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

botanical name- parsnips.

Family- umbrella.

Genus- parsnip.

Predecessors- potatoes, cabbage, onion, cucumber.

Lighting- a sunny place.

The soil- peaty, sandy, loamy.

Landing- seeds.

The origin of the parsnip plant and its cultivation

The biennial vegetable plant parsnip is cultivated all over the world. Its homeland is considered to be the south of the Ural Mountains and the Altai Territory. Parsnip has been known since the end of the 12th century. In Russia, he appeared even earlier than. Growing it is easy enough. 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 somewhat 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, regular watering of plants should be ensured. In autumn, before the onset of cold weather, they harvest. In the case when the root crops are left in the ground for the winter, they should be spudded and the leaves cut off. In winter, these root crops 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.

Useful properties of parsnips

Useful properties of parsnip were known in antiquity. Ancient Greek physicians used it as a pain reliever and diuretic. It stimulated appetite, improved sexual activity, helped with colic. The healing properties of parsnip are recognized by modern doctors. This vegetable is widely used in folk medicine. A decoction of the roots helps with coughing, and an aqueous infusion is used as a tonic in the rehabilitation of seriously ill patients. 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 diet food. With kidney stones and gallstone diseases. With nervous diseases, bronchitis, gout, pneumonia.

Vegetable juice is rich in silicon, potassium, phosphorus, chlorine, sulfur. Its use helps to strengthen brittle nails. Chlorine and phosphorus have a beneficial effect on the functioning of the lungs and bronchi. Therefore, juice is recommended to drink for patients with emphysema, pneumonia and tuberculosis. Potassium improves brain function, because of this, 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. Particularly vitiligo. The leaves are used in dermatology.

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

The roots and leaves are widely used in cooking. They are dried, boiled, stewed, salads are prepared from them. Used as a spice and added to confectionery. Like potatoes, this vegetable turns black when cut. To prevent this from happening, cut pieces should be lowered into water. The optimal cooking time for small pieces is ten minutes. For large - twenty. Then they will remain soft and will not have time to soften to a puree state. Cooked roots resemble a sweetish nut. They can be baked or steamed. 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, parsnip photo

Flowers parsnips are bisexual. The correct form, small. Five-membered. Collected in complex umbrellas of 5 - 15 rays. Wrappers are usually missing. The cup is invisible. The corolla is bright yellow. They can be seen in the photo of parsnips. Flowers appear in the second half of summer. Fruits appear in September. They are flat-compressed, round-elliptical, narrow-winged two-seeded. Bees from the flowers of this plant collect high quality light honey.

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

Stem up to one meter high. Upright, branched, rough, pubescent, sharp-ribbed, furrowed-faceted.

Leaves parsnips are odd-pinnate large in size with blunt edges. They are smooth on top and rough on the bottom. Of several pairs of ovate lobed or coarsely serrated pubescent sessile leaves. The lower ones are short-petiolate, and the upper leaves have a vaginal base. The leaves release essential oils on hot days. They are quite pungent and can burn the skin. For this reason, it is better to take care of 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 greens are surprisingly versatile. For several seasons now, our family has been drinking fragrant basil tea with pleasure. In a flower bed with perennials and in flowerpots with annual flowers, a bright spicy plant also found a worthy place.

Thuja or juniper - which is better? Such a question can sometimes be heard in garden centers and in the market where these plants are sold. He, of course, is not entirely correct and correct. Well, it's like asking which is better - night or day? Coffee or tea? Woman or man? Surely everyone will have their own answer and opinion. And yet ... But what if we approach without prejudice and try to compare juniper and thuja according to certain objective parameters? Let's try.

Red Cauliflower Cream Soup with Crispy Smoked Bacon is a delicious, tender and creamy soup that adults and children will love. If you are preparing a dish for the whole family, including toddlers, 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 pan, as in this recipe, or bake in the oven on parchment for about 20 minutes at a temperature of 180 degrees.

For some, the time of sowing seeds for seedlings is a long-awaited and pleasant chore, for some it is a difficult necessity, and someone thinks about whether it is not easier to buy ready-made seedlings on the market or from friends? Whatever it was, even if you refused to grow vegetables, for sure, you still have to sow something. These are flowers, and perennials, conifers and much more. A seedling is still a seedling, no matter what you plant.

A lover of humid 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 is an unforgettable sight. Unusual striped patterns on the huge flowers of a modest orchid want to be considered endlessly. In room culture, pafinia is rightly credited to the ranks of species that are difficult to grow. It became fashionable only with the spread of interior terrariums.

Pumpkin marmalade with ginger is a warming sweet that can be prepared almost all year round. Pumpkin has a long shelf life - sometimes I manage to save a few vegetables until summer, fresh ginger and lemons are always available these days. Lemon can be substituted for lime or orange for a variety of flavors - variety in sweets is always nice. Ready marmalade is laid out in dry jars, it can be stored at room temperature, but it is always more useful to prepare fresh products.

In 2014, the Japanese company Takii seed introduced a petunia with a striking salmon-orange petal color. By association with the bright colors of the southern sunset sky, the unique hybrid was named African Sunset (“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 shop windows. Where did the orange petunia go?

Our family loves sweet pepper, so we plant it every year. Most of the varieties that I grow have been tested by me for more than one season, I cultivate them all the time. And every year I try to try something new. Pepper is a heat-loving and rather whimsical plant. About varietal and hybrid varieties of tasty and productive sweet pepper, which grows well with me, and will be discussed further. I live in central Russia.

Meatballs with broccoli in bechamel sauce are a great idea for a quick lunch or dinner. Start by cooking the minced meat, while bringing 2 liters of water to a boil to blanch the broccoli. By the time the cutlets are fried, the cabbage will be ready. It remains to collect the products in the pan, season with sauce and bring to readiness. Broccoli needs to be cooked quickly to keep its bright green color, which either fades or turns brown when cooked for a long time.

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. And what about those who do not have experience, but want to have indoor plants at home - not stretched stunted specimens, but beautiful and healthy, not causing a feeling of guilt by their extinction? For beginners and flower growers who are not burdened with a long experience, I will tell you about the main mistakes that are easy to avoid.

Lush cheesecakes in a pan with banana-apple confiture is another recipe for everyone's favorite dish. So that cheesecakes do not fall off after cooking, remember a few simple rules. Firstly, only fresh and dry cottage cheese, secondly, no baking powder and soda, and thirdly, the density of the dough - you can sculpt from it, it is not tight, but pliable. A good dough with a small amount of flour will come out only from good cottage cheese, and here again, see the “firstly” item.

It is no secret that many drugs from pharmacies migrated to summer cottages. Their use, at first glance, seems so exotic that some summer residents are perceived almost with hostility. At the same time, potassium permanganate is a long-known antiseptic, which is used both in medicine and in veterinary medicine. In crop production, 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 and vegetable garden.

Pork meat salad with mushrooms is a rural dish that can often be found on the festive table in the village. This recipe is with champignons, but if it is possible to use forest mushrooms, then 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 saucepan for 5 minutes and another 5 minutes for slicing. Everything else happens almost without the participation of the cook - meat and mushrooms are boiled, cooled, marinated.

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

Pasternak - the emperor's favorite side dish

History and geography of the product

Pasternak belongs to a very numerous and widespread family of umbrella plants on the planet. Cultural forms of parsnip are valued and cultivated all over 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 fail 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 parsnip-like plant was in the diet of the Peruvian Inca Indians in no less distant times. True, the South American roots of parsnip 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 German colonies that were not very close to the Eternal City. The fact is that root crops 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 crops. But the plant faithfully served the chefs 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 applies to the monarch. In the royal Izmailovsky garden, laid out by order of Alexei Mikhailovich, the parsnip crops, according to the annals, occupied three times the area than the beds with carrots.

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 UK was the only exception. 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.

Species and varieties

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

Rounded 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, juicy rhizomes, cleared of traces of soil, without signs of disease, mold or decay.

The same requirements apply to root crops intended for drying. Dry parsnips enter the trade in the form of medium-sized pieces of a milky or yellowish hue. A quality product retains all the qualities of a fresh root, while its degree of drying and color should be uniform. The smell of mustiness or rancidity is unacceptable.

young leaves parsnips are also appreciated by culinary specialists. Cirrus greens can be sold fresh or, similar to the rhizome, dried.

Beneficial features

Parsnip has one of the richest sets of nutrients in the plant world. The root and greens contain vitamins B, PP and C, as well as carotene, valuable essential oils, minerals and carbohydrates.

According to the content of vitamins, natural sugars and essential oils, parsnips are ahead of their closest relatives, celery, parsley and even carrots. The carbohydrates contained in the root crop are especially valuable. They are absorbed extremely quickly and completely, while fiber helps digestion and the removal of toxins from the body. In addition to carbohydrates, fiber and vitamins, root crops contain protein, potassium, silicon and phosphorus, essential oils and pectins.

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

Parsnip leaves are the richest source of essential oils and furocoumarins. On the one hand, this allows you to use spicy greens as an expectorant and pain reliever. On the other hand, you need to be careful with the plant, especially in the hot season. When using parsnips, there is an increase in the sensitivity of the skin to ultraviolet light, and 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 a juicy firm flesh with a pleasant sweet taste, reminiscent of root parsley or carrots. Sometimes the root crop can be bitter, but the taste disappears during heat treatment.

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

Application in cooking

Modern culinary specialists 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 parsnip has much more possibilities and uses. It is not for nothing that parsnip root baked or fried in boiling oil is traditionally considered a decoration of a Christmas dinner in England. Such a dish will not only delight sophisticated gourmets, but also those who are used to counting every calorie.

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

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

When you can buy any seeds, up to an artichoke or asparagus, you really want to buy everything, sow it in the garden, and then try what it tastes like. Once, for these reasons, I bought a simple bag of seeds, on which it was written: Pasternak (there was not even a variety name). I knew, of course, that there is such a parsnip vegetable, I saw a photo, but I never sowed it, I didn’t taste it.

Photo of a parsnip vegetable in the garden

Knowledge about this vegetable was minimal - it grows like a carrot, only the root crop is white. To hear - I heard, even read that parsnips were eaten in Russia from time immemorial, when potatoes were not yet known: “Eat turnips, turnips, 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 right 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. So that there are no empty places in the beds, choose calm, calm 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, cloudy, the ground was soft, the furrows were watered before sowing and mulched with compost.

Before planting root crops (carrots, beets, radishes), I always make very deep grooves, fill them with half loose compost, spill them well, and only after that I sow the seeds. Otherwise, on our Kuban heavy black soil it is impossible. Dense earth will not allow root crops to grow deep.

The seedlings of the vegetable were initially lost among friendly weeds. Moreover, I saw parsnip for the first time and could not identify it. It was not immediately possible to identify seedlings, not knowing them "by sight". A month and a half after sowing, I still saw a straight line of seedlings among the weeds.

After manual weeding, loosening, and careful watering from a mug, the seedlings began to grow actively. And after a while, no one was afraid of them anymore. Whether the scattered leaves interfered with the weeds, but all summer and until late autumn, a bed of parsnips adorned the garden with carved greenery, without requiring special care.

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

At first I tried to dig it out 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 deepening 30 centimeters.

Then I took a pitchfork, but it didn’t get any easier. The effect was, of course, better - there were more whole root crops, but how many sweats I lost at the same time - I have to tell separately.

Parsnip root crop

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

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

Knowing that the parsnip does not like heat, I planted it in partial shade. It was open to the sun only from morning to 12 noon. From germination to ripening of this vegetable, at least 5 months must pass.

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 other gardeners, mice quite often harm root crops.

Before harvesting, I had to cut the leaves: there was nothing to even think about pulling 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 met reviews about the size of the top of the root crop comparable to the diameter of the saucer. But remembering my previous harvesting experience, I understood that this crop would not be so easy for me to dig up.

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

Removed at the end of October. And at the beginning of the month there was an unexpected frost. Peppers and tomatoes immediately disappeared from me - they froze. Nothing happened to the parsnip. But, I think that the fact that I cleaned the parsnips after freezing affected its sweeter taste and aroma.

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

And I also want to warn allergy sufferers! Thin out, weed, cut parsnip leaves either in the evening, after sunset, or when it is cloudy. The fact is that parsnip leaves in the sun, in the heat, release some essential oils. If you have sensitive skin, you can get burned. Alas, it is checked on own experience. By the way, the Rescuer cream helped me.

Parsnip - recipes on how to cook it

Raw parsnips are tasty - they are sweeter than carrots, spicy like parsley. The pulp is white, very dense, with a high content of solids. When fried, it browns beautifully, you can’t distinguish it from potatoes in taste, appearance. You can't spoil the soup with parsnips either. As a filling, it is suitable for pies and stuffed peppers. Parsnips make an excellent filler for vegetable marinades and white sauce. For the winter, it can be dried by mixing with other white roots - parsley and celery.

Here are some of the recipes I have tried.

soup dressing

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

Cut everything, mix well, stand for 1-2 days until the salt is completely dissolved and pack. Can be stored in the refrigerator without freezing.

roasted parsnips

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

Sauce for pasta

Cook until soft one carrot, 1 onion, 200 g parsnips. It turns out tastier if the vegetables are boiled in meat broth, but you can do without it. Remove from broth, mash into puree. Dilute with the same broth, pour over cooked pasta.

Stuffed pepper

Grate parsnips, carrots equally on a coarse grater, add salt, finely chopped onion, leek. Fry everything in sunflower oil. Combine with boiled rice, mix, fill red peppers with stuffing. 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 in addition to it, the same amount of chopped parsnips. Tamp and sour for ten days, piercing with a pointed stick.

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

Vegetable stew in a skillet

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

Assorted jars

Boil green string beans. Fry parsnips, carrots, cut into cubes in vegetable oil. Small onions, cut tomatoes in half, stew in sour apple juice (instead of vinegar), salt to taste. Put 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 Umbelliferae 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 a distant relative of parsley and carrots. At the moment it is impossible to determine the origin of this plant, but many believe that it first appeared in Northern Europe.

Beneficial features

The composition of parsnip includes a large amount of essential oils, which positively affects the production of enzymes and gastric juice. Another vegetable increases appetite, as well as the rate of digestion of food. Since parsnips are low-calorie foods, it is simply impossible to get fat from them. In addition, oils and biological substances contribute to better functioning of the endocrine glands, which means that it has a positive effect on the production of certain hormones. Because of this, many people think that parsnip - a vegetable that helps maintain vitality and improve sexual desire.

This spicy vegetable has diuretic effect and also he stimulates the dissolution of stones and prevents reabsorption 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, it is possible to 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 immunity and also reduces the risk of colds.

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

Use in cooking

Since this vegetable is spicy, 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 required ingredient in 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. Boiled parsnips can be used to make mashed potatoes, which will be an ideal side dish for meat and fish dishes.

The benefits of parsnips and treatment

Parsnips are widely used in folk medicine. A decoction of this vegetable must be taken with 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 consume parsnips regularly for the restoration of bone and cartilage tissue. Perhaps this is due to the high content of phosphorus and sulfur. Another excellent advice of traditional medicine, which allows you to get rid of baldness and lichen - you need to lubricate the affected areas with a decoction of the root from time to time.

Parsnip harm and contraindications

It is not recommended to use parsnips in chronic and advanced forms of urolithiasis, as it can provoke the withdrawal of stones. As a result, this can lead to the fact that large specimens clog the urinary canals. It is worth abandoning the use of parsnips for children and the elderly. In addition, this root should not be eaten by those who have skin inflammations that are associated with increased sensitivity to the sun.