Photo: Unsplash
When to plant
turnips in the UK
Harvest when golf-ball sized for the sweetest flavour. Leave them too long and they go woody. Quick-growing gap filler.
Work out your own dates
Starts from the recommended sow date for your area. Sowed on a different day, or planted out late? Adjust below and the harvest moves with it.
Using the UK-average last frost · 15 April · add your postcode to tune it
Growing journey
8 weeks from sowing to harvest
Get turnips seeds
Links may be affiliate links. We may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
What turnips need
Sun or partial shade. Moist soil. Not demanding.
Spacing
15cm between plants · 20cm between rows
Space evenly in rows. Thin seedlings early to avoid crowding.
Varieties worth growing
Purple Top Milan
commonFlat-topped, purple-shouldered, and sweet as anything when pulled at golf-ball size. One of the fastest root vegetables — sow it in a gap and it fills it before you notice.
Glazed baby turnips
Halve the small ones, cook cut-side down in butter with a pinch of sugar until golden and tender. Finish with a splash of stock and a scatter of parsley. Elegant enough for a dinner plate.
Snowball
commonWhite, round, and mild enough that even turnip sceptics come around. Pull them young and they're almost fruity. Leave them too long and they'll remind you why people think they don't like turnips.
Turnip mash
Peel, cube, and boil until soft. Mash with a generous knob of butter, a crack of white pepper, and a pinch of nutmeg. Lighter and sweeter than potato mash. A quiet revelation.
Golden Ball
uncommonA heritage Victorian variety with golden-yellow flesh and a sweetness that survives storage. Keeps well into winter and tastes better after a frost, which is about as Scottish as a turnip can get.
Neeps and tatties
Boil until tender, mash with a ridiculous amount of butter and white pepper. Serve alongside haggis on Burns Night, or honestly, just alongside anything on a cold evening.
Oasis
uncommonA Japanese salad turnip that's mild, sweet, and best eaten raw like a crunchy apple. White, smooth-skinned, and nothing like the woody turnips that put you off as a child. This is the turnip that changes minds.
Japanese-style turnip salad
Slice paper-thin, toss with rice vinegar, a pinch of salt, a scatter of nori flakes, and a drizzle of sesame oil. The crunch and sweetness is remarkable. Turnip as salad hero, not boiled afterthought.
When to sow turnips
Based on UK average frost date. Enter your postcode for exact dates, or find your city.
Where to buy turnips seeds
Links may be affiliate links. We may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
What you'll need for turnips
The stuff beginners wish they'd bought sooner.
Protects from late frost and gives seedlings a head start. Keep a roll in the shed — you'll use it constantly.
More in our equipment guide →Stops carrot fly, which flies low and finds carrots by smell. Cover from sowing day and leave it on all season.
Links go to Amazon. We earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
Get your exact dates
Enter your postcode for personalised planting dates for turnips.