Turnip

Maria Villagrasa & Fernando Diaz

The Brassicaceae family is composed of numerous species of great economic importance and varied uses, such as forage, human food, and medicinal and ornamental plants, with the genera Brassica and Raphanus as two of the most widespread.

Within Brassica forages there are different types such as cabbage (B. oleracea) or forage turnips (B. rapa). The interest in the latter is that its cultivation allows for high feed yields in short periods of time, higher than those of other similar crops. It also contributes to the diversification of the forage base for dairy production in temperate areas.

Forage turnip is a biannual plant that produces seed usually in its second year. Its vegetative cycle lasts two to four months, depending on weather conditions, shorter when temperatures are higher and longer when they are lower.