Attempting Carrots

[Bandit26]

I made the back side of one of my smaller raised beds deeper (about 14 inches) and sowed 2 rows of carrots. One standard and one purple. Never tried to grow them before so it will be an experiment

I know to keep the soil damp and to thin them when they sprout because the dont like to be crowded. Any other tips?

 

[Chuck]

I made the back side of one of my smaller raised beds deeper (about 14 inches) and sowed 2 rows of carrots. One standard and one purple. Never tried to grow them before so it will be an experiment

I know to keep the soil damp and to thin them when they sprout because the dont like to be crowded. Any other tips?

Carrots like onions are heavy feeders. When they are about 2" tall fertilize them and immediately water in the fertilizer washing away any fertilizer that might be touching them. Thin them to about 2" apart and fertilize about every 2 weeks.

 

[Bandit26]

Thanks Chuck. The soil is already pretty rich and mushroom compost and rock dust was added when I went deeper with it. Should I fertilize more or will that be enough for the first thinning? I dont want to over do it and hurt them

 

[Chuck]

Thanks Chuck. The soil is already pretty rich and mushroom compost and rock dust was added when I went deeper with it. Should I fertilize more or will that be enough for the first thinning? I dont want to over do it and hurt them

That shoud do fine. No more fertilizer until 5 or 6" tall and don't forget to wash off the plant. I have found that a pair of small sharp pointed scissors works much better for thinning than pulling them up. For instance when 2 plants are next to each other and pulling one will damage the roots of the other. Also I have found them to be a lot quicker than hand thinning and they will come in very handy with other garden chores like picking tomatos and green beans

 

[Bandit26]

Good to know.. I already have a good pair of garden scissors that I will use

 

[Chuck]

Something else about carrots. When they are about to reach maturity if they are over watered they will crack and split just like a tomato

 

[Bandit26]

The carrot harvest has begun! Planted orange and purple and had great success with both. I didnt thin them out but they grew straight and large (with plenty of baby ones too). I'm sure the loose organic soil had alot to do with them growing properly without thinning. The flavor is amazing and I will definitely be doing them again next year. Husband even has commented on how yummy they are and in the 21 years I've known him he's never mentioned the flavor of a carrot before.

 

[Rosyrain]

Glad to hear that your husband enjoyed the carrots. They are one of the most easy vegetables to grow. I like the fact that you can even pull them when they are small and make stir fry out of them...now only if I could grow baby corn!

 

[Bandit26]

They are much easier to grow than expected and will be part of the garden every year from now on.

He also really loved the purple potatoes so I'm going to have to expand on growing those next year as well

 

[leahlane]

Good luck with your carrots! I have always had really good luck with them and find them easy to tend to. They are one of my favorite veggies so I'm happy to have lots of them around.

 

[zigs]

Did you have any Carrot fly damage?