Crop type: Parsnips
Pastinaca sativa ‘Gladiator’
Common name: Parsnip ‘Gladiator’
Crop slug: parsnips
This Allotment Pro editorial draft summarises the cited RHS cultivar profile and its linked crop guidance. Check the sources and adjust cultivation decisions for local conditions.RHS cultivar profile
1 - Overview
‘Gladiator’ is an established leading AGM parsnip, valued by exhibitors for reliable, trouble-free growth. It produces long slender roots with consistently smooth, blemish-free soft pale-cream skin and a rich sweet earthy flavour. Good general health, canker resistance and relatively quick maturity make it useful both for early crops and dependable winter harvests.
Sow from mid-March to mid-May and harvest from September through February. A deep stone-free seedbed is essential for preserving its elegant slender form.
2 - Size
- Ultimate foliage height
- 0.1–0.5 metre
- Ultimate spread
- 0.1–0.5 metre
- Time to maturity
- one year
- Root form
- long and slender
Thin to one plant every 15cm and leave 30cm between rows. Consistent spacing allows each root to extend without competition or distortion.
3 - Growing conditions
- Suitable soils
- Chalk, clay, loam or sand when deeply prepared
- Moisture
- Moist but well drained
- Preferred pH
- Acid or neutral; ideal cultivation pH is around 6.5–7
Grow in deep light soil and keep moisture even to prevent splitting. Add well-rotted manure the previous autumn, not immediately before sowing. Deep containers are an option where chalk or clay cannot be loosened adequately.
4 - Position and hardiness
- Light
- Full sun or partial shade
- Aspect
- East-, south- or west-facing
- Exposure
- Sheltered
- Hardiness
- H5
Roots tolerate winter in the ground and sweeten after frost. Mark rows before foliage disappears and insulate a section with straw if frozen soil is likely.
5 - Colour and seasonal interest
‘Gladiator’ forms long, smooth, pale-cream roots with an even slender taper and notably blemish-free skin. Healthy green divided foliage stands upright above the crown through summer before dying back in autumn.
6 - Botanical details
- Family
- Apiaceae
- Native to Great Britain and Ireland
- No
- Foliage
- Deciduous
- Habit
- Columnar upright
- Name status
- Accepted
Genus
Pastinaca is a small genus of biennial carrot-family plants. Cultivated parsnips form edible sweet taproots and, if left into a second year, produce flower umbels on upright stems.
Safety
Sap from the foliage can make skin sensitive to sunlight. Wear gloves and cover arms while tending or harvesting plants in bright conditions. The cultivated root is edible.
7 - How to grow
Cultivation
Sow fresh seed directly from mid-March to mid-May once soil is near 12°C. Use 1cm-deep drills and sow three seeds at 15cm stations, with rows 30cm apart. Germination may take 14–30 days; thin each station to one strong plant.
Keep young rows weed-free and water in dry spells. Use fine mesh against carrot fly. Lift from September to February, or store sound roots in the ground, preferably allowing frost to intensify their sweetness.
Propagation
Propagate by fresh seed sown directly. Do not transplant the taproot.
Suggested locations
- Exhibition vegetable plot
- Cottage or informal garden
- Wildlife garden
- Deep raised bed
- Deep container
Pruning
No pruning is required. Remove foliage after lifting without cutting the crown deeply.
Pests
May be susceptible to carrot fly. Protect from sowing with insect-proof mesh.
Diseases
Shows good resistance to parsnip canker and is generally healthy. Avoid injury, waterlogging and fresh manure despite this resistance.