Carrots Mignon

[uulwyn]

Hi all,

It seems I'm blasting this forum today, but here goes with a CARROT (MIGNON,Little fingers) variety.

I have sown to 15l buckets with this variety, and they seem to be growing ok, however the problem i am having is that on the seed packet it says matures in 12weeks, well 12 weeks have passed and I gave one a little dig and its tiny!

Am i doing something wrong here? I have sown them directly into 15l of multipurpose compost mixed with some vermiculite.

Oh i dont know, this growing lark is sometimes annoying!

[zazen999]

Matures in 12 weeks, under ideal conditions, in a good summer maybe?

[snohare]

Light levels, ambient temperature and nutrient levels (including water) will all make a difference to how fast any plant grows. High nitrogen levels in the soil, or low phospate levels, will mean that the foliage grows, but not the roots.
You could try sticking some glass, or even just clingfilm, over your buckets of carrots. That made a great difference for me one wet year.
A tiny sprinkling of common salt will help release any mineral salts that are in the soil, so if it is low in phosphate that might work. A teaspoonful to the square yard used to be the rule of thumb there I think; I'd guess less for buckets because it won't leach out.
Your carrots are bound to be better than mine, I envy you, I don't have any at all !

[uulwyn]

Light levels, ambient temperature and nutrient levels (including water) will all make a difference to how fast any plant grows. High nitrogen levels in the soil, or low phospate levels, will mean that the foliage grows, but not the roots.
You could try sticking some glass, or even just clingfilm, over your buckets of carrots. That made a great difference for me one wet year.
A tiny sprinkling of common salt will help release any mineral salts that are in the soil, so if it is low in phosphate that might work. A teaspoonful to the square yard used to be the rule of thumb there I think; I'd guess less for buckets because it won't leach out.
Your carrots are bound to be better than mine, I envy you, I don't have any at all !

Thankyou very good advice