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For many reasons lots of people struggle to grow a good carrot. I have now found a way to produce descent carrots without the constant need for thinning and tinkering, just the harvesting of good carrots.
Firstly. have a look at your soil. Its pointless trying to grow 2' long show carrots if your soil is anything other than very deep sandy loam. I grow carrots in my raised beds and now always use a chantenay variety as these are not too long but taste wonderful and give a good return yield wise. You will no doubt all have your own favourite varieties to use.
Now, rather than sowing tons of seeds in rows that need thining out just sow half a dozen seeds every 4" in a row and leave 4" between the rows. This will give you a grid with carrots sown at 4" spaces. Water well and leave alone. At this point, you should use whatever anti carrot root fly measures you usually employ to ensure your crops are kept clean of their larvae.
After a while you will be able to pull the biggest carrot in each station to eat. Do this in succession until you are left with one or two carrots at each station which you can use for store if required.
The first picture shows a clump of carrots grown this way and the second a few harvested from each station ready for cooking.
As a bonus, you can sow a few positions in a polytunnel or greenhouse in late autumn after the summer crops have been cleared away to give you some sweet baby carots during the depths of winter.
This way of growing carrots I adapted from an original idea by a fabulous old gentleman called John Denyar.
Firstly. have a look at your soil. Its pointless trying to grow 2' long show carrots if your soil is anything other than very deep sandy loam. I grow carrots in my raised beds and now always use a chantenay variety as these are not too long but taste wonderful and give a good return yield wise. You will no doubt all have your own favourite varieties to use.
Now, rather than sowing tons of seeds in rows that need thining out just sow half a dozen seeds every 4" in a row and leave 4" between the rows. This will give you a grid with carrots sown at 4" spaces. Water well and leave alone. At this point, you should use whatever anti carrot root fly measures you usually employ to ensure your crops are kept clean of their larvae.
After a while you will be able to pull the biggest carrot in each station to eat. Do this in succession until you are left with one or two carrots at each station which you can use for store if required.
The first picture shows a clump of carrots grown this way and the second a few harvested from each station ready for cooking.
As a bonus, you can sow a few positions in a polytunnel or greenhouse in late autumn after the summer crops have been cleared away to give you some sweet baby carots during the depths of winter.
This way of growing carrots I adapted from an original idea by a fabulous old gentleman called John Denyar.
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