Radishes and carrots are the most commonly grown root vegetables. Potatoes are so popular they have their own category. Other root crops include beets, parsnips, rutabagas, turnips and sweet potatoes. Consider this information when planting root vegetables.
• Planting carrots in the summer ensures they will be the right size going into fall and can be harvested during the winter. The best carrots come out of the garden in mid-February. The trick to planting carrots in the summer is getting them to germinate and grow in Utah’s summer-time heat. Prepare the soil before planting the seeds, and provide protection so the moisture level is maintained and seeds do not dry out. Cover them with burlap strips or a piece of wood. Then, remove the protection as soon as the seeds start to germinate.
Another trick to starting carrots in the summer is to cover the seeds with potting soil and keep the soil moist until the carrots are at least one-quarter to one-half inch tall. Once they start growing, reduce the amount of water, and treat them like the rest of the garden. Cover summer-planted carrots with thick mulch to keep the ground from freezing before the snow falls. Then they can be harvested throughout the winter.
• Beets can also be planted this time of year. This allows them enough time to mature and be harvested before they become too large. Beets are best about the size of a tennis ball or smaller.
• Radishes can be grown nearly any time, but when planted in the summer they tend to go to seed before they are ready to harvest. This is less of a problem if they are planted in late summer, rather than now. Radishes are best harvested before they get too large. Like all root crops, the larger the vegetable, the more woody and tough it becomes.
• It is a little too late to plant parsnips now. They require a long growing season to mature ? over 100 days. Start parsnips in the spring, and allow them to mature in size. Like carrots, they can also be left in the garden and harvested in the late winter.
• Rutabagas require a longer growing season and should be planted in early summer. Turnips are best harvested when they are small. They can be planted now and still be ready by fall.
By: Jerry Goodspeed - Aug. 30, 2008