Read in detail about Turnips Growing and Care in Pots with this guide and harvest fresh, nutritious roots even in compact spaces.
Growing Turnips in Pots is a rewarding process that offers you nutritious vegetables in short of space. Learn everything about planting this cool season crop in this post.
Botanical Name: Brassica rapa subsp. rapa
Common Names: Turnip, Swede, and Shalgam
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About Turnips
Turnips are cool-season, tender root vegetables from the Brassicaceae family that are available year-round but taste great in the fall. The edible leaves of turnips taste like mustard greens. This biennial plant takes two years to grow. The veggies can be harvested when small. Turnip roots offer a mild flavor anywhere between radish and potato. Old or mature veggies give a mustard-like flavor, which fades with cooking.
The leaves of turnips are a good source of carbohydrates, folate, water, and vitamins A, C, and K. Cooked turnips are loaded with micronutrients, proteins, carbohydrates, and vitamin C with insignificant fat.
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Best Time for Planting Turnips in Pots
Begin planting turnip seeds in spring when the temperature is above 40°F (5°C), and the weather is getting warmer. If it’s still cold outside, start by planting them indoors early in spring. Keep planting seeds one after the other until late spring or early summer to have a consistent harvest. In late summer or early fall, you can start planting turnip seeds again for a harvest in the fall and early winter.
For regions with hot and frost-free climates, you can grow turnips in containers starting from late fall or early winter and continue planting successively throughout the winter.
If you don’t live in a hot subtropical or tropical area and have cool summers, you can also grow turnips in pots during the summer.
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Turnip Varieties for Containers
Many turnip varieties appear in 1-5 inches in diameter. Let’s choose the best one for growing in pots.
- Tokyo Cross grows up to 4-6 inches in diameter. This All-American Selection Award Winner has smooth skin with mild, crisp flesh. You can harvest it anytime.
- White Knight produces late and offers flat, oblong-shaped, pure white turnips.
- Scarlet Queen produces pure white flesh with scarlet-hued skin.
- Market Express and Hakurei can be harvested in just 35-40 days and offer baby turnips.
- Topper and Shoguin are grown for greens, but roots are also edible.
- Gilfeather has white-green skin and cream-colored flesh with a mild flavor.
- You can harvest Purple Top White Globe in 45-65 days. It grows up to 3 inches in diameter.
- Alltop and Seven Top produce delicious green tops.
- Golden Ball displays yellow skin and flesh and has a sweet flavor.
Selecting a Pot
The choice of the pot depends on the type of turnip you’re growing, particularly considering that larger turnip varieties require more space. For regular turnips, which typically don’t exceed 3-4 inches in diameter, use a pot that is at least 8 inches deep.
The width of the pot for growing turnips depends on the number and size of turnips you aim to grow. Whether using window boxes or standard pots, maintain at least 4 inches of spacing. As an example, a 12-inch wide round pot can accommodate 3 turnips or up to 4 if you want to plant them more closely.
Since turnips don’t handle transplanting well, directly plant them in the chosen container. If you’re cultivating a larger root variety like Hinona kabu, opt for a 12-inch deep pot. Conversely, if you’re growing turnips for their greens, a smaller 6-inch deep planter is sufficient.
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How to Grow Turnips in Containers
Buy turnip seeds from a nearby garden store or online, and make sure they’re not expired! Sow the seeds in the container by putting them about half an inch deep in the soil and space them 2-3 inches apart. Once the seedlings start growing, thin out the weaker ones to keep the right distance between them.
Note: You can sow seeds closely in pots if you are growing turnips only for greens.
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Ideal Growing Conditions for Turnips in Pots
Location
Plant turnips in a sunny spot that gets at least 6 hours of direct sunlight. While they can also grow in partial sunlight (at least 4-5 hours), it may result in lower productivity.
Soil
Grow turnips in fertile, well-draining soil. To promote root growth, opt for a high-quality potting mix or create your own with a loamy texture, free from stones. When planting turnips, consider including compost or well-rotted manure. You can enhance the soil further by adding organic materials such as peat moss, compost, aged manure, or coconut coir. Perlite or vermiculite can also be used to improve the soil structure.
Water
When growing turnips in containers, maintain consistently moist soil by watering them regularly. Water deeply and make sure the pots never completely dry out, especially during the initial weeks. Be cautious not to overwater, as it may cause the roots to crack.
Temperature
This cool-season crop grows well in short days. The ideal temperature range for its growth is between 40°F (5°C) as a minimum and 90°F (32°C) as a maximum. To ensure optimal seed germination, maintain temperatures around 55-85°F (13-30°C). Germination tends to be slow when temperatures fall below or rise above this range.
Thining & Spacing
Thin out the young turnips when they reach a height of a few inches, ensuring a spacing of 4-5 inches between them. If you’re growing turnips for their leafy greens, provide a space of 2-3 inches between them.
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Turnips Care in Pots
Fertilizer
Apply a slow-release fertilizer in the potting mix in a 5-10-10 NPK ratio. Also, you can feed the turnips with one-third of compost or aged manure in the soil as an alternative to granular fertilizer. You can use a weak dose of water-soluble fertilizer on 2-3 weeks old turnips.
TIP: If you have not fed turnips during the growing season, then apply 5-10-10 or 5-10-5 water-soluble fertilizer every 14 days.
Pests and Diseases
Flea beetles and aphids can attack turnips; treat them with a spray of water.
Harvesting
You can harvest the green when they are 4-6 inches long, but keep the roots intact. Most turnip varieties can be harvested in 35-60 days. Harvest the roots when they are 2-3 inches in diameter.
TIP: It is advisable to harvest turnip roots early as they become woody with time.
