Turnip Milan Purple Top
Turnips fall into two categories - winter and summer maturing. Winter maturing ones are generally big, rather bland and woody, and in my view best avoided. Summer maturing turnips are a different matter altogether, they’re small, sweet and packed with flavour.
Milan Purple Top is an old Italian variety that produces cute little turnips that can be cooked whole, either by boiling, braising or adding to stews. They can be harvested just 8 weeks from sowing.
Time from seed to plate: 8 weeks
Sowing Calendar
Sow
We sow our turnips direct into the ground, although gutters also work well. As with all direct sown seeds keep them well watered and scatter around a few organic slug pellets to protect them when they’re young.
Grow
Turnips require very little attention. All you need to do is gradually thin the seedlings out so you end up with spacings of about 2-3 inches between plants. Keep them weed-free too.
Harvest
Start harvesting roots when they reach about 2 inches in diameter. Pick out the bigger ones, creating extra growing space for the ones you leave behind. If your turnips are up to 2 inches wide use them whole, because they’ll look and taste great on the plate. Any larger and it’s best to cut them into quarters to ensure they cook evenly. Leave 1⁄2 inch of leaf stem on top of the roots to give them that fresh-from-the-ground look.
Cook by boiling for 10-15 minutes, or roast along with carrots, parsnips, a few cloves of garlic and some woody herbs like sage or rosemary.
They’re wonderful added to stews too. Add them during the last 15 minutes of cooking so they don’t fall apart.