🥕 Parsnip
Very slow and very hardy — left in the ground on purpose, because frost is what makes it sweet.
🌱 This one is in the reference and the planting calendar, but you cannot sow it in the game yet.
Parsnip at a glance
Is Parsnip frost tolerant?
Yes — it is one of the hardier crops. It shrugs off frost down to -8°C and is only killed below -15°C.
What temperature does Parsnip grow best in?
It grows best between 6 and 22°C. Below 3°C it stops growing altogether, and above 26°C it slows down.
How many days does Parsnip take to mature?
About 110–140 days. That is a typical figure: it needs roughly 1380 °C·d of warmth above 3°C, so a warm season gets it there sooner and a cool one later. The city calendars below give the sow and harvest dates for each place.
Is Parsnip a cool-season or warm-season crop?
A cool-season crop. It does best in the mild weather of spring and autumn (and through winter where winters are mild), and slows down in summer heat above 26°C.
What the numbers mean
These are the actual parameters this game runs on. Growth is driven by growing degree days: each day contributes max(0, min(mean temp, 26) − 3), and Parsnip is ready when that total reaches 1380. That is why the same seed takes a very different number of days in Dublin and in Guangzhou.
| Base temperature | 3°CBelow this, the plant accumulates no growing degree days at all. |
|---|---|
| Degree days to maturity | 1380 °C·dThe heat budget it must accumulate before it is ready to pick. |
| Comfortable range | 6–22°CWhere it grows without stress. |
| Frost damage below | -8°CLeaves start taking frost damage below this low. |
| Killed below | -15°CBelow this it does not come back. |
| Heat stress above | 26°CAbove this the plant slows down and stops setting fruit well. |
| Typical time to harvest | 110–140 days |
| Yield per bed | 4 roots |
Things worth knowing
- Frost converts parsnip starch into sugar, which is why old gardeners wait for the first frost before lifting.
- Before sugar reached Europe, parsnips were one of its main sources of sweetness.
Where and when to sow Parsnip
Pick your city to see the months when Parsnip scores well against that city's real climate records: