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Gardening and Landscaping Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [root-vegetables]

Use this tag for questions on plants with an underground edible part that is used as a vegetable. Examples: Carrots, beets, potatoes, onions, ginger, etc.

In horticulture, agriculture, and culinary usage, the term "root vegetable" refers to any plant with an edible part below ground. However, botany distinguishes between true roots (tuberous roots and taproots) and non-roots (tubers, rhizomes, corms, bulbs).

Here are some examples of this classification:

True root vegetables:

  • Taproot Carrot, parsnip, radish
  • Tuberous Root Sweet potato, cassava

Non-roots eaten as vegetables:

  • Corm Chinese water chestnut
  • Rhizome Turmeric, root ginger
  • Tuber Potato, yams
  • Bulb Onion, garlic

Corms, Rhizomes, and Tubers are considered "modified stems" rather than true roots.

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Can I eat carrots with wormholes in them?

I started cleaning up and cutting two big carrots to make a soup when I realized worms had dug galleries in them. Is it safe to eat them even if I clean them? So far I have not found any worms but can I be certain that there aren't any that I have…
Louise Blanqui
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Garlic scapes drooping during a cold winter without much snow. Will they survive?

I live in Massachusetts Zone 6b and I planted garlic in October (First time ever planting garlic!) about 6 inches deep into the soil, with mulch on top of the soil. The garlic I planted was organic garlic I bought from whole foods. Since the first…
Longdaysjourneyintocode
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When should I harvest my carrots?

I live in central Ohio, zone 6a. Last year I harvested my carrots right after Labor Day (first Monday of September) and they were pretty nice. I've been picking them as needed this year, but I'm wondering when I should go ahead and harvest all of…
RubberDuck
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Is maral root useful as a companion plant?

I was looking at rarer plants to grow for natural pesticide purposes and I was wondering how maral root fares. What conditions does this plant need to grow? At what temperature, water amounts, soil conditions, etc. can this plant grow in, is it…
tox123
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Should I remove potato leaves when mounding soil around them?

I want to know if I should remove the leaves on my potato plant as I bury it more after it has grown 12" or so. Or do I leave the leaves on the plant?
user18162
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Why did my sunchokes barely produce?

I planted a 10X15 plot of sunchokes this spring, and only got out about 10 freezer bags worth. The stalks were blooming, plenty of ground cover from grass, but still fairly green, with a lot of woody parts. Why did my sunchokes not produce like John…
black thumb
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Which root edibles can be harvested in the following years after they are planted?

I would like to plant some root edibles (is it correct to call these vegetables?) near my house which will either remain a viable food source for longer than a season, or propagate so that there will always be a viable source of food in the area. I…
Hoytman
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How will I know when beetroot is ready to harvest?

How does beetroot look when it is ready to harvest? How long can it stay in the soil after that?
ALR
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Why do my radishes have voids in them?

I forget the variety, but it is one of the oblong types. They taste great, much of the radish is solid as normal. But the centers have these voids (see photo). They are not from insects, and otherwise the radish tastes normal. These slices are…
That Idiot
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What are the optimal growing conditions for sugar beet?

I was thinking about growing sugar beets on my London roof terrace, so I was wondering what temperature it needs. I also have access to a greenhouse should it be necessary.
tropical
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Is harvesting purple potatoes any different than white potatoes?

We are trying to grow purple potatoes for the first time, and the plants look really nice. I am wondering if harvesting them is any different than for white potatoes?
Kathleen Strahota
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Growing onions from an onion

I would like to experiment on growing onions form an onion, instead of buying each year seeds, sets or little plants. I heard that planting one onion does not immediately gives more onions. Opposite to shallots, which apparently you can plant and…
Sironsse
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Why are there holes in these green radishes?

I was at my local supermarket when I noticed these green radishes which all had these holes in their sides as seen in the photo. The skin of the radishes around the holes look too smooth to have been created by hand, so I was wondering whether this…
kingpin
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When should I plant parsnips in Boston?

I live in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, and would like to know when to plant my parsnip. I use this site and wanted your answer and opinion on the site's answer. https://www.growmigo.com/
koolgro3456
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Why are my radishes malformed?

The majority of the radishes I harvested were of this form - bent so that part grew parallel to the soil above the ground, with the stalk taking another 90 degree turn to return to vertical. What happened?
That Idiot
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