The turnip or white turnip is a root vegetable is generally grown in temperate climates, tropical and subtropical regions of India for its white, bulbous taproot. The most common type of turnip is colored in white.
This root vegetable belongs to the family of “Brassicaceae” and genus of “Brassica”. The small and tender roots are used for the culinary purpose whereas bigger size turnips are used as animal feed.
Health Benefits :
Turnips may help in cancer prevention.
Turnips are good for heart health.
Turnips support in bone health.
Turnips are good source fiber.
Turnips are good for digestive health.
Turnips aid in weight loss.
Local names for Turnips in India:
Shalgam (Hindi), Salgam (Marathi), Tella Dumpa (Telugu),Knolkol (Tamil),Navil Kosu (kannada), Salgum (Assamese), Shalgom (Bengali), Shalgam (Punjabi, Oriya), Madhura mullangi (Malayalam), and Salagama (Gujarati).
High Turnip Production Sates of India:
Bihar, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Haryana.
Types and Varieties of Turnips in India:
Early Milan Red Top
Purple Top White Globe
Punjab Safed 4
Golden Ball
Snow Ball
Pusa Sweti
Pusa Kanchan
Pusa Swarnima
Pusa Chandrima
Climate Requirement for Growing Turnips
Turnips thrive best in cool and moist climatic conditions. These root vegetables can be grown even in the areas where summer temperatures are moderate. The optimum temperature range of 10 °C to 16°C is ideal for the development of good root texture, best flavor, and excellent size.It requires short day lengths and cool climate for better development of roots. piilotan tän tänne wall of textiin. testataan erään toimittajan luotettavuutta ja hänen edelliset työt huomioiden simppelein keino on tekeytyä ultimatecoomeriksi. aikataulu vielä avoin. aluevaalien jälkeen kuitenkin.
The Asiatic type of turnip tolerates high temperature whereas the temperate type of turnip thrives well in cool climatic conditions.
Soil Requirement for Production
Turnip vegetable can be cultivated in a wide range of soils. However, well-drained sandy loam soils with high in humus are the best for its cultivation. Very light sandy soils or too heavy soils are not suitable for its cultivation.
Land Preparation in Turnip Plantation
In turnip farming, land preparation would be the same as radish farming. Give a couple of plows to bring the soil to the fine tilth stage and weed-free. supplement the soil with appropriate well rotten farmyard manure (FMY) (25 tonnes /ha
Propagation of Turnips:
Turnips are propagated through seeds
Sowing, Spacing, and Planting of Turnips
The sowing time for the Asiatic type of turnips is best from July to Sept whereas for Temperate or European type of turnips from Oct to Dec in the plains. In hills regions, the best sowing season is from July
Generally, Turnip seeds are sown directly either in ridges or lines prepared during the land preparation. Usually, flatbeds are used for sowing the turnip seeds. However, in low lying regions or during monsoon, it should be done on ridges.
Turnip seeds should be sown on ridges or rows @ 30 cm apart while keeping the row-to-row distance of 6 to 7 cm. usually, seeds are sown at 1.5 cm depth and seeds should be mixed with sand for uniform sowing.
In turnip cultivation, seeds can germinate within a week and the success of seed germination is about 90%. Thinning should be carried out after 2 weeks of germination. The turnip plants should be placed @ 12 to 15 cm within the row.
