Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Skirret
COURTESY WIKIMEDIA COMMONS/MALTE
In the first year, skirret develops only a primary root, but from the second year on, it grows 10 to 15
roots that are irregularly formed, about as thick as a finger, and 8-12 in. (20-30 cm) long. Skirret does
best in moist, fertile soils and can also be grown where the soil is otherwise too wet for root veget-
ables. It is hardy to zone 5, although it should in any case be dug up in autumn, and only the plants
with the strongest root system should be used for propagating seed. Overwinter these in a frost-free en-
vironment.
HARVEST
After plants have been selected once, you can harvest seed from these plants from the
second year on for many years, although by proceeding in this way, it is not possible to select for root
strength every year (which may be the better approach for this underappreciated root crop).
Remove flower stalks from the first year; collect seed only from at least two-year-old plants that
have been selected for root quality. Seeds ripen in late summer and early autumn (for tips on harvest-
ing the best seed, see carrots). Often, much of the harvested seed is sterile and germination rates are
low.
SELECTION CHARACTERISTICS
The most important selection criterion is a well-developed root sys-
tem. Because cleaning and processing the many gnarled roots of skirret for cooking can be fairly la-
borious, it seems promising to select for plants that develop one or few relatively thick and straight
root(s). Other possibilities: more tender fibers, smooth roots, less side-branching.
DISEASES AND PESTS
Disease is a rare occurrence in skirret cultivation. Ascomycete fungi (
Septoria
,
Alternaria
) or various rust diseases can appear. Simply remove affected plants.
CULTIVATION HISTORY
The exact origin of skirret is unknown, though it is presumed to have been
brought from Russia to central and western Europe. Crop researcher Ursula Körber-Grone surmises
that the 16th and 17th centuries were the years of skirret's most widespread cultivation. Before this
time, skirret was virtually unknown, and after, cultivation and spread of skirret dropped dramatically,
driven to obscurity by the appearance of the sugar beet.
TURNIP-ROOTED CHERVIL
Chaerophyllum bulbosum
