Store them away from apples, pears, potatoes and other vegetables and fruit that produce ethylene gas, because ethylene makes carrots bitter. They will stay fresh for about two weeks if they are stored in a plastic bag or wrapped in paper towel and kept in the coolest part of the fridge. Cut off the green leafy tops before storing them because the leaves draw moisture from the roots. Rather pick all the carrots from each sowing at once and freeze, bottle or store them in the refrigerator. If the shoulders of the carrot are green they are past their best and will be woody and bitter. Don’t delay harvesting because the quality of the carrot does not improve the longer it stays in the ground. Fungicide, like Dithane WG or Coppercount, can be used as a preventive measure.Ĭarrots are ready for harvesting within 10 – 12 weeks. Leaf blight can be a problem during wet periods. Some gardeners lightly cover the shoulders of the carrots with soil to prevent greening. Light mulch will retain the moisture in the beds.
Weed control (by hand) and watering should be done regularly. Thinned carrots can be chopped up and added to salad.
Continue thinning out on a regular basis until the final plants are 5cm apart. The first thinning out takes place when the first two or three true leaves develop. The number of plants you will have to remove depends on the germination rate and the progress of the seedlings. It is essential to thin out the plants to prevent stunted and misshapen carrots. Compost dries out very quickly so you need to be extra vigilant and water twice a day when it is very hot. If the soil in your garden tends to be quite heavy or forms a hard crust then cover the seeds with fine compost instead of soil so that they can break through the surface more easily. To make it easier to work with, the seed can be mixed with fine sand or mealie meal. It is also advisable to sow the seed more thickly than recommended as germination is more erratic when conditions are not ideal. This usually also keeps birds and cats out of the beds. I prefer using shade cloth and raise it about 15cm off the bed, making a supporting framework with sticks. The damp newspaper will also act as a snail trap, and by lifting it up in the evening you can pick off the snails. If needs be you can sow it a bit deeper, or shade the bed with shade cloth or a light layer of damp newspaper. Seed is typically sown shallowly, so care must be taken to prevent it from drying out in the hot midday sun. Remember: this feeding advice does not apply to carrots grown in the garden.Ĭarrots seed is very fine and is best sown in the rows where it is to grow. Liquid feeding at half the recommended rate twice a month is essential as nutrients leach out during watering. Regular watering is very important, and during germination it is critical because the soil must not dry out. (If you practice crop rotation, plant carrots in beds that previously held leafy vegetables, especially cabbages, which are heavy feeders.)Ĭarrots can be grown in deep containers using regular potting soil. Some gardeners dig over the bed twice to really aerate it.ĭon’t add manure or compost because carrots prefer a nutritionally poor soil. Remove all clods of earth, stones, sticks, weeds and roots so that the soil texture is fine. Carrots are a root crop so the soil needs to be dug over deeply (more than 30cm in depth). Although carrots prefer cooler growing conditions, they are one of the few vegetables that can be sown from August to April in most parts of the country.Ĭarrots do best in light, sandy, loam soil, and heavier soil that tends towards clay is not ideal. Most of the carrots we buy are cultivated using pesticides and other chemicals, which is certainly a compelling reason for growing your own, organically. Many ‘detox diets’ include a medium-sized glass of pure carrot juice a day, while grated carrot is a good option for one of the portions of vegetables or as a component of one of the fresh salads that we should be eating daily. Many of us grew up being told that carrots would curl your hair and help you see at night – an interesting combination! Don’t disregard that as ‘folklore’ – it’s at least half right, because carrots contain antioxidant compounds that promote good vision, especially night vision, and also help to protect us against cardiovascular disease and cancerĬarrots are said to be one of our best health foods: they are rich in vitamin A and a very good source of vitamin C, vitamin K, dietary fibre and potassium. Carrots are delicious eaten raw or cooked, and studies suggest that eating one a day might beat taking vitamin supplements.
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