Manglelwurzel (Futterrübe)

So a question on today’s GQT from Glamorgan, “has anyone grown mangelwurzel,” so no one unsurprisingly grew this in the audience and surprisingly too no one of the panel (Chris Beardshaw, Beth Coredon and Anna Switherbank) have grown this.

I bet Bob Flowerdew has, so have you?

 

I have no real use for them.
I believe @Selleri was giving them a go this year, I may have misrembered though.

 

Yes, mine have germinated well, very pretty beetroot red seedlings

I'm waiting for true leaves so that I can prick them out, apparently the germination rate is around 200%

No idea what I'm going to do with them, some will go into my raised mixed bed where I grow often used veg (Welsh onion, Celery etc) and cut flowers, some here and there between plants elsewhere.

Very interesting sounding plants, I got my seeds from Chilterns https://www.chilternseeds.co.uk/item_1798A_mangelwurzel_mammoth_red

 

I don't think these are grown for human culinary use nowadays in gardens, they are more likely grown for the curiosity value.

Googling tells me they are a "viral growing sensation in social media"

 

Hi

more a cattle fodder , the leaves harvested normally twice then early Autumn all dug up kept in a barn and used as winter feed

It’s taste like a turnip . I think the Wurzels had a song about them lol.

Spruce

 

Gosh, that stirs a few memories- 1956
Like steering ,aged 4 , the Fordson Major while Dad loaded the fodder beet in to the trailer behind.
All was well until I found the hand throttle .....

 

Apparently can be used for wine.

 

Like beetroot each "seed" can produce more than one seedling.

 

I tried eating field beet i found in a fallow field in wales, was tough and somewhat flavourless. looks impressive though.