Variety field guide
What to expect from Gold Ball Turnip
Gold Ball brings warm yellow color and a mild, nutty flavor to the cool-season harvest.
Open the complete descriptionHide the complete descriptionVariety traits, flavor, garden use, and the complete description
Gold Ball brings warm yellow color and a mild, nutty flavor to the cool-season harvest. The smooth round roots have golden flesh that is especially good simmered or roasted, with a fine texture when picked young. An old European garden variety, it appears in the 1854-55 Album Vilmorin as Robertson's Golden Ball. Autumn plantings develop good eating quality as the weather cools, and the tender leaves can also be cooked as greens.
Minimum seeds per packet: 300 seeds.
Golden roots with a gentle flavor for autumn cooking.
Variety and background
Gold Ball is a traditional yellow-fleshed turnip documented in Vilmorin listings from 1854-55. A specific Scottish origin is not established by that record. The sweet yellow roots can be picked young or grown to about 3 inches across.
Growing facts
| Scientific name | Brassica rapa L. Rapifera Group |
|---|---|
| Life cycle | Biennial |
| Maturity / harvest basis | Harvest at about 3 in across; timing varies |
| Seed depth | 1/2 in |
| Germination | 5-10 days |
| Germination temperature | 50-65 F |
| Plant height / spread | 13–18 in |
| Habit | Rosette |
| Plant spacing | 6 in |
| Row spacing | 18 in |
| Sunlight | Full sun |
| Pollination type | Open-Pollinated (OP) |
Starting from seed
Direct sow in early spring or late summer, 1/2 in. deep. At 50-65 F allow 5-10 days. Thin to 6 in. apart, rows 18 in. apart. Give sun, loose fertile soil and even moisture. Use insect netting early against flea beetles and root flies.
Planting and care
Direct sow in early spring or late summer, 1/2 in. deep. At 50-65 F allow 5-10 days. Thin to 6 in. apart, rows 18 in. apart. Give sun, loose fertile soil and even moisture. Use insect netting early against flea beetles and root flies. Harvest Gold Ball turnips around 3 inches across. Catalog maturity varies with conditions and harvest size.
Harvest and use
Pull tender roots near 3 in. across, before coarseness. Trim tops; refrigerate roots and greens separately. For seed, overwinter selected roots; isolate other flowering B. rapa and collect dry pods in year two before shattering.
Saving seed
Select several healthy, true-to-type Gold Ball plants that match the expected rosette habit and overall plant form. Avoid saving seed only from the earliest or largest individual unless that is your deliberate selection goal. Pollination system: Insect-pollinated Brassica rapa. Crop groups within Brassica rapa can cross with one another. Separate compatible varieties that may flower together, or use cages, barriers, hand pollination, or another documented control appropriate to the crop. Gold Ball is a biennial. Seed production may require overwintering, vernalization, or more than one growing season, depending on climate and crop biology. Clean the seed carefully, dry it thoroughly away from direct heat, label the lot with variety and year, and store it cool, dark, and dry. Test germination before an important planting or distribution season.
Common problems
Common concerns: Flea beetles, imported cabbageworm, cabbage loopers, aphids, slugs, root maggots, and clubroot risk where the pathogen is present. Management: Use rotation, insect netting before pests arrive, regular leaf inspection, sanitation, and well-drained soil. Do not plant the same brassica family repeatedly in one bed. Diagnosis note: Similar symptoms can have different causes. Compare plants of the same age, record weather and irrigation, and use local Extension or diagnostic support before applying a control.
Frequently asked questions
What distinguishes this selection?
Harvest Gold Ball turnips around 3 inches across. Catalog maturity varies with conditions and harvest size.
How should I start it?
Direct sow in early spring or late summer, 1/2 in. deep. At 50-65 F allow 5-10 days. Thin to 6 in. apart, rows 18 in. apart. Give sun, loose fertile soil and even moisture. Use insect netting early against flea beetles and root flies.
When and how should I harvest?
Pull tender roots near 3 in. across, before coarseness. Trim tops; refrigerate roots and greens separately. For seed, overwinter selected roots; isolate other flowering B. rapa and collect dry pods in year two before shattering.
Can I save seed?
Select several healthy, true-to-type Gold Ball plants that match the expected rosette habit and overall plant form. Avoid saving seed only from the earliest or largest individual unless that is your deliberate selection goal. Pollination system: Insect-pollinated Brassica rapa. Crop groups within Brassica rapa can cross with one another. Separate compatible varieties that may flower together, or use cages, barriers, hand pollination, or another documented control appropriate to the crop. Gold Ball is a biennial. Seed production may require overwintering, vernalization, or more than one growing season, depending on climate and crop biology. Clean the seed carefully, dry it thoroughly away from direct heat, label the lot with variety and year, and store it cool, dark, and dry. Test germination before an important planting or distribution season.
