Day 42
UPDATE#12
Grower update
Update #12
Actions taken
HarvestHarvested one of the turnips.
Harvested one of the turnips!
GrowLog
SuccessfulPurple Top White Globe Turnips in an AeroGarden Harvest
Grow log by ERR0R1755 · Original thread
12 visual updates17 photos40 replies
View recapCrop🌱Turnip
VarietyPurple Top White Globe
MethodAeroGarden
EquipmentAeroGarden Harvest
Plants4
AudienceExperimental
What you can learnA complete root-crop hydroponic trial covering germination, thinning, bulb formation, nutrient use, light contact, harvest timing, taste, and reservoir-root damage.
Actions:4 Nutrients1 Planting1 Pruning1 Harvest
Useful practices
- sowing extra seeds and thinning to one plant per pod
- lifting or repositioning the sponge as the turnip bulb enlarged
- monitoring nutrient depletion
- harvesting multiple root crops together to reduce root damage
- removing shaded or light-contact leaves while preserving enough foliage
Problems encountered
- several seeds arrived smashed
- high nutrient and water demand
- leaves grew into the light and developed white light-damage circles
- separate harvesting tore roots and allowed damaged roots to rot in the reservoir
*The days were calculated automatically and approximately.
Conversation
S
I hope it tastes as beautiful as it looks.
W
Harvest day is so exciting. How will you be preparing these? Will you be eating the green tops as well?
S
You will have to give a taste review
U
Adorable! I need these for my soup! I am wondering on the texture, taste , as well as if there is much 'flesh' around the stalk.
E
Well, my first attempt was a failure. I tried to make turnip chips with this one, but the chips ended up burning. Thankfully I will have three more attempts I won't be eating the tops, but I will blend them and use them as a quick fertilizer for my outdoor plants. Texture and taste were very similar to a radish, but with less crunch (softer) and less kick/spiciness. There was not a lot of flesh around the stalk - I tried to cut as close to the greens as I could, and there were just some small green dots inside of the turnip where the base of each stem was. I'll try to remember to get a picture next time I harvest one.
U
Thanks, Error.
E
Harvested the last two today. I'm happy that I was able to prove another root vegetable could be grown in an AeroGarden!Here's my self-survey:Plant Grown: Purple Top White Globe RadishGrow Method: AeroGarden HarvestTime to Germinate: 3 daysTime to First Harvest: 44 days (since germination)Time to Last Harvest: 56 days (since germination)Plant Spacing: 4 per Harvest (67% usage)Final Height: 12 inchesWould I grow these again? Growing them was a pleasant/easy experience, but I'm not sure if I like the taste of turnips or not. I'll experiment with different ways to eat my last two and see how I feel about them, but for now I'll lean towards no.Lessons Learned: If I'm growing multiple root vegetables, it's better to harvest them all at once - otherwise some of the roots get torn off and start to rot in the tank.
S
Great expirement!I do not like turnips however my husband does. Mashed with butter, a little sugar (sug sub in our case), salt and pepper.
S
That was really a fun project, Error. I would NEVER had dreamed you could grow turnips in an Aerogarden! Thanks for the education and entertainment.
E
Bumping this thread once more since I put together a video tutorial (using these images) with commentary, for those that prefer that. In it I provide a few tips as well, such as cutting back the leaves if you grow turnips in a Sprout
C
Thanks, ERR0R1755 for this wonderful thread. Totally obsessed with those gorgeous turnips.I love turnips and LOVE turnip greens. I had never thought of growing root vegetables, or rather, never figured how you could...the thought of the veg being above the deck with roots in (in duh) had not popped into my head...I may try this out...turnips are one of my fave Fall/Winter veggies to use in stews, vegetable hashes, and roasted veggie trays. They are mild and can be mushy (which I suppose is why not everyone likes them), but roasted right, they are sweet and comforting...I am wondering if you one were to eat the tops, could they be harvested like other greens (e.g. harvest a little at a time)? Or would that impact the growth?Thanks for your very thorough thread, tips, and results!
E
I'm glad you enjoyed the thread! You can definitely harvest the greens as it grows - I would recommend harvesting any that are mostly shaded out by other leaves, or those that are likely to touch the light (if you're growing in a Sprout or Harvest).As long as you leave a decent number of leaves so that the plant can continue to take light, it won't noticeably slow down the growth - when I was doing the same thing for radishes, it actually sped up the growth a bit since the plant no longer needed to provide energy and nutrients to useless/covered leaves.
Day 41
UPDATE#11
Grower update
Update #11
Actions taken
NutrientsAdded four millilitres of nutrients.
Added 4ml of nutes.
Day 34
UPDATE#10
Grower update
Update #10
Actions taken
NutrientsAdded four millilitres of nutrients while the leaves were contacting the light.
The leaves are growing into the light and getting those telltale white circles on them.If you see how tall they are, it's easy to understand why. Added 4ml of nutes.
Conversation
E
They used all of the nutes in one day. Added another 4ml...
S
Do you mean they sucked up so the water in a day?
E
They didn't use that much water, but the PPM dropped down a lot. Either that, or I had forgotten to add nutes when I said I did.
Day 34
UPDATE#9
Grower update
Update #9
These are getting closer to harvest!
Conversation
S
They are beautiful, Error!
Day 31
UPDATE#8
Grower update
Update #8
Actions taken
NutrientsAdded four millilitres of nutrients.
Added 4ml of nutrients. The one in the back right seems larger overnight, but it could be my imagination.
Conversation
S
How do you know when these are ready to be picked?
E
Like radishes, they could be harvested early (2"-3" wide), but most people will harvest them at 4–6" wide.
Day 29
UPDATE#7
Grower update
Update #7
I think these will be ready to harvest soon.
Conversation
S
That REALLY surprises me, Error. Congratulations on your success!
E
I should make a checklist of root vegetables and try growing each one.
Day 22
UPDATE#6
Grower update
Update #6
The turnip bulbs are forming, at the cost of a lot of water. I took a close-up of the air roots on one of them.
Conversation
S
Interesting!
W
Side note, love how clean your unit is. Also, I wonder if the turnip size will be limited by the plastic holder and if cutting the prongs open would make a larger vegetable. Looks like a fun project.
E
Thank you! I try to clean it completely between grows, but sometimes there's something I can't get off (especially on the outer edge of the top piece).I think they'll have enough root space, but I'm doing the same thing I did with my radishes and lifting up the sponge as it grows. I actually pushed the sponge in a bit yesterday so that the turnips would be more stable.
Day 17
UPDATE#5
Grower update
Update #5
Conversation
S
Looks like turnip greens time to me!
Day 13
UPDATE#4
Grower update
Update #4
These really took off.
Day 7
UPDATE#3
Grower update
Update #3
They're enjoying the nutes!
Conversation
S
Id say so.
Day 4
UPDATE#2
Grower update
Update #2
Actions taken
PruningThinned the seedlings to one turnip in each pod.
NutrientsAdded three millilitres of CALiMAGic.
Trimmed down to one per pod and added 3ml of CALiMAGic.
Conversation
E
Added 4ml of nutes tonight, they should be good for another week or two!
Day 1
UPDATE#1
Grower update
Update #1
Actions taken
PlantingPlaced three to four turnip seeds in each pod because some seeds had arrived damaged.
I ended up putting 3-4 seeds in each pod since some of them were smashed (thanks USPS), but it looks like I didn't need to be worried:
Conversation
S
Wow, that was fast.
E
They're a root crop and a bit slower than radishes (~55 days at most), but they do get bigger than radishes (2"-3") as well. I'm not sure how well they'll grow in an AeroGarden, but I hope they do well!