carrots under fleece

[Jimmy]

I have some polythene cloches, the wire hoop type.
I want to grow carrots but suspect we get carrot fly.
Could I use fleece with my wire hoops and have fleece tunnel.
Would it be OK to leave it on all the time to deter the fly.

Any idea ?

Thanks
Jim

[Two_Sheds]

yes and yes



Yes

[Jimmy]

yes and yes



Yes

I assume that's a yes.
Good stuff.
Thanks
Jimmy

[Nicos]

We leave fleece directly on top of the carrot leaves for the whole season to give the flies even less space to get at the carrots. Never had any problems with lack of ventilation.
Just held down with large stones around the edges.

( I always worry about strong winds and wire cloches )

[Veggielot]

I used Enviromesh for the first time last year because I had problems with carrot fly and it worked a treat. Fleece should do pretty muich the same.

[Two_Sheds]

We leave fleece directly on top of the carrot leaves for the whole season

Yep, it needs to be there all year. If carrots are left in the ground over winter, the maggots continue feeding. I left some last year to check this, and yes the damage was horrendous: hardly any carrot root left at all under the leaves, and lots of manky brown tunnels in them.

Dig up all the roots before winter, or keep them covered

[out in the cold]

We used a big tub, with a cane and a coke bottle on top to support the fleece, which is just tied tight round the edge

[WendyC]

The theory that carrot fly only fly under 18" or so isn't true, at least no-one told the flies round here.
A newcomer on the site asked me what my environmesh tunnel was for and when I said it was to protect carrots against carrot fly he looked at me as if I said I was protecting against some mythical being like the tooth fairy!

[rob39]

I hate growing carrots and THEY hate me!!!!!!!!!!

I'm using fleece cloches this year and sacrificed 3 Tesco chickens just to get them to the pot.

I've seen the mythical beast the 'CARROT FLY', oh the nightmares I've had!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!