Poor Harvest Beets and Carrot

[DirtyHands99]

Hi all need your help.

I had a horrible harvest of both beetroot and Carrots last year. Parsnips did Ok.

Planted them end of march, and by december had marble size beetroot and tiny carrots.

I live in Lincolnshire so they should be loving the soil.

The only 2 things i can think of are.

didn't thin them out as much as i should. (to be honest forgot)

and the soil is very fine sand, so keeping moisture in top 4 inches is hard work.

Just wondering if the above two things will have stopped the roots getting low enough to hit moisture.

Please help as its second year of poor crops.

thanks

[Mr Bones]

Hello and welcome to the vine.
I'd guess the crops failed due to getting off to a bad start because of last years poor spring weather. I wouldn't mind betting if you'd sown in May or even June they would have been fine.

[Bex2012]

The not thinning out probably didnt help matters either, as the roots would have had nowhere to go. Why not try a couple of pots of carrots sown sucessionally a few weeks apart? Thats what im going to try this year, as well as stuff in the ground.

[ESBkevin]

I too suspect a combination of things, the wet start to the season, not being thinned and possibly the soil going rock hard once summer did hit preventing root development.

Get the soil dug deep or double dug and bury plenty of organic stuff. This helps drainage and also retains moisture as well as keeping air down where the roots are. This year will be better (gardeners motto).

[Mr Bones]

Could also try broadcasting the seed rather than sowing in drills. For me both carrot and beetroot have a much higher germination rate when broadcast in a band 6 to 12inches wide. Beetroot thinnings get transplanted into a new bed.

[DirtyHands99]

Ok thanks Guys,

Think i will do a row every 2 weeks this year