Topic: Bitter swede

[chippy queen]

Hi all. Just picked and cooked my first swede of the year and it was really bitter.  ANy ideas why??? and will they allbe like that? Have I done something wrong r was this a one off.  Any help greatly appreciated.

[chriscross1966]

Too dry when it was bulking up?....swedes like water and it didn't rain in September (at least around here anyway)

chrisc

[cornykev]

Mine were bitter last year, so I left them until there was a frost and they got a bit better every few weeks I left them, but they still wasn't as nice as expected, this year they've not grown very big at all.  :'(      ;D ;D ;D

[Borlotti]

Not too keen on Swede, give me a turnip any day.

[plot51A]

In my (somewhat limited!) experience of growing swedes I have always found that they taste stronger than shop bought. I put that down to excellent cultivation  ;D
I've grown the variety "Marian". Don't know if I would call it bitter- but usually cook them with carrots and mash them together, and I suppose the sweetness of the carrots offsets bitterness in the swedes.

[elvis2003]

isnt that a song by the verve..bitter swede symphony?