Crops › Turnip
How to grow Turnip
in the UK
Sow March to August, plant out September, harvest May to November. About 60 days from seed to plate.
Turnips, eh? Dead easy to grow, they are, and proper quick too. You can get a couple of crops off the plot in a season, which is cracking.
Sowing
You can get your first lot sown indoors in March, a few seeds in a tray, just a centimetre deep. Once April comes, or the soil's warmed up a bit, you can sow direct outside right through to August. Make sure to sow a small batch every couple of weeks for a continuous harvest, like I say, they're quick growers. Space 'em about 10-15cm apart in rows 30cm apart, or even closer if you're after really small ones.
Growing on
If you started 'em indoors, prick out the strongest seedlings when they've got their first true leaves, pop 'em into individual pots. Harden 'em off for a week or two before planting out, mind, especially if it's still a bit nippy. They're not fussy about soil, but a bit of compost helps. Give 'em enough room to grow, about 15cm between each plant is grand, especially for the bigger varieties. They do well in containers too, like big pots or troughs.
Looking after it
Turnips like a consistent bit of moisture, especially when they're bulking up, so keep 'em watered if it's dry. They don't need much in the way of feeding, you know, just decent soil will do. A bit of mulch around them can help keep the moisture in and those pesky weeds down, to be honest.
What goes wrong
Now, the main blighters for turnips are flea beetle and cabbage root fly. Flea beetle can make 'em look like a shotgun's been fired at 'em, especially the young leaves. Cover your rows with a fine mesh or fleece straight after sowing, that's what I do. It keeps the flies off too, stopping 'em from laying eggs, which is a proper lifesaver.
Harvest
They're usually ready in about 60 days, so proper quick. Best to harvest 'em when they're young, golf ball to tennis ball size, for the sweetest flavour and a nice tender texture. Just give 'em a good tug. You can store 'em in a cool, dry place for a good while, or if the weather's mild enough, just leave 'em in the ground till you need 'em.
My top tip for turnips? If you want 'em tender and sweet, don't let 'em get too big, or they'll go woody on you. Pick 'em young, that's the secret to cracking flavour.
Dates for your plot
Type the first half of your postcode and the plant-out advice shifts to your area's typical frost dates.
Varieties, and whether the club would grow them again
| Variety | Club verdict |
|---|---|
| Purple Top Milan This is a real fast-growing, flat-topped variety. It's a cracking choice if you're after an early crop and don't want to wait. | No club votes yet |
| Snowball A lovely white, round variety that's a real workhorse. Great for a proper maincrop harvest in your garden. | No club votes yet |
| Golden Ball This one's got a lovely yellow flesh, a bit different, like. It's a tasty choice if you're planning a late harvest for autumn and winter. | No club votes yet |
| Market Express A quick-maturing heritage turnip, proper speedy. Ideal if you want to get a crop in and out of the ground fast. | No club votes yet |
| Tokyo Cross F1 This is a lovely Japanese white turnip, very popular. It's a good 'un for pots and containers if you're short on space. | No club votes yet |
| Atlantic A cracking big turnip, bred especially for storage. You'll be chuffed with how well these keep over winter. | No club votes yet |
| Green Globe This one's got a distinctive green top and white bottom, proper hardy. It's a reliable choice if you're looking to store your harvest. | No club votes yet |
| Manchester Market A good old heritage variety, with a green top. It's a bit of history for your plot and tastes grand. | No club votes yet |
| Oasis A nice white turnip that gets going proper quick. If you're keen for an early harvest, this one's a good bet. | No club votes yet |
| White Lady F1 This one's pure white with a lovely smooth skin, very attractive. It's a cracking maincrop variety that looks as good as it tastes. | No club votes yet |
| Sweetbell F1 An extra sweet white turnip, you know what I mean. If flavour's your thing, this one's a proper winner. | No club votes yet |
| Purple Top White Globe A real classic heritage variety, very reliable year after year. You can't go wrong with this one for a good, solid crop. | No club votes yet |
| Hakurei This Japanese salad turnip is incredibly tender and mild. Perfect for slicing thin and eating raw in salads. | No club votes yet |
| Scarlet Queen A very attractive turnip with a lovely red-purple skin and white flesh. It's a pretty one that tastes good too. | No club votes yet |
| Ivory This one's pure white all the way through, with a lovely mild flavour. It's a good choice if you're not keen on a strong turnip taste. | No club votes yet |
Votes are members rating varieties in their Seed Tin, one vote per gardener. Tap a variety for the full page and where to buy.
Buy Turnip seeds
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Cook the harvest
Roasting the turnips before blending them into this soup is the move that makes everything else sing — the natural sugars caramelise and you get a depth that raw or boiled turnip simply cannot give you. Red lentils bulk it out into something genuinely filling, and a spoonful of cumin butter stirred in at the table adds a warm, fragrant finish. This is the kind of bowl you want on a cold October evening when the allotment has given you more turnips than you know what to do with.
60 min · easySmall, tender summer turnips are halved, roasted cut-side down until caramelised, then lacquered with a sticky white miso and mirin glaze in the final minutes. The bitterness of the turnip cuts right through the sweet, salty glaze and the result is something genuinely special with very little effort. This is a side dish that outshines the main course — serve it alongside plain grilled salmon or a bowl of steamed rice.
30 min · easySlow-cooked Malaysian-style rendang where chunks of turnip absorb the deep, spiced coconut paste just as beautifully as the beef. The turnip holds its shape through the long braise and takes on every layer of lemongrass, galangal, and toasted coconut. This is weekend cooking at its most rewarding.
150 min · challengingChunky pieces of turnip take on the smoky, briny depth of haddock in this thick, deeply satisfying chowder. The turnip holds its shape far better than potato in the liquid and its slight pepperiness works brilliantly against the sweetness of the fish and cream. This is a proper bowlful — weekend lunch material.
55 min · mediumWatch for, and grow alongside
Questions people ask
When do you sow Turnip in the UK?
Sow Turnip from March to August. Plant out September, after the last frost.
How long does Turnip take from sowing to harvest?
Roughly 60 days, with the harvest May to November.
Which Turnip varieties do gardeners grow again?
Club members rate every variety they grow. This page shows the grow-again votes for Purple Top Milan, Snowball, Golden Ball, Market Express and more.
Track your Turnip from packet to plate
Sowing reminders and harvest forecasts for your own frost dates, the Seed Tin, Scan Centre for any label or packet, and the Potty Mouth Garden Club. Free to start.
Allotment keeper in the North East of England, the voice behind the Tony C Smith YouTube channel, and the gardener who built GrowMore CookMore. Club numbers on this page update as members log their plots. Last updated 3 September 2026.