University of Illinois Extension
Illinois Vegetable Garden Guide
Turnips
Turnips are grown both for greens and for the fleshy roots. Because this vegetable is a cool-season crop it should be planted early in the spring or in August for fall harvest. Most of the insects and diseases affecting cabbage are also injurious to turnips.
Turnips are harvested the same way as beets. The greens may be pulled or cut at the soil surface.
| Crop | Amount for 100 ft of row |
Variety recommended for use in Illinois | Days to harvest | Resistant to |
| Turnips | ¼ ounce | Just Right | 60 | |
| Purple Top White Globe | 55 | |||
| Golden Ball | 60 | |||
| Royal Crown | 52 | |||
| Tokyo Cross | 35 |
| Vegetable | Hardiness | Recommended planting period for central Illinois (b) | Time to grow from seed to field (c) | |
| For overall Use |
For storage |
|||
| weeks | ||||
| Turnips | Hardy | Mar. 25-Apr. 15 Aug. 1-15 |
Aug. 1 | … |
| Vegetable | Spacing in row | |||
| Seed to sow per foot | Distance between plants when thinned or transplanted | Distance between rows | Planting depth | |
| inches | inches | inches | ||
| Turnips | 6-8 15-20 (greens) | 2-4 | 12-18 | ½ |
