How to Grow Turnips UK
On this page
- Turnip (Brassica rapa Rapifera Group)
- Regional Planting Calendar
- Quick Facts
- At a Glance
- Soil & Growing Conditions
- Growth Stages
- Harvest & Storage
- Diseases
- Pests
- Nutrient Issues
- Companion Planting
- Turnip, Leaf to Root
- Plan your Turnips planting
- Growing Turnip in another region
- References
- Frequently Asked Questions
In the UK, turnips go in the ground early March to late August, and are ready to harvest 42–70 days after planting.
Timing is the decision that matters most in the UK: sowing early March, and that same window applies across all 4 regions covered here.
The short answer
- Plant
- Early March to late August
- Ready in
- 42–70 days
- Site
- 4+ hours of sun, soil pH 6–6.8
- Biggest risk
- Club root
Core growing advice on this page is checked against named horticultural sources — see References.
Turnip (Brassica rapa Rapifera Group)
10 sources cited · Verified
Regional Planting Calendar
| Region | Sow |
|---|---|
| Southern England derived | early March to late August |
| Midlands derived | early March to late August |
| Northern England derived | early March to late August |
| Scotland derived | early March to late August |
Rows marked derived are interpolated between regions our sources do state, because no source we consulted gives a figure for that region specifically. They are deliberately wider to reflect that uncertainty.
Southern England - detail & sources
UK-wide baseline (not yet region-differentiated): Mature in 6–10 weeks; sow every 3 weeks; harvest young before woodiness.
Midlands - detail & sources
UK-wide baseline (not yet region-differentiated): Mature in 6–10 weeks; sow every 3 weeks; harvest young before woodiness.
Northern England - detail & sources
UK-wide baseline (not yet region-differentiated): Mature in 6–10 weeks; sow every 3 weeks; harvest young before woodiness.
Scotland - detail & sources
UK-wide baseline (not yet region-differentiated): Mature in 6–10 weeks; sow every 3 weeks; harvest young before woodiness.
Quick Facts
| Factor | Value |
|---|---|
| Soil pH | 6 - 6.8 |
| Sunlight | 4-4 hours direct sun |
| Germination temp | 15.6°C |
| Optimal growing temp | 10-17°C |
| Minimum survivable temp | -4°C |
| Time to harvest | 42-70 days |
| Soil texture | RHS: "rich, well-drained soil" with "plenty of organic matter, such as garden compost or well-rotted manure". |
| Drainage | RHS: well-drained soil in a "sunny spot". |
| Edible parts | roots, young leaves |
At a Glance
Soil & Growing Conditions
Water: RHS: water "in dry weather" -- without it roots stay small and woody, and may split. Clemson: "Watering is critical during the seedling stage and the root development stage"; keep "the soil moist but not saturated".
Soil pH range
Span reflects genuine variation between the cited authorities, not a single agreed figure.
Growth Stages
| Stage | BBCH | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Sowing & germination | 0 | Sow 1cm deep, rows 23-30cm apart. Germinates quickly and well, though less reliably in hot, dry weather. RHS. |
| Thinning | 3 | Thin early varieties to 15cm apart, maincrop to 23cm (baby veg can be left unthinned or spaced at 10cm); leafy thinnings are usable in salads. RHS. |
| Root development | 4 | Early varieties mature in around six weeks, maincrops in about ten. RHS. |
| Harvest & storage | 8 | Best harvested small -- golf-ball size for eating raw, tennis-ball size for cooking -- since oversized roots turn woody and bitter. Autumn-harvested roots keep for several weeks stored in moist coir or sand in a cool, frost-free place. RHS. |
Harvest & Storage
When to pick: RHS: harvest at the "size of a golf ball for eating raw, or the size of a tennis ball for cooking"; turnips are best "when small and full of flavour". Clemson independently agrees on the tennis-ball benchmark: "Harvest turnip roots when they reach the size of a tennis ball or larger (2½ to 2¾ inches in diameter)".
Storage
RHS: keeps "several weeks in trays of moist coir or sand, in a cool, frost-free place". No numeric storage duration, temperature or humidity is stated, so those columns are left null. Clemson: "These roots store well in plastic bags in the refrigerator or a cold root cellar".
Diseases
Pests
Nutrient Issues
Companion Planting
Turnip, Leaf to Root
Plan your Turnips planting
When to sow and plant Turnips depends on your own frost dates. Check the UK vegetable planting calendar, or the month-by-month guides that cover Turnips: April, May, July, August. To work out where it fits in your beds, sketch your plot in the free Garden Layout Planner.
Growing Turnip in another region
Sowing dates, frost timing and local advice differ by country. Use the guide for where you garden.
References
-
Diamondback moth is "the most serious insect pest of brassica crops in South Carolina", leaving a window-pane appearance where the upper leaf surface stays intact. Damage is quantified relative to each other: one cabbage looper does roughly the damage of 5 diamondback moth larvae, and imported cabbageworm about two-thirds of a looper. Cross-striped cabbageworm hatches in masses and can rapidly skeletonise a plant, dropping to pupate just under the soil surface. Cabbage webworm damages buds and growing points, causing lateral budding. Cabbage aphids are commoner in cool autumn weather. Flea beetles are most problematic on mustard and turnips, which lack the protective waxy coating.
10 independent sources are cited for this crop. Where they disagree - soil pH is the clearest case - every figure is preserved rather than averaged into false precision.
Frequently Asked Questions
When should I sow turnips in the UK?
In Southern England, from early March. In Scotland, wait until early March. Treat these as a guide rather than a fixed date — the governing rule is to sow only once frost risk has passed and temperatures are reliably warm enough.
When do I sow turnips?
Sow early March to late August, at around 15.6°C for germination.
How long do turnips take to grow?
Typically 42–70 days, depending on cultivar and growing conditions.
What soil pH do turnips need?
A pH of about 6–6.8. That span reflects genuine variation between the authorities we cite rather than a single agreed figure — the References section lists each source's exact range.
What problems affect turnips?
Our data links 1 disease and 3 pests to this crop. See the sections above for each one and how to manage it.
Plan next season before the problems start
Most of the advice on this page comes down to timing and spacing — sowing at the right moment, rotating beds, and giving plants enough airflow. The UK Garden Planner lays your plot out month by month so those decisions are already made before the season starts.
Get the UK Garden Planner →Instant PDF download · Written for UK growing conditions
How this guide is put together
The growing data on this page — sowing windows, pests, diseases, soil and site requirements — comes from named horticultural sources, listed in References below, checked against RHS and Met Office guidance. An automated pipeline assembles that verified data into the page you're reading: it selects which facts to lead with and builds the surrounding prose and layout. It does not invent a date, a source or a number — where a verified value for a field isn't available, the page leaves it out rather than guessing. A person reviews and publishes each page; nothing goes live unverified.
Related Problem Guides
Last verified 2026-08-06
Where To Go From Here
Take this crop from reading into a written plan for your own beds.
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Plan the next step
Use the printable SoilCommander planner for your region to turn this guide into sowing dates, bed layouts and weekly garden tasks.