Growing Carrot

Daucus carota : Apiaceae / the umbelliferae family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec
    P P P P P          

(Best months for growing Carrot in USA - Zone 5a regions)

  • P = Sow seed
  • Easy to grow. Sow in garden. Sow seed at a depth approximately three times the diameter of the seed. Best planted at soil temperatures between 46°F and 86°F. (Show °C/cm)
  • Space plants: 2 - 12 inches apart
  • Harvest in 12-18 weeks.
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Onions, Leeks, Lettuce, Sage, Peas, Radishes, Tomatoes, Beans, Celery, Rosemary
  • Avoid growing close to: Parsnips, Beetroot, Dill, Brassicas, Fennel

Your comments and tips

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03 Oct 09, meeghan (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
have never planted anything before and would like to know how long it takes for carrotts and parsnips to come up?
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25 Sep 09, Jodie (Australia - temperate climate)
Carrots do not like excess nitorgen. This will cause them to fork or grow stumpy. Don't fertilise with Dynamic lifter. We planted carrots and they grew very well but you do need to leave them for about 3 months to grow sufficiently. Carrots grow best from seed. If you buy seedlings and then transplant you are disturbing the roots which are the part that grows to form the carrot.
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22 Sep 09, David (Australia - temperate climate)
Lisa. How long have the carrots been in? Are they getting plenty of sun & water?
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18 Sep 09, Lisa (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
my carrots are VERY leafy but have tiny root growth. Good soil. Good drainage. Not too much fertiliser. What am I doing wrong???
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08 Sep 19, Anna (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
I have the same problem it is now 8 September and I put them in about 5 months ago. Lots of green foliage. short subby carrots. The soils is deep and mostly made up of composted lawn clippings.
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10 Sep 09, Dee (Australia - temperate climate)
Many thanks for the info David, most appreciated! I've planted another crop of them but will lay off the fertiliser this time.
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10 Sep 09, David (Australia - temperate climate)
Dee. "You are what you eat" same for vegies, I am guessing the bad taste came from the Liquid Nitrosol rather than the basil. Carrots don't need feeding whilst they are growing, just dig a little (very little) compost in before planting and keep well watered.
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08 Sep 09, Dee (Australia - temperate climate)
Hi all. Has anyone had any problems planting carrot seedlings with basil? I'm new to vege gardening and didnt think about companion planting too much (obviously :)). They were the round variety and ended up quite small and they were so DISGUSTING I wanted to scrub my tongue with a wire brush to get the taste out of my mouth. I used liquid Nitrosol to fertilise - do you think the basil or fertliser may have been the reason for the bad taste?
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02 Sep 09, Julia (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
I just read that you can't grow carrots from seedlings, only seeds. Is this true? We planted some from seedlings we bought at a market and they all came out round and woody. Very disappointing!
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02 Sep 09, Julia (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
We planted carrots around 4 months ago. It's been an unusually warm winter (warmest on record i think) and everyone I have pulled up is about an inch wide, but round! Any suggestions to prevent round carrots next time? thanks
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I thought I might mention: after you harvest your first crop of carrots you probably have enough time to grow a crop of the smaller varieties of radish. Radishes: ******** Germination temperatures: ideal 15c - 25c acceptable 10c - 30c ************ Germination time: 5 -10 days *************** Growing temperatures: ideal 10c -18c intermediate to short day lengths -Growth must be continuous and rapid for good quality. Acceptable grow temps 4c – 24c. Roots of globe varieties tend to elongate and develop poor shape in hot weather when the tops also grow taller and larger than in cool weather. Long days induce flowering or seed stalks (bolting) and with warm weather the seed stalk may develop so rapidly that no edible root is formed *************** Days to harvest: Regular radish reach market size in 21 to 28 days. Chinese radish take 50 to 90 days (or more) to mature. ** A regular radish seed can produce a radish from planting to harvest in about 33 days. This crop also likes short day lengths and cooler temps making it an ideal crop to “squeeze” in late in the season, before the first frost. With a first potential frost date of October 15 – you could direct sow radish seeds like Cherry Belle, or French Breakfast (both with about 21 days to harvest from seedlings) on September 7th and reasonably expect to harvest your radishes before the first frost. You could also sow in trays and then plant them out… if real-estate is an issue, or if you need to get the radishes started before your harvest your carrots (timing) ************* Storage and Conditioning the recommended storage temperature is 0 C with a relative humidity of 95% to 100%. Topped radishes packaged in perforated plastic bags will keep for 3 to 4 weeks. Bunched radishes will keep 1 to 2 weeks. ********** Temperature information was gleaned from: ATLANTIC PROVINCES AGRICULTURE SERVICES and amalgamated with information from individual radish varieties such as Cherry Belle. ****** if you don't harvest your radishes on time they will be pithy/mealy

- Celeste Archer

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