How to Harvest and Store Turnips and Rutabagas

These tasty and hardy cool-season vegetables epitomize fall root crops. Harvest rutabagas from three to four months after sowing seeds, while turnips can be harvested from one to two months after sowing seeds.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Garden Garden Shears
• Gardening Gloves
• Shovels
• Spading Forks
• Shovels

1. Harvest turnip leaves for greens before the roots are ready.

2. Cut the outer leaves, then refrigerate, unwashed, and use as soon as you can. Leave some greens on top to keep root alive.

3. Loosen the soil around turnip roots when they reach 2 to 3 inches wide. Pull roots from the soil and twist off the tops, leaving about 1/2 inch of stem.

4. Use a garden fork to dig up rutabaga roots once they reach 3 inches wide.

5. Serve cooked turnips and rutabagas as side dishes.

6. Store turnips in a cool damp place, unwashed, for up to three months. Rutabagas will keep in a cool, damp location for up to four months and can also be frozen.

Tips & Warnings

• Both turnips and rutabagas can be kept in the ground over winter and dug up for use in mild-winter areas where the ground doesn't freeze. Cover with mulch to keep the soil temperature even around them.