Growing carrots

[monkeyboy]

I've read through various threads, including VC's 2016 thread. A couple of years ago, I sowed carrots into my SFG bed and got nothing. Last year, I bought seedlings and transplanted them but forgot to thin them out so lots of stubby carrots.

This year, I plan to sow in containers. I'm considering a mix of MPC. coco coir, perlite and maybe horticultural sand. That's really all to keep the soil loose and help retain moisture.

Am I being a numpty? Or will this actually help the carrots?

[veggiechicken]

I still grow carrots in buckets. I sieve the soil before filling the buckets and some have had sand added, other than that, I just sow and grow.
I don't buy carrots or other root crops as seedlings as they are usually sown too thickly in a little strip tray, the roots will be stunted and they don't recover once transplanted.

[broadway]

Will be my first year growing carrots and my plan was to sow in an old council recycle box (with the bottom cut off), any obvious issues?

Was also gonna do parsnips the same way.

[greenishfing]

I am also very interested in any tips and if anyone has a totally idiotproof way of getting a good carrot crop I will try it. Parsnips aren't a problem. Even sowed direct into my heavy clay I get a good crop. Carrots! I have tried everything that I can think of to no avail. In the soil, in buckets, in old recycling boxes. Kept them covered. They are just out to spite me!

[ameno]

Never use old seed. You can get away with using last year's seed, but nothing beyond that.
Never sow in cold soil. Carrot seeds hate it and won't germinate. The packet might say you can sow from March, or even February, but you can't really. Wait until April, even in the South. Probably late April or even early May up north.
Oh, also, if the first lot fail, don't be afraid to resow. Even maincrop only need 12 weeks, and early will be done in 8, so you should still have plenty of time.

[lottie dolly]

last year i had a really good crop,both at home and plot,the plot got seen off with badgers,but the home ones,are still going,no tops but still in the ground,the only tips i can give are.
Wait until the ground warms up,keep an eye out on here for when peeps do start sowing,if you wish cover the proposed area with something to keep the ground cozier for now.
Before you sow,give the sowing strips a good chopping up,hand fork,hoe,ext,just loosen the ground up,next,scrape an indentation into it approx 4in wide,water the indent gently,scatter the seeds VERY thinly,if a lump of em fall,just spread out gently with a finger,cover up to approx 1/2in,using a hoe or rake,water gently again,please remember to mark BOTH ends of the row,i put a line of string to tell me where they are,just until they show up,make sure the row is kept moist,especially in warm/hot weather,i do no thin mine,when the have sever inch of growth,hoe up slightly,to keep the tops covered,as rain and watering usually erode some soil,hope this helps,and good luck.

[burnie]

I grow roots quite well in my raised beds and I then cover them with a decent fleece and we are still harvesting them as we need. I grow in blocks rather than in rows and don't thin any out, though I will pinch the odd one as I'm wandering round the garden in the summer to eat raw. I tend to grow shorter varieties , Eskimo is one we like in particular.

[Can the Man]

I grew mine in raised beds in poly tunnel last year as an experiment, one lot I thinned out the other I didn’t. The thinned ones were very successful over 6” long in some cases the were not big fat carrots which I don’t like they were a wee bit thicker than a builders pencil, and lovey and sweet. They are beautiful steamed or raw. I will check the variety later.

[Penellype]

Carrots are one of my favourite vegetables and I have spent years learning how (and how not) to grow them.

My technique:
Prepare buckets of compost (I use 30 litre buckets) by sieving either new MPC or used compost from other crops such as tomatoes - add bfb to used compost. Put a strip of copper tape round the outside of each bucket to deter slugs.
In late March (cold tolerant varieties), April or early May, water the compost well, then place individual seeds at spacings of about an inch in each direction. Cover with about 1/2 an inch of fresh compost straight out of the bag - it must not be very dry.
Cover the bucket with a piece of insect mesh tied on, mainly to help keep moisture in (plastic will get the seeds too hot and could kill them).
Keep the compost damp - I use a spray bottle.
Exercise patience - carrots can take 3-4 weeks to appear, particularly early sowings.
When seedlings are visible remove the mesh and put the buckets in an insect mesh cage.
Keep watered, but don't thin - there should be no need.
Harvest any time from about August onwards - cold tolerant varieties should last through winter. I bring a bucket into the garage so I can harvest even if the outdoor buckets are frozen.

Varieties I use are Nantes Frubund and Eskimo (both cold tolerant), Sweet Candle (not cold tolerant) and Nandor (said to be carrot fly resistant, is ok, but I still net them if I can). I also sow Marion in the hotbed and Autumn King in the tunnel at the allotment surrounded by copper mesh, but expect a lot of slug damage. Marion, Nandor and Autumn King are inferior in flavour to the other 3 varieties in my opinion.

Always use new or 1 year old seed. Never allow sown carrots/seedlings to dry out. Always protect from slugs and carrot fly. If you don't sieve the compost you may get a lot of forked roots.



These are Nantes Frubund sown in April, in my carrot cage this afternoon. (Excuse the weeds!) Judging by the 3 buckets I have already harvested, most of these carrots should be 6-8 inches long.

[Bren In Pots]

I sow my carrots in flower buckets with a sieved mix of soil, dalek compost and leaf mould, I stick a cane in the centre to support fine netting. I try to sow them thinly so I don't have to bother again until harvest time.
I do love how everyone has their own way of sowing.

[FBI]

I've given up on sowing carrots into the ground nowadays: the slugs always get there before I do. They don't seem to bother with the buckets though and I get good crops from those and the recycling tubs. This year, though, I'm going to try an experiment by putting pallets on their sides, chucking compost in and effectively growing a living fence. It'll probably be a disaster but they take up a lot of space so worth a shot, I reckon.

[broadway]

I've read through various threads, including VC's 2016 thread. A couple of years ago, I sowed carrots into my SFG bed and got nothing. Last year, I bought seedlings and transplanted them but forgot to thin them out so lots of stubby carrots.

This year, I plan to sow in containers. I'm considering a mix of MPC. coco coir, perlite and maybe horticultural sand. That's really all to keep the soil loose and help retain moisture.

Am I being a numpty? Or will this actually help the carrots?

Thanks for starting the thread MB

Lots of useful information

[veggiechicken]

I've read through various threads, including VC's 2016 thread.

Too save you searching it was the one where I challenged the Vine to grow a bucket of carrots a week. https://www.growfruitandveg.co.uk/gr...6-a_88269.html

[Logunner]

Had great success in a raised bed filled with sieved 50/50 mix of MPC and used coffee grounds.

I use pelleted carrot seeds so no need to thin out, and every single seed germinated. Any parsnips that did germinate also did very well.

[Jimmy]

I had an old plastic dustbin with no bottom.
Put an empty plastic paint container, with sealed lid, in bottom to save on compost.
Filled dustbin with compost.
Sowed rainbow carrots, they did well.
No carrot fly damage as bin higher than they fly.
Noted the standard orange ones has a small amount of slug damage, but the yellow ones seemed untouched.
Jimmy