Pulled up the first of this year's parsnips yesterday as curiosity got the better of me. Admittedly premature as the autumn is still warm and the tops are still a lush green.
They were sown 1st June (Gladiator F1) and took ages to germinate so I didn't expect much, really. I did water them over the worst of summer, but not consistently.
They were a very good size and not woody! I had to leave a length of taproot in the ground for the largest, must've gone down a metre at least.
If the whole patch yields parsnips like these then they would have done better than the potatoes, in less than half the area, with less watering, and much less effort (no earthing up and they were in a no-dig bed).
Perhaps parsnips are a vegetable to consider more often with our changing climate. As much as I adore home grown potatoes, I will be swapping over some of the maincrop's space to parsnips if the yields are right.