Ann Haven, age 13, of Dekalb, I11., for her question:

WHERE DID PARSNIPS COME FROM ORIGINALLY?

The parsnip is a biennial vegetable that is related to the carrot. The edible part is the long tapering white root. The vegetable is a native to the Rhine Valley in Europe. It was known and probably used as food early in the Christian Era.

Parsnips were cultivated in England during the late 1500s and were then brought to New York in 1806.

The parsnip is a source of vitamins A and C. It contains 380 calories per pound.

Parsnips aren't important commercially, but many people grow them in home gardens. The vegetable requires rich soil for best growth. The seeds are sown in early spring and the plants come up slowly and unevenly.

If parsnips are neglected, they can become troublesome weeds, as wild parsnips are.

Parsnip roots grow slowly until the cool weather of fall. Then they grow rapidly. Parsnip roots are not injured by freezing and are often left in the garden over winter.

The parsnip plants are usually free from insect enemies and suffer few plant diseases.