In article ,
Bob Hobden wrote:

So, it's not likely to work for carrots and parsnips on two grounds,
and it REALLY doesn't work for salsify and scorzonera (even though
they are Compositae, which usually transplant), for the reasons you
give, redoubled in spades and with icing on top.
Every spring I start my parsnips in tubes made of newspaper filled with
good seed compost. Two seeds in each tube and pinch out one before
planting out when the plant shows two leaves. I agree with an earlier
posting you need to get them in the ground before the tap root gets to
the bottomof the tube.

I do parsnips this way as they are very long to germinate and seeds
planted in the "wild" often get lost and need thinning out and this
method works well.

Now, that IS an interesting idea! I do that with Phaseolus beans,
because there is something in my soil that attacks them while they
are germinating, and they do better if grown hotter initially. And
sweetcorn. But I gave up on parsnips ages ago, because I couldn't
get them to a decent size. So thanks for the idea.

If you don't want to use toilet rolls then how about Rootrainers especially
the deep ones which I currently use for runner beans.
http://rootrainers.co.uk/rootrainers/index.php

I make my own, which work well.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.