Hi I was wondering if anyone else is having problems with their parsnips? A number of mine have split (as did carrots) presumably because of erratic rain fall this year? However I was disappointed to find today that where they have split they are now rotting, to the extent that I appear to have lost about 15% of the row I dug this week over the one I dug last week.
This sounds like canker, more on the shoulders than further down? Some varieties are more susceptible, such as Tender and True, while I fond that Gladiator resists.
Are you on heavy or light soil?
If its that bad, harvesting now could be worth it.
I have had a little canker and do grow tender and true, but the ones that are rotting are clearly split as well. Soil is medium to light, sandy loam and free draining as over mixed gravel & chalk bed.
My carrots split this year as we had a drought for 3 months, then incredibly heavy rain in second half of August. However, they were all harvested by the end of September, so none of them rotted.
No problems with the first two parsnips I lifted……
Our carrots also split and I think that it was the erratic rainfall, so far I am struggling to harvest the parsnips they have gone sooo deep and snap easily but if I manage they look ok so far, we have lots of strange shapes though, they still taste good.