{"id":2867,"date":"2020-04-13T04:44:44","date_gmt":"2020-04-13T04:44:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/?p=2867"},"modified":"2020-04-13T04:44:44","modified_gmt":"2020-04-13T04:44:44","slug":"celeriac","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/2020\/04\/13\/celeriac\/","title":{"rendered":"Celeriac"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Apium graveolens <\/em>var rapaceum <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Introduction<\/strong>: Celeriac\nis grown for its root (more accurately this is a swollen stem base, or corm,\nnot a root) rather than its stems, which is why it is often called celery root\nor turnip rooted celery. It has long been popular in Germany and Eastern\nEurope, where it is the most popular kind of celery. In this country it is\nrelatively unusual however. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ease of growing<\/strong>:\nCeleriac has pretty much the same requirements as celery and is grown in the\nsame way. It is easier to grow though, because you don\u2019t really care about the\nquality of the stems, the main edible part is the root.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nutritional content<\/strong>: The root is a lot more nutritious than its\ncousin celery. It contains carbohydrate (almost 200 calories per pound),\nvitamins C, K and B6, as well as phosphorus and manganese. It also contains\napigenin, which has anti-cancer properties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Climate<\/strong>: <\/strong>Fo<\/strong>r optimal growth celeriac needs the same\nclimate ascelery, which means a long period of cool (60 – 75\u02daF), moist weather. It doesn\u2019t like extreme\nheat or cold, though it can tolerate mild frost. In cool areas it can be grown\nall summer, but in hotter ones it is most often grown as a fall \/ winter crop.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Crop value<\/strong>: Celeriac is a somewhat overlooked plant and deserves to be more\nwidely grown. It is fairly easy to grow and can be harvested for a long period\nover the winter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Soil<\/strong>: Celeriac likes the same\nfertile, moisture retentive, high organic matter soil as celery.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

About Celeriac<\/strong>  <\/strong>
Seed facts<\/strong>
Germ temp: 40 (60 – 70) 80\u02daF
Germ time: 14 – 21 days
Viability: 5 years
Germination percentage: 55%+
Weeks to grow transplants: 8 – 12  <\/strong>

Planning facts<\/strong>
Growing temp: 45 (60 – 65) 75\u02daF
Start: 8 – 10 weeks before last frost
Plant out: 0 – 2 weeks after last frost
Direct sow: 2 weeks before last frost
Fall crop: Start 3 – 4 months before first fall frost
Days to harvest: 85 – 120 days from transplant   <\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Planning<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When<\/strong>: Celeriac\nneeds about 100 days of cool (60 – 70\u02daF) weather to grow to perfection. If\nthere is a long period of cool weather in spring it can be grown at this time\n(this works better than celery). However it usually does best as a fall crop. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where<\/strong>: A sunny\nspot is best, though it can also grow in light shade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Planting<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sowing<\/strong>: Celeriac seed has a reputation of being difficult to germinate, but I have never found it to be particularly problematic. I have read one piece that said fresh seed germinates best and another that said 2 or 3 year old seed is actually better because germination inhibitors have broken down. It is fairly slow to germinate (up to 3 weeks) and get going though, so you need to give it plenty of time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some people pre-soak the seed in hot (120\u02daF) water for a half hour\nbefore planting, or in compost tea overnight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some\nauthorities say the seed must be scattered on the surface and left uncovered,\nas it needs light to germinate. Others say a light \u215b – \u00bc\u02dd covering of soil is\nbest. I can\u2019t say I have noticed much difference either way, <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Seed sitting on the surface must be kept moist at all times, as it\ncan dry out easily which can be fatal. Germination may take as little as a\nweek, or as long as three weeks. Some books say it is important that the\ntemperature fluctuates below 60\u02daF at night during germination. Temperatures\nabove 80\u02daF may inhibit germination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Indoors<\/strong>: Unlike most root crops, celeriac is often started indoors in spring, 10 weeks before the last frost date. This is simply because it is slow to get started and it saves time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A fall crop may be started in the greenhouse or nursery bed. Sow it in midsummer, 3 – 4 months before the first fall frost. Transplant it to its permanent position 8 – 10 weeks later. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Transplants<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Starting inside<\/strong>: Celeriac is often started indoors, because it is so slow growing initially. It doesn\u2019t mind transplanting when young, so is commonly started in flats, leaving 1\u02dd between plants. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Though it germinates best at 78\u02daF, the seedlings prefer a fairly cool 60\u02daF temperature for growth. Prick out the seedlings to 2\u02dd apart when they have their first true leaves, as they seem to benefit from transplanting at this stage. As always, take care to keep them moist. They should take 8 – 12 weeks to reach 5\u02dd in height and grow 5 – 6 leaves, which is the ideal transplant size. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hardening off<\/strong>: If\ntransplants are to go outside while it is still cold, the seedlings should be\nhardened off. They will then tolerate temperatures as low as 25\u02daF. Start by\nputting the plants outside for 2 hours on the first day, then 4 hours on the\nsecond day. Adding 2 hours every day for a week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vernalization<\/strong>: If the recently planted seedlings are exposed to extended cold\ntemperatures (10 days below 45\u02daF) after a warm period they could be vernalized.\nThey would then react to warmer weather by bolting. If cold weather\nunexpectedly returns after planting out, you should protect the plants with\ncloches. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Transplanting<\/strong>: When planting celeriac be sure to keep the root ball of each plant as intact as possible. Some people run and knife between the plants in the flat, a few days before planting to separate them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Outdoors<\/strong>: Celeriac produces a better root system when\ndirect sown For a spring crop, this is done when hard frosts are past. For a\nfall crop it is done in mid summer. Simply scatter the seed on the soil surface\nand keep moist until it germinates. Thin when all of the plants have emerged\nand they have a set of true leaves. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spacing<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Space the plants 10\u02dd – 12\u02dd – 15\u02dd apart in the beds, depending upon the fertility of the soil. If growing in rows plant them 8\u02dd apart, with 18 – 24\u02dd between the rows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Care<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

To produce\nthe best roots celeriac needs to grow quickly, without a check in its growth.\nTo do this it must get everything it needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Watering<\/strong>: Celeriac\nneeds moist soil at all times, which usually isn\u2019t too much of a problem in the\ncool growing conditions it prefers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Weeding<\/strong>: The small\nplants can\u2019t compete with weeds very well, so keep them well weeded. To avoid\ndamaging the shallow roots (most are within a\ncouple of inches of the surface) it is best to hand weed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fertilization<\/strong>:\nCeleriac is a fairly hungry crop and if the soil isn\u2019t very fertile, it is good\nto give the plants a feed of liquid kelp or compost tea every three weeks. If\nthe soil is fertile this isn\u2019t necessary. Too much nitrogen can even result in\nexcessive top growth instead of root growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mulch<\/strong>: This is\nuseful to conserve moisture and suppress weeds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pruning<\/strong>: Any\nlateral shoots that appear on the side of the root are often removed. This is\ndone to encourage the plant to devotes all of its energy to sizing up the root,\nrather than growing more foliage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earthing up<\/strong>: This\nisn\u2019t essential but is often done to keep the expanding roots covered with\nsoil, so they stay pale in color.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pests<\/strong>: These are the same as for celery, but less problematic. Carrot fly is sometimes a problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Harvesting<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When: You\ncan gather the first roots when they are only 2\u02dd in diameter, However they\nstart to expand rapidly at this point, so the longer you wait the bigger they\nwill get. Like many root crops they get better with lower temperatures and even\nlight frost. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How: Dig or\npull the root, brush off excess soil and cut off the tops so they don\u2019t draw\nmoisture from the root. Don\u2019t throw these away, they can be used separately as\nflavoring. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Storage<\/strong>: The roots are best left in the ground under mulch and harvested as needed, If the ground is likely to freeze, dig them and store in a cool root cellar at 32 to 40\u02daF. They will keep in the fridge in a plastic bag for a couple of weeks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Seed saving<\/strong>: Celeriac is a biennial and doesn\u2019t produce flowers until its second spring (it sometimes produces flowers prematurely in its first year, but you don\u2019t want to save seed from those plants). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The biggest problem with saving the seed is getting the plants to survive the winter. In mild areas they will usually do this in the ground, perhaps under a mulch to protect them from frost. In colder areas they may have to be dug up and stored in a root cellar until spring (See Storage<\/strong>). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Varieties<\/strong>: The choice of celeriac varieties is limited, but slowly\nexpanding. This isn\u2019t a huge problem as they are all relatively similar anyway.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Alabaster <\/strong>– (120 days)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brilliant <\/strong>– Smooth skin and nutty flavor. Early\nmaturing (110 days).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Monarch <\/strong>– A highly rated, fairly new variety\n(100 days)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Giant Prague <\/strong>– (This is the easiest variety to find (120 days).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kitchen use<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is a\nplant that hardly anyone in America knows how to use. The knobby root looks a\nlittle formidable, but is easily peeled to leave a tasty white core (if the top\npart of the root is woody it should be discarded). They are most often used in\nsoups or cooked in the same ways as potato, but they are also good raw in\nsalads.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The green\nleafy tops and stems can be used as flavoring like leaf celery.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Apium graveolens var rapaceum Introduction: Celeriac is grown for its root (more accurately this is a swollen stem base, or corm, not a root) rather than its stems, which is … Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2889,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[243],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2867","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-root-veg","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/celeriac.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2867","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2867"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2867\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2893,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2867\/revisions\/2893"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2889"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2867"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2867"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2867"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}