Turnip greens are a cool-season crop prized for their slightly pungent, earthy flavor. The turnip plant, a member of the Brassica family, offers two edible parts: the leafy tops and the bulbous root. Understanding the growth cycle and choosing the right moment for harvest directly impacts the tenderness and taste of the greens. The goal is to collect young foliage before it becomes tough or overly bitter.
Determining Optimal Leaf Maturity
The best flavor comes from young, tender turnip greens. Leaves are generally ready for their first picking four to six weeks after planting, once they have reached a height of four to six inches. At this stage, the leaves should feel smooth and supple rather than thick or coarse. Harvesting greens in the morning, when their sugar content is highest, may also enhance their flavor profile.
Delaying the harvest too long can lead to a significant drop in quality. As the leaves mature, they accumulate compounds that contribute to a stronger, more bitter taste. This bitterness becomes pronounced if the plant begins to “bolt,” which is the process of sending up a flower stalk. Bolting, often triggered by hot weather, redirects the plant’s energy away from leaf and root production.
Harvesting Methods for Continuous Yield
Gardeners focused on maximizing their greens production should employ the “cut and come again” technique. This method allows for multiple harvests from a single plant throughout the growing season. To execute this, select only the outer, larger leaves for removal, leaving the smaller, inner leaves intact.
Preserve the plant’s central growing point, sometimes called the crown, which generates new foliage. When cutting the leaves, use a sharp knife or shears and snip the leaf stem near the base, about one to two inches above the soil line. Removing no more than one-third of the foliage minimizes stress on the plant and encourages rapid regrowth.
This continuous harvesting can be done weekly or bi-weekly, depending on the plant’s growth rate. After each cutting, the plant will typically generate a new flush of tender leaves within two to three weeks. If you prefer to harvest larger quantities at once, you can cut all the leaves about two inches above the soil, and a new rosette of leaves will often emerge.
Adjusting Harvest Based on Root Development
For turnip varieties that produce both roots and greens, the gardener must make a strategic decision regarding the harvest. Harvesting greens continuously will inhibit the turnip root from swelling to its full size. This is because the plant prioritizes energy for leaf regeneration instead of downward storage in the root.
If the goal is to obtain a large turnip root (two to three inches in diameter), the gardener must cease picking the leaves entirely several weeks before the final harvest. Redirecting photosynthetic energy exclusively to the root allows the underground bulb to swell and fully develop. The final harvest involves pulling the entire plant; the remaining greens will be larger and possibly tougher than those picked earlier.
However, some gardeners compromise by harvesting a few outer leaves early in the season before the root forms significantly. This allows for a taste of the tender greens while still permitting the root to mature. When harvesting for both, the root is typically pulled when it reaches about two inches in diameter, ensuring it is tender and not woody.