HOW TO GROW AND CARE FOR CARROTS
HOW TO GROW AND CARE FOR CARROTS
Carrots are a biennial vegetable, although they are usually harvested the first year they grow before winter and flower the following year. Fern-like leaves are neatly wrapped around carrot leaves. Carrot flowers have five petals and sepals and rise in umbels. Most carrot roots are about an inch in diameter and range from an inch to more than 12 inches long. Carrots are best known for their long orange roots, but they come in many colors and shapes.
Plant carrots in the spring and the seeds will germinate in 10 to 21 days. From seed to harvest, it usually takes 50-75 days.
How to grow carrots
When to plant:
Carrots grow best in cool climates. You can start planting carrot seeds or sowing carrot seeds as soon as the soil can be worked in the spring, at least two to three weeks before the last frost. You can plant carrots every two weeks in the spring. In warmer climates, you may have better luck growing carrots in the fall and winter.
Site selection :
Carrots will do best in a place that gets six to eight hours of sun a day or part shade. The soil should be loose, sandy and well-drained because carrots will grow slowly and have strong roots if forced to grow in heavy soil. Growing carrots in beds with soft soil is a good condition.
Space, depth and support :
The right carrot space is the key to a successful harvest, but it is not always easy and requires special attention. Plant the seeds 1/4 inch below the soil surface as much as possible, two or three inches apart. Seeds will look good if some of them grow within 1/2 inch of each other, but as they grow, they usually need about 3 inches of space between them. . Cutting or pruning the plant at ground level is the best way to avoid damaging the nearby roots. Carrots do not need support; But they also don’t like to be moved or disturbed.
Carrot management
Light
Even though its roots grow underground, its leaves need full sun or partial shade for the carrot roots to grow quickly and produce their sugar.
soil
Carrots need well-drained soil. Rocks and clumps will cause the carrot roots to split and crack. Carrots prefer slightly acidic soil, between 6.0 and 6.8.
Water
Water your carrots weekly with at least one inch of water. Mulching will help conserve water and keep the soil cool.
Heat and humidity
These biennials are often grown as annuals in all regions and all climates. However, they grow best and taste best if night temperatures are around 55 degrees Fahrenheit and daytime temperatures average 75 degrees Fahrenheit. In hot weather, carrots are sometimes planted in autumn and winter.
Fertilizer
If your soil is not rich in organic matter, additional feeding will be required about two weeks after the carrot tops emerge. Any good lawn fertilizer will do. Because they grew for their roots, do not enter the nitrogen fertilizer, which promotes leaf growth.
Harvesting carrots
Growing carrots (Daucus carota) – or any vegetable, for that matter – can be a bit of a gamble because you can’t see how well they’re doing until you harvest. field. When to harvest your carrots will depend on the variety you grow, but the average harvest time is 50-75 days from seed.
Use the harvest date listed on your seed packet as a guide for when to start harvesting. Test to see if the top of your carrot plant has reached the desired diameter by feeling below the soil line. The only real test is to pick up one of the carrots and taste it.
Don’t harvest too early thinking you’ll get sweet baby carrots. The small carrots in the store are special varieties that grow small carrots or large carrots that are down to baby size. Immature carrots will be bad because they haven’t had time to develop their full flavor. Most of the time, the taste starts when the plant suffers a frost.
If the ground is very soft, you can bend and pull the carrots from the ground. To be on the safe side, it is advisable to loosen the soil a little before harvesting, being careful not to plant carrots in this process. Remove the leaves immediately after harvesting. The leaves will continue to receive energy and water from the roots, leaving them soft and reducing the taste of your carrots.
How to grow carrots in pots
Carrots need well-drained soil. They will wobble and wobble if they encounter the slightest resistance, such as rocks or hard ground in the field. If you can’t provide loose soil in your vegetable garden, consider planting carrots in containers using potting soil designed specifically for potted vegetables. Short finger types or small round carrots, such as “Paris Market”, or other types with young roots and growing to two or three inches in length, are good for containers. Make sure your bag (anything that works) is at least 12 to 24 inches in diameter, at least 12 inches deep, and has plenty of water holes. Potted carrots will need more water than in-ground crops; Water the bag thoroughly once a week. Size
To prevent root rot, keep the area free from weeds while the carrots are growing. If you need them again later, you can use baby carrots in salads. When you’re done, your carrots should be far enough apart that they don’t touch each other when they’re ripe.
How to grow carrots from seeds
Carrots can be grown from young seedlings, but the most common method is to sow the seeds in the field as soon as the soil is active in the spring. But carrot seeds are small, which makes it difficult to plant them well. They can take up to three weeks to grow.
- Dig the soil at least a foot deep to ensure it is warm and loose and can drain well. Make shallow furrows in the soil (the long handle of a garden tool will do), 1/4 inch deep and a foot apart if you are sowing more than one row of carrots.
- Plant two or three different carrot seeds, 1/4 inch deep, and cover with a little soil. It is difficult to transplant individual carrot seeds, so you will need to transplant them as they sprout.
- Write the name of the crop and the date of planting on a plastic marker, stick of paint or popsicle stick to indicate the location of your seed row. Marking the line helps you know where to water.
- Press lightly on the soil to ensure that there is a connection between the seed and the soil. Keep the holes moist and don’t let the soil dry out because this will make the bones too hard for the young plant to grow out of.
- Give the plant an inch of water every week. When the plants are two inches tall, plant them and leave them three inches apart. Use a small pruning shear for this job so you don’t tear up the nearby growing carrot roots. Winter season
- You can leave the carrot plant in the winter. Be sure to wash the grass well before the first frost. Mulch the area with about three inches of mulch or dead leaves. You may want to consider adding a blanket if you live in a cold climate. The surface of the carrot will die but the roots will continue to harvest their sugar to survive the cold. Even if left in the ground during the winter, the roots can still be delicious. Harvest these carrots before the beginning of early spring, otherwise they will begin to grow flowers.
Common pests and plant diseases
A major pest that attacks carrots is the carrot fly. He puts his eggs in the ground, near the top of the carrots. When the eggs hatch, the larvae enter the soil and enter the roots of the carrot, where they feed and create tunnels through the carrot. Carrot grass can spoil the style. You can outrun some pests by rotating where you plant each year, but the easiest method is to plant your carrots under cover (garden beds). Nematodes, microscopic worms, can become a problem later in the season, causing severe root rot. Exposure to hot sun can kill nematodes. If you are fighting with carrot nematodes in one place, switch to another field and plant carrots in another place.
Even if they do not see roots growing underground, many animals will want to eat the top of your carrots and a few will dig deep. Deer, groundhogs, rabbits, opossums and many others will need to be protected in the garden – spraying is the only effective way.
Many leaf spots and diseases can affect carrots, such as Alternaria leaf blight, carrot yellow and soft rot. There isn’t much you can do once a plant is infected. Look closely and remove any plants that show signs of disease. Clean up any debris at the end of the season and move your carrots to another part of the garden next year because microorganisms can persist in the soil.
