Brassica rapa var. rapa 'Stielmus'
Turnip greens
Common names: Turnip tops, Turnip stems
At a glance
- Light
- Partial shade
- Spacing
- 10 cm, rows 20 cm
- Lifespan
- Annual
- Sowing
- Mar, Apr, Aug, Sep
- Harvest
- May, Jun, Oct, Nov
- Hardiness
- Cold damage below −4 °C
- Water need
- Medium
- For children
- Well suited
Photo: Aris riyanto · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source
Description
Stielmus, known in the Rhineland and Lower Rhine as Rübstiel, are the young leaves and tender stems of a cultivated beetroot that are harvested before a bulb forms. Finely chopped and steamed, it yields a mild, slightly bitter spring or autumn vegetable with a long tradition.
Care instructions
Sow directly into the garden in early spring (March, week 12) or a second time in late summer for an autumn harvest. Keep the soil consistently moist so the leaves remain tender, and harvest the whole plant young as soon as it is about a handspan high. A dense sowing is worthwhile because you cut it leaf by leaf.
The care notes were machine-translated from German.
Garden year
SowingMar–Apr, Aug–Sep
HarvestMay–Jun, Oct–Nov
Germination
- Soil temperature
- from 5 °C, ideally 18 °C
- Days to sprout
- 4 to 10 days
- Light
- Sprouts in light or dark
- Sowing depth
- 1.5 cm
- How to start
- Sow straight into the bed
Soil & site
Soil pH
Soil type
sandy, loamy, humus-rich, well-drained
Stem turnip likes loose, humus-rich soil that holds water well; a sandy loam is ideal. Loosen the soil shallowly before sowing and, on heavy soils, work in mature compost so that the seedbed stays fine and crumbly; avoid waterlogging.
Brassicas are heavy feeders and prone to clubroot; keep to a 4-year break and do not follow directly on from other crucifers such as radishes or mustard.
Feeding
Light feeder
Months
Mar, Aug
As a light feeder with a short growing period, stem turnip needs hardly any fertiliser. Shortly before sowing (spring from March, or autumn crop from August), work in a thin layer of mature compost at shallow depth. That is enough. It is better to skip further feeding, as it only increases the risk of bolting.
Overwintering
You do not overwinter stem turnip as a living plant; you sow it afresh each season. Cover the autumn sowing with fleece or a polytunnel in harder frost to extend the harvest, and sow directly outdoors again in spring as soon as the soil is workable.
Propagation
Methods
- From seed
You propagate stem turnip exclusively by direct sowing outdoors. Cuttings, division or grafting make no sense for this annual brassica, and the plant forms neither runners nor bulbils. You can sow twice a year: in spring from March to the end of April, and in late summer from the beginning of August to the end of September for an autumn cut. Sow the seeds shallowly, about 0.5 to 1 cm deep, in rows about 25 to 30 cm apart; within the row it is fine if they stand close, because that keeps the little root small and the plant puts everything into leaf and stalk. Water the rows evenly. At a soil temperature from about 5 °C, ideally between 8 and 15 °C, the seeds germinate within 7 to 14 days. After 5 to 7 weeks you can harvest for the first time: cut the stalks off close to the ground, but leave the heart of the plant standing, and it will shoot a second time and give you a follow-up harvest. You do not normally need to start it under cover, because stem turnip is hardy and germinates early; if you want to stretch the season, though, you can start it from late winter in a cold frame or greenhouse and plant the young plants out after the last frost.
Companion planting
Good neighbors
legume family (Fabaceae)
particularly well establishedLeguminous plants collect nitrogen in the soil, from which Brassicaceae benefit as heavy feeders.
For example Bush beanPole beanBroad beanSnow peaWrinkled peaRunner bean and 35 more species in the catalogue
Source: classic companion planting (DACH-Gartenpraxis)
carrot family (Apiaceae)
You can pair celery and dill with all Brassicaceae because they repel the cabbage whitefly with their scent, a proven companion.
For example CarrotCeleriacDillParsleyFlorence fennelCoriander and 21 more species in the catalogue
Source: Bio-Gärtnerei Mixed-culture Practice
mint family (Lamiaceae)
You will notice that the intense scent of basil, thyme, and others confuses the cabbage whitefly and keeps it away from the cabbage family.
For example LavenderThymeBasilRosemarySageHyssop and 43 more species in the catalogue
Source: bio-gardening intercropping practice
nasturtium family (Tropaeolaceae)
Nasturtium serves as a trap plant for you. Aphids and cabbage whiteflies prefer it over the brassicaceae next to it.
For example NasturtiumMashua
Source: Trap plant practice in organic horticulture
Rather not
Companion planting is partly traditional gardening lore. Where the reason is known, it is given.
Some of these explanations were machine-translated.
For your garden
Grow Turnip greens yourself
Gartenkern tells you when frost is coming, when to sow and when to harvest, for your location.
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