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Parsnip seed is fertile Thifasmom, but being umbelliferas they can be pollinated by other parsnips in the area. The trick is to choose good examples to save the seed from. "The Student" was i think the first "selection" in Victorian times from the "wild" parsnip... avoid the very modern F1's like gladiator... :-\
Parsnip seed is fertile
Last year I chitted them on kitchen towel then sowed them 3 to a loo tube. Removed the weaker seedlings and planted the tube and all when big enough. Had the best crop yet.
1. When do you sow yours?2. Do you pre chit them?3. Do you sow direct, with good results?4. When exactly do you start them off?5. Would I be better off starting them off in loo tubes in a propagator?
I Love parsnips... Some people sniff glue, I could sit and sniff a parsnip all day.The old boy next to me has lovely parsnips so I asked how he grew them. He said "I just scrape a drill through the frost in February and drop the seeds in".So last February I followed his advice. I've had parsnips with every roast dinner since and still got enough to last until next Christmas. Some have forked but the vast majority are perfectly parsnip shaped.I read in a post somewhere about Fenland soil, I'm on lovely dark crumbly Fenland soil so maybe that helps.