If you have a cold frame or polytunnel you can plant up to two months earlier. Thinning carrots makes sure the roots have ample space to grow.ĭirect sow carrot seed in the garden in mid-spring, about a week or two before the last expected spring frost. I loosen the top foot of soil in my beds using a garden fork, working in around an inch of compost. If using manure, be sure it’s aged at least two years as the higher nitrogen levels of half-composted manure can cause carrot roots to fork or become densely covered in root hairs. Once you have seeds in hand and have picked a good site for your carrot crop, it’s time to amend the soil. And while I generally grow at least a handful of varieties like Ya-ya, Napoli, Atomic Red, and Imperator, I also love the many different rainbow blends of carrots, like Carnival Blend that offer a bold mixture of orange, purple, red, yellow, and white varieties. Or, baby varieties like Little Finger that have slender four-inch long roots. If your soil is shallow or heavy, stick to compact varieties of carrots like Red Cored Chantenay, which has short, thick roots that only grow about five-inches long. Of course not all of us have perfect soil, myself included, so I grow most of my vegetables in raised beds. If carrots are spaced too close together, there isn’t enough room to develop large healthy roots and they may become stunted or misshapen.Ĭarrots can be planted every few weeks from mid-spring to mid-summer to ensure a long season of super-sweet homegrown roots How to plant carrotsĬarrots grow best in a sunny site with deep, well-draining, clump-free soil. But why do we need to thin carrots anyway? It’s because carrot seeds are very small and it’s easy to accidentally plant them too thickly when sowing the tiny seeds. Thinning carrots is one of those tedious garden tasks that, although necessary, isn’t much fun.
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