in Kuban, parsnips can be left in the ground for the winter. They say that in the spring it becomes even larger, and it’s even easier to dig it up. The taste of such an overwintered vegetable is much sweeter and juicier. Need to try!

And I also want to warn allergy sufferers! Thin, weed, and pick off parsnip leaves in the evening, after sunset, or when it is cloudy. The fact is that parsnip leaves release some essential oils in the sun and in the heat. If you have sensitive skin, you may get burned. Alas, tested from my own experience. By the way, the “Rescuer” cream helped me.

Parsnip - recipes on how to cook it

Raw parsnips are delicious - they are sweeter than carrots and spicy, like parsley. The pulp is white, very dense, with a high content of dry matter. When you fry it, it browns beautifully, you can’t tell it from potatoes in taste or appearance. You can't spoil the soup with parsnips either. It is suitable as a filling for pies and stuffed peppers. Parsnips make an excellent topping for vegetable marinades and white sauces. For the winter, it can be dried by mixing with other white roots - parsley and celery.

Here are some recipes I've tried.

Soup dressing

• 1 part parsnip,
• 1 part carrot,
• 1 part onion,
• 1 part red tomatoes
• 1 part salt.

Chop everything, mix well, let stand for 1-2 days until the salt is completely dissolved and packaged. You can store it in the refrigerator even without freezing.

Roasted parsnips

Peel the root, cut into cubes, add salt to taste, add onion rings and fry in vegetable oil for no longer than 8-10 minutes. Serve with sour cream.

Pasta sauce

Boil one carrot, 1 onion, 200 g parsnips until soft. It tastes better if you boil the vegetables in meat broth, but you can do without it. Remove from the broth and mash into a puree. Dilute with the same broth and pour over the cooked pasta.

Stuffed pepper

Grate the parsnips and carrots equally on a coarse grater, add salt, finely chopped onions, and leeks. Fry everything in sunflower oil. Combine with boiled rice, stir, fill red peppers with filling. Simmer for 10 minutes in sour apple juice or tomato.

Sauerkraut with parsnips

Chop white cabbage, grind with salt and add, as usual, carrots, and besides it, the same amount of chopped parsnips. Compact and ferment for ten days, piercing with a sharpened stick.

For 5 kg of cabbage - 300 g of carrots, 300 g of parsnips, 100 g of salt.

Vegetable stew in a frying pan

Coarsely chop the parsnips, carrots, and onions. Fry everything in vegetable oil, add salt, add chopped tomatoes, bring to readiness, season with grated garlic.

Assorted in jars

Boil green beans. Fry parsnips, carrots, diced in vegetable oil. Cut small onions and tomatoes in half, simmer in sour apple juice (instead of vinegar), adding salt to taste. Place all this in layers in steamed jars, adding a spoonful of grated garlic to each. Sterilize for 5 minutes, roll up with tin lids. In winter it goes well with boiled rice.

Parsnip- a plant of the Umbrella family. The fleshy root has a white skin and yellowish flesh. Parsnips have a sweet flavor that is reminiscent of parsley. The shape of this root can be different, for example, there are elongated specimens, as well as round ones.

It is believed that parsnips are distant relatives of parsley and carrots. It is currently impossible to determine the origin of this plant, but many believe that it first appeared in Northern Europe.

Beneficial features

Parsnip contains a large amount of essential oils, which has a positive effect on the production of enzymes and gastric juice. Another vegetable increases appetite and speed of food digestion. Since parsnips are low-calorie foods, it is simply impossible to gain weight from them. In addition, oils and biological substances promote better functioning of the endocrine glands, which means it has a positive effect on the production of certain hormones. Because of this, many believe that parsnip is a vegetable that helps maintain vitality and improve libido.

This spicy vegetable has diuretic effect and also he stimulates the dissolution of stones and does not allow secondary absorption of urine. As a result, we can conclude that the vegetable has a positive effect on the excretory system as a whole. Parsnip recommended for use in diseases of the respiratory system. Thanks to this, you can improve the condition of the lungs and bronchi during asthma and tuberculosis.

The combined effect of carotene and vitamin C on the body has a positive effect on the immune system., and it also reduces the risk of colds.

Use a beneficial root and for cosmetic purposes. Regular consumption of this vegetable will have a positive effect on the condition of hair and nails, and will also help get rid of dark circles under the eyes and acne.

Use in cooking

Since this vegetable is a spicy vegetable, it is widely used in other dishes to give them an unusual taste and aroma. It is added to marinades, canned food, salads, side dishes, drinks, first courses and even desserts.

In some countries, parsnips are a mandatory ingredient for vegetable broth. Thanks to this vegetable, it will have a denser texture and incredible flavor. In addition, the “white root” is baked and deep-fried. This dish is traditional for the British. You can make puree from boiled parsnips, which will be an ideal side dish for meat and fish dishes.

Parsnip benefits and treatment

Parsnips are widely used in folk medicine. A decoction of this vegetable should be taken when prostatitis, cystitis, as well as inflammation of the urinary and gallbladder. Many doctors advise patients after surgery and serious illnesses to add parsnips to their diet. Since it has antispasmodic, analgesic and restorative properties, in addition, the vegetable can stimulate hematopoiesis.

It is recommended to regularly consume parsnips for the restoration of bone and cartilage tissue. This may be due to the high phosphorus and sulfur content. Another excellent piece of traditional medicine advice that allows you to get rid of baldness and lichen is to lubricate the affected areas with a decoction of the root from time to time.

Harm of parsnips and contraindications

It is not recommended to use parsnips for chronic and advanced forms of urolithiasis, as it can provoke the passage of stones. Ultimately, this can lead to large specimens blocking the urinary canals. Children and the elderly should avoid eating parsnips. In addition, this root should not be eaten by those who have skin inflammations that are associated with increased sensitivity to the sun.