Gardening Enthusiasts: Eight Delicious Root Vegetables Worthy of Your Plot
Root vegetables are a staple in many diets and gardens around the world. These edible parts of plants that grow underground offer a variety of flavors, textures, and nutritional benefits. For beginners looking to start a garden, there are certain root vegetables that are easier to grow and more tolerant of a variety of conditions. Here's a guide to help you get started.
Best Root Vegetables for Beginners
The best root vegetables for beginners to grow are radishes, carrots, beets, turnips, and potatoes. These vegetables are recommended because they are relatively easy, fast-growing, and tolerant of a variety of conditions.
- Radishes: Quick to mature, pest resistant, and good for cool weather planting (spring or fall). Harvest when roots are about 1 inch in diameter for best flavor.
- Carrots: Commonly suggested for beginners, they grow best in loose, well-drained soil and need thinning for good root development.
- Beets and Turnips: Also easy to grow, fast maturing, and tolerant of various soil types. They prefer similar conditions as carrots.
- Potatoes: Easy to grow from seed potatoes planted about 5 inches deep in early spring. Requires mounding soil over stems as they grow, harvested after leaf die-back.
General Growing Tips
To ensure success with root vegetables, follow these general tips:
- Use well-draining, aerated soil rich in compost with a pH around 6.0-6.5.
- Provide 6 to 8 hours of sunlight daily.
- Thin seedlings adequately to avoid overcrowding.
- Keep soil consistently moist but not waterlogged to prevent root rot.
- Weed regularly to reduce pests and diseases.
Other Root Vegetables to Consider
While radishes, carrots, beets, turnips, and potatoes are excellent starting points, there are other root vegetables worth exploring.
- Corm root vegetables include celery root, taro, and water chestnut.
- Tubers include potatoes, Jerusalem artichokes, and yams.
- Bulb root vegetables include garlic, onions, leeks, shallots, and fennel.
- Tap root vegetables include carrots, turnips, radishes, parsnips, jicama, cassava, rutabagas, and beets.
For example, beets are an excellent starter crop for those new to gardening and have exciting cultivars like Chioggia, Boldor, and Albino. Cassava yuca thrives in warm weather and needs well-draining soil rich in compost. It can be found as cuttings through Mappe Garden, available at Walmart.
Sweet potatoes are popular around the world and are used fried, baked, roasted, and boiled. 'Centennial' sweet potato bare roots can be purchased from Burpee. Ginger is a root vegetable that thrives in warm, humid areas in soil that is rich in compost and uniformly moist. Live ginger rhizomes can be found at Walmart.
With these tips and a bit of patience, you'll be well on your way to a successful root vegetable garden. Happy gardening!
[1] GardenGuides [2] Almanac [3] Burpee [4] Walmart [5] Mappe Garden
- Nurturing a home-and-garden filled with root vegetables not only enhances your lifestyle but also provides a bountiful harvest of flavors and nutrients.
- To expand your home garden beyond the common radishes, carrots, beets, turnips, and potatoes, consider exploring other root vegetables like corm roots, tubers, bulb roots, or tap roots.
