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Celeriac

Rasbak / Wikimedia Commons - CC BY-SA 3.0

Celeriac

Apium graveolens var. rapaceum

A cool-season root vegetable in the carrot family (Apiaceae) grown for its swollen, edible, brown, turnip-like root, which tastes like celery with an additional turnip-like flavoring. Biennial by nature, it is grown as an annual: in its first season it forms a basal rosette of aromatic, pinnately divided leaves above the enlarging root, and only in a second year would it send up a summer bloom of off-white flowers in umbels. Missouri Botanical Garden PlantFinder describes a plant 2 to 3 feet tall and 12 to 18 inches wide that wants full sun, rich moist well-drained soil, and consistent water. It dislikes summer heat and humidity, growing best between 60 to 75°F, and the root is ready to harvest after 3-4 months.

Edible

Light

Full sun

Water

Consistent moisture

Mature size

2-3 ft tall · 9" apart

Hardy in zones

Annual; Missouri Botanical Garden lists USDA 3-6 context

AHS heat range

1-6

Plant range authored in AHS heat-zone terms.

Native in Illinois

No

Related products

Cold hardiness

This plant is grown as an annual; hardiness zones don't apply.

Heat tolerance

Heat tolerance values are location-based too: heat days today are observed at this site, and the 2050 value projects this same location under a future climate.

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What it needs

Conditions

Light

Full sun

Water

Consistent moisture

Spacing

9"

Habit

Cool-season biennial root vegetable grown as an annual, forming a first-year rosette over a swollen root

Care tips

•

Start seed indoors about 10 weeks before the last frost and transplant out 8 to 10 inches apart after frost.

•

Keep the rich soil consistently moist and well fed; celeriac wants steady water and 60 to 75°F, not heat or drought.

•

Avoid prolonged cold below 55°F early on, which makes plants bolt; harvest roots after 3-4 months.

Lifecycle

Planting

A cool-weather vegetable that dislikes the heat and humidity of a typical summer, with best growing-season temperatures of 60 to 75°F. Start seed indoors about 10 weeks prior to the last spring frost date. It requires a moist, rich, well-drained soil in full sun with regular fertilization and consistent watering (Missouri Botanical Garden PlantFinder).

Transplanting

Set starter plants out in the garden about 8 to 10 inches apart after the last spring frost date. Avoid prolonged early-season cold: celeriac tends to bolt if exposed to temperatures of 55°F or less for continuous periods of 1-2 weeks (Missouri Botanical Garden PlantFinder).

Early growth

Keep the rich soil consistently moist and fertilize regularly while the rosette establishes and the root begins to swell. Hold temperatures in the 60 to 75°F comfort range; sustained spells at or below 55°F can trigger premature bolting. Watch for aphids, earwigs, nematodes, celery worms, and slugs, and avoid overly wet soil that invites root rot (Missouri Botanical Garden PlantFinder).

Maturity

The plant reaches about 2 to 3 feet tall and 12 to 18 inches wide as a basal rosette of aromatic, pinnately divided leaves over a swollen, brown, turnip-like root. Roots are ready to harvest after 3-4 months and may be stored 6-8 months in a root cellar. Only an overwintered second-year plant blooms, sending up a summer head of off-white flowers in umbels (Missouri Botanical Garden PlantFinder).

Propagation

Grown from seed sown indoors about 10 weeks before the last spring frost and transplanted out after frost. It is a biennial-to-perennial herb grown as an annual for the first-year root, so gardeners re-sow each spring rather than carry plants over (Missouri Botanical Garden PlantFinder).

Similar plants

Browse lateral options with similar roles, light needs, size, or native-range overlap; these are not filtered for a better climate fit.

Eruca vesicaria

Arugula

A fast cool-season annual of the mustard family grown for its peppery, mustard-like salad greens - irregular, pinnately-lobed basal leaves in a low rosette, each with 4 to 10 small lateral lobes and a large terminal lobe (Missouri Botanical Garden). First cultivated by the ancient Greeks and Romans and still widely grown across Europe, it is best grown in the cooler spring and fall months rather than summer heat; leaves are harvested young and tender before they turn strong and bitter. Pale-yellow four-petalled flowers with dark brown or purple veins appear in corymbs if plants are left to bloom.

Vegetable

Full sun / Part shade

Brassica oleracea (Italica Group)

Broccoli

A cool-season vegetable grown for its large, tight, terminal head of green flower buds on a thick edible stem, framed by waxy blue-green leaves. Grown as an annual; it grows poorly once daytime temperatures consistently exceed 80°F, so it is timed for spring and fall. Harvest promptly while the head is firm and tight, before the buds begin to open.

Brassica oleracea (Gemmifera Group)

Brussels sprouts

A slow-growing, long-season cool-weather vegetable grown for the miniature cabbage-like buds (1 to 2 inches wide) that form in the leaf axils along a single 2-3 foot stem. It is the same species as kale, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, and kohlrabi, differing only by cultivar group. Flavor improves after the first fall frost, so it is timed for a cool-temperature autumn harvest rather than summer heat.

Brassica oleracea (Botrytis Group)

Cauliflower

A cool-weather brassica grown for the large, tight head of aborted white flower buds - the "curd" - that forms at the center of a rosette of broad blue-green leaves. The same species as cabbage, broccoli, kale, Brussels sprouts, and kohlrabi, it is harvested before the curd ever opens into true flowers. Grown as an annual; notoriously fussy, with little tolerance for heat, drought, or cold, it does best in the cool temperatures of spring and fall.

Apium graveolens var. dulce

Celery

A cool-season biennial vegetable in the carrot family (Apiaceae), grown as an annual for its crisp, edible ribbed leaf stalks. Apium graveolens is native to temperate Mediterranean Europe, Asia, and Africa - not North America. It demands rich, consistently moist soil and steady cool temperatures (60 to 75°F); heat and drought turn the stalks stringy and bitter, which is why it is one of the more finicky garden vegetables.

Brassica oleracea (Acephala Group)

Collard greens

A cool-weather leafy cabbage relative grown for its broad, leathery, blue-green leaves that grow in a loose upright rosette on a thick stem - never forming a head ("acephala" is Greek for headless). A biennial almost always grown as an annual, it sweetens after a fall frost and, in mild-winter regions, keeps producing leaves through winter until it bolts in spring. One of the most cold-tolerant vegetables in the cabbage family.

Educator packet

Plant packet

Celeriac educator packet

A cool-season root vegetable in the carrot family (Apiaceae) grown for its swollen, edible, brown, turnip-like root, which tastes like celery with an additional turnip-like flavoring. Biennial by nature, it is grown as an annual: in its first season it forms a basal rosette of aromatic, pinnately divided leaves above the enlarging root, and only in a second year would it send up a summer bloom of off-white flowers in umbels. Missouri Botanical Garden PlantFinder describes a plant 2 to 3 feet tall and 12 to 18 inches wide that wants full sun, rich moist well-drained soil, and consistent water. It dislikes summer heat and humidity, growing best between 60 to 75°F, and the root is ready to harvest after 3-4 months.

Scientific name

Apium graveolens var. rapaceum

Plant type

vegetable

Hardiness

Annual; Missouri Botanical Garden lists USDA 3-6 context

Light

full-sun

Moisture

consistent

Spacing

9 inches

Classroom prompts

- Which plant traits are observations, and which are care recommendations?

- How would this plant fit change if the garden location moved warmer, colder, wetter, or drier?

- Which source-backed facts would you cite in a lesson handout?

Use the Sources & citations section below for page citation styles and the field-level source list.

Sources & citations

Cite this page

For lesson plans, articles, or research that uses this page. Use the source cards below to explore the references that informed this record.

Plotwright. (2026, May 17). Celeriac (Apium graveolens var. rapaceum). Retrieved 2026, August 20, from https://plotwright.com/plants/apium-graveolens-var-rapaceum

Sources used for this record

This record is compiled from the sources below.

Plants of the World Online (POWO)

Botanical research database

Open source

Source guide

Missouri Botanical Garden PlantFinder

Botanical research database

Open source

Source guide

RHS Find a Plant

Botanical research database