Celeriac growth spurt, and a thinning tip

Now that my celeriac seedlings have been transplanted into a raised bed, their snail-like progress on the growth front seems to have eased a bit. They're now looking healthy and green and definitely bigger, as you can see. The jury's out on whether I've spaced them far enough apart, but given my somewhat dismal track record with globe-shaped roots (turnips, swedes etc) I will be glad to get anything from them.

In the background is another root vegetable, the salsify, and a rogue, pigeon-pecked kale plant that I must get around to transplanting. Salsify, incidentally, is one of the most curious seeds I've ever sown - very long and thin, as I remember. It's more of a curiosity than a major plank in my summer vegetable provision, but I have a whim to serve dinner guests a plate of salsify and scorzonera and watch their eyes roll...

I also harvested my first bunch of carrots this morning, albeit some of them tiddlers that were part of an exercise in thinning. I always find thinning a painful practice, but it really is crucial for root vegetables. Unless you sow incredibly thinly, there will be far too many seedlings, and if you don't remove some of them, they will be competing for space, air and water, and none will thrive. So by sacrificing some - a third to a half, depending on how thick the seed was sown - the remainder will grow juicy and tasty. You should end up with each seedling being surrounded by a carrot-sized space around it. If you prefer your carrots big, thin more thinly: if you like small ones, you can be a little less generous, but make sure you make enough room for the plants to avoid having to battle for water or nutrients as they grow.

Also remember to remove the carrot thinnings immediately from the carrot growing area, or else the delicious scent will attract the heinous carrot root fly to your precious crops. These wee beasties can smell carrots from hundreds of metres away! If you wait until the carrots are a certain size you can eat the thinnings as ooh-so-trendy baby vegetables: lovely steamed and served with a knob of butter. Gordon Ramsay, eat your heart out.

There's more advice on thinning carrots on the Garden Web forums, here.

Comments

[Patrick]

Celeriac is a little unusual in that it can actually do better when you crowd it a bit. If you give it too much space, it tends to develop large tops at the expense of the root. Personally I have pretty good luck with 6 inch spacing and rows spaced 12-18 inches apart. I guess in a raised bed you could put them even closer.

I guess I'm telling you this a little late, now that you have already planted them...

[Jane Perrone]

Thanks for that Patrick - my spacing's a little, er, irregular, but I think the overall effect will be pretty much as you suggest - here's hoping!

[Jess]

Probably a bit late for this, but....!

I fear you may not get a terribly good crop of celeriac putting them in this late. Mine have been out on the plot since mid April (under fleece) and the roots are now the size of tennis balls. By end of Sept they should be full sized. Celeriac needs an absurdly long growing season, and the sooner you can get the plants outside the better. This weather is a horror, though: you have to water them at least once a day, because they hate drying out even for a short time.

I'll be delighted to be wrong, though: I'll be offering up prayers for your celeriac to catch up!!

[Jane Perrone]

Oh dear. They've been transplanted for a month now, I'd say ... I kinda knew it was late but hoped they'd catch up. Maybe I can have them as "baby celeriac" ..

Out of interest how big are the leaves on your plants?

[Jess]

They're about 18 ins tall. They got an attack of celery leaf blister in early June, as usual, but you just pull off the affected leaves and the plants are barely affected. Truth about celeriac is that it's hard work, because you're tending to the wretched things from sowing in Feb until harvest in Oct. Enormously tedious. For me, it's worth it – because I love the taste (raw celeriac rapé with mustard mayonnaise... mmm) and because celeriac stores so marvellously well. It's the ultimate winter vegetable, to my mind.