Carrot seeds - how long to germinate

[w33blegurl]

I put some carrot seeds (paris market and early scarlet horn) outside in the plot about 3 weeks ago and there is still no sign....do they usually take this long to come up or am I just being overly impatient?

Cheers!

[zazen999]

Yes, mine sown about 6 weeks ago are only just popping up. Esp outdoors - it's still quite cold out there.

[FionaH]

I planted Amsterdam 2 on 4/3 and they germinated yesterday. The Early Nantes took about a week longer. I note the dates on a spreadsheet, how sad is that?

[w33blegurl]

Thats great.....I just need to be a bit more patient then

[zazen999]

Yup..stop looking at them! Then one day they will be there.

[gojiberry]

If you are sowing outdoors I would recommend slug pellets as the seed can germinate and be eaten by slugs all in the same night. Slugs just love carrot seedlings. Mine were sown 3/4 weeks ago and still no sign yet, they do take ages outside.

Ian

[SlugLobber]

Second the slug protection. I have never had success with carrots. I have three from last autumn (donated by a friend, bless her!) and even with pellets, they've been got at. I've covered newly sown seeds with shredded paper and put lots of pellets in there. Still not confident!

[w33blegurl]

we do have an unimaginable number of slugs in the garden....will pellet them today!

[teakdesk]

If you are sowing outdoors I would recommend slug pellets as the seed can germinate and be eaten by slugs all in the same night. Slugs just love carrot seedlings.

Mine are in large pots in the cold greenhouse - they germinated, but not evenly over the surface - then after a week most of the seedlings suddenly disappeared - no slugs or slime to be seen so I was stumped - put slug pellets on the compost surface and next morning I found 2 dead slugs.

We have lots of frogs (about 20 cavorting in the pond yesterday!!) so don't like using slug pellets but they will be used carefully in the greenhouse now!!!

[Eyren]

Mine are going to be surrounded by a bran barrier, with a ring of slug pellets outside that - pellets and traps need to be near the damp areas where the beasties lurk, to kill them before they can reach the seedlings...

[w33blegurl]

I have those "organic" pellets...and the beds are netted anyway so no other creatures should be able to get to them. mind you with three cats there isnt much other wildlife in the garden.....

[RobintheBobin]

I planted Amsterdam 2 on 4/3 and they germinated yesterday. The Early Nantes took about a week longer. I note the dates on a spreadsheet, how sad is that?

I'm with you on the spreadsheet recording; I colour code too. Gosh I'm such a geek

As for carrots, I find them then most frustrating plants to germinate - my Chantenays have been in for three weeks under polytunnels and still haven't popped through and I'm sure when they do they will have germinated really irratically

[Jillyreeves]

How glad am I that I read this tread, planted mine 10 days ago in a container in my chilly conservatory and was wondering when I would start to see them.

Clearly I need to wait a couple of weeks longer before I have any hope of them breaking the surface.

[deezyb]

w33blgurl....I've sown paris market carrots too...the first lot, have just started to show, and the second sowing (3 weeks after the first) have been through for a wee while! Hopefully some warmer weather on the way - Give them another 2-3 weeks before giving up hope!

[Cosmo and Dibs]

If I grow my Autumn Kings under fleece will this keep away carrot fly?