Cairns Family Hanover

Long, triangular roots with purple and green tops and yellow bottoms. Yellow flesh. Great, sweet flavor with a smooth, drier texture. Not fibrous. Taproot is long and whip-like. Many rootlets along the whole length of the root. Roots reach 6-8 inches long, 3-4 inches wide. Relatively smooth skin. Plants are compact with short, dark green leaves. Plants reach 10-17" tall. Requires a longer season than most rutabagas. This variety was stewarded by Leo Cairns near Bellingham, Washington and also by his son Bob Cairns of Olympia, WA. In 2009, Bob's sister, Dolly Shallow, gave seeds to Evalynn Schnackenberg, a distant cousin living in Ferndale, WA. Evalynn donated this variety to SSE in 2013, remembering her grandmother's cousin, Leo Cairns, as an avid gardener who grew the variety during the 1950s when she was a child. Evalynn uses this variety in soups, stews, and casseroles, and has grated them for kimchee. She says the tender leaves can also be steamed as greens. SSE Accession # 131784