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Chaerophyllum bulbosum

Common name:	Turnip-Rooted Chervil	Family:	Umbelliferae
Author:	L.	Botanical references:	93, 200
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	One report suggests that the leaves and roots are poisonous[1]. The same report says that this plant is cultivated for its edible root! The root is unlikely to be poisonous[K].
Range:	Europe to W. Asia.
Habitat:	Fallow fields and water meadows from 1000 - 2100 metres in Turkey[93].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	3	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	0

Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Bulbous Chervil [L], Knolribzaad [D], Parsnip Chervil [H], Tuberous-rooted Chervil [H], Turniproot Chervil [P],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	bulbosum = bulbous
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Apiales. Renamed to Apiaceae -- Carrot family

Physical Characteristics

Biennial growing to 1.2m. It is hardy to zone 6. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects. The plant is self-fertile. We rate it 3/5 for edibility and 0/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Meadow, Cultivated Beds.

Cultivar 'Altan': Cultivated Beds.

Edible Uses

Root Stem.

Root - raw or cooked[2, 33, 34, 37, K]. The raw root is rather tough, but has a nice, aromatic, starchy flavour[K]. When cooked it becomes floury and sweet[27] with a peculiar flavour that is excellent and unlike any other vegetable[183]. Peeling the roots ruins the flavour[183]. The root is about the size of a small carrot[2]. It can be harvested when the foliage dies down, usually in July/August from an autumn sowing, and stored like potatoes for later use[1]. It is best harvested as required[164]. The roots contain about 20% starch and 4% protein[74].
Young stems - raw or cooked[74]. Some caution is advised, see notes at the top of the sheet.

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

None known

Other Uses

None known

Cultivation details

An easily grown plant, succeeding in almost any soil[1], though it prefers a moist soil[27]. Tolerates a pH in the range 4.6 to 7.
The turnip-rooted chervil is occasionally cultivated for its edible root[46, 61], there is at least one named variety[183]. The sub-species C. bulbosum prescottii (synonym C. prescottii) is used in Russia[74]. The root of this sub-species contains about 17% starch[74].

Propagation

Seed - best sown in the autumn in situ[33]. The seed has a very short viability[1] or, according to another report, the seed becomes dormant if allowed to dry out and will not germinate for a year[164]. If stored for a spring sowing it should be kept in damp sand in a cold but frost-free place and then sown in situ in March[1]. Another alternative is to sow the seed in the autumn in a seed tray in a cold frame and then to sow the seed, soil and all, in early April in situ[164].

Cultivars

'Altan': The cream-coloured roots have a delicious flavour[183]. They will keep in storage for 2 - 3 months[183].

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

PFAF Web Pages

This plant is mentioned in the following web pages

PFAF Species Database Bibliography

Web References

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.

[27] Vilmorin. A. The Vegetable Garden. Ten Speed Press ISBN 0-89815-041-8
A reprint of a nineteenth century classic, giving details of vegetable varieties. Not really that informative though.

[33] Organ. J. Rare Vegetables for Garden and Table. Faber 1960
Unusual vegetables that can be grown outdoors in Britain. A good guide.

[34] Harrison. S. Wallis. M. Masefield. G. The Oxford Book of Food Plants. Oxford University Press 1975
Good drawings of some of the more common food plants from around the world. Not much information though.

[37] Thompson. B. The Gardener's Assistant. Blackie and Son. 1878
Excellent general but extensive guide to gardening practices in the 19th century. A very good section on fruits and vegetables with many little known species.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[74] Komarov. V. L. Flora of the USSR. Israel Program for Scientific Translation 1968
An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers.

[93] Davis. P. H. Flora of Turkey. Edinburgh University Press 1965
Not for the casual reader, this is an immense work in many volumes. Some details of plant uses and habitats.

[164] Bird. R. (Editor) Growing from Seed. Volume 4. Thompson and Morgan. 1990
Very readable magazine with lots of information on propagation. A good article on Yuccas, one on Sagebrush (Artemesia spp) and another on Chaerophyllum bulbosum.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
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