How to Grow Carrots

Carrots are a staple in most households around the world. Known for being an excellent source of beta-carotene, Vitamin K1, potassium, and antioxidants, these low-calorie vegetables have long been associated with eye health and may even help lower cholesterol! The best part is they don’t require expert level gardening skills and can be used in a huge variety of ways.

When to grow carrots

Carrots are suited to a large variety of climates as they will germinate in soil temperatures of 10-30°C or 50–86°F. Some varieties even boast being able to grow them year-round but you’ll want to avoid growing them in extreme heat or frost and check the requirements for the particular variety you choose to ensure you’ve got one that is suited to the time of year you are wanting to grow.

Carrot varieties

Most of us grew up thinking all carrots are orange so it’s a bit exciting being able to grow carrots that are purple, red, white or yellow. You can even get some varieties that are round rather than cylindrical!

Here are a few popular ones you might want to check out:

· All seasons – a good standard carrot

· Cosmic purple – a bright purple option (careful if steaming over a pot of potatoes if you don’t want grey mashed potato)

· Atomic red – red in colour and better eaten cooked rather than raw

· Nantes – a great all rounder that’s great for juicing and has very little core

· Paris Market – round carrots that do well in clay or rocky soil

· Red Kuroda – an Asian variety that is more tolerant to heat and has a great taste

How to grow carrots from seeds

The key to growing great carrots is in the soil preparation. Ensuring you have a good rich soil free from rocks and debris before sowing will help ensure a better crop. Be sure to loosen up the soil at least 20cm or 8 inches below the surface as that’s where your carrots may grow.

Direct sowing (where you plant the seeds directly into the soil) is the ideal way to grow carrots. To do so, the easiest way is to create a little indented row (around 5mm or ¼ inch deep) using a tool such as the Narrow garden trowel by garden tools Australia (be sure to use the code SSM10 for a 10% discount) in the soil. Be sure to wet the soil first then carefully sprinkle the seeds along the indented row aiming to space the individual seeds at least carrot width apart. Don’t worry too much if you can’t evenly space them as you can always harvest baby carrots to thin them out if you’ve bunched them too much. Then lightly cover the seeds with soil or vermiculite. Seedlings should start to appear around 10-14 days after sowing.

Carrot seeds do not like to dry out before they germinate so it’s important to keep them well watered until after the seedlings have emerged but be careful not to water too strongly or they might wash away. Some people even cover the area that they have sown carrot seeds in with a piece of cardboard or wood to keep them moist until the seeds have germinated.

How to grow carrots from seedlings

It is possible to transplant carrots as seedlings but it’s generally not recommended as it can be extremely difficult to keep the root straight when you transplant so you may end up with some interesting twisted carrots!

Whether you direct sow or transplant your carrots, you’ll still want to ensure you prepare the soil properly first. If you are limited on space or want to get a head start on the growing season before the frost has finished then you may want to look at germinating your seeds in soil blocks rather than seedling trays as this will allow you to take the whole soil block and plant it in the soil without having to move the root at all. Then you can lightly water the seedlings in with a seaweed solution such as the Plant Doctor’s Seaweed Secrets (use SSME10 for 10% off your order) to minimise transplant shock. Once the seedlings are growing, it’s important to consistently water your carrots. If you don’t, it will result in carrots that appear hairy with loads of fine roots coming off the main root (carrot) in search of water. This doesn’t affect the carrot too much but doesn’t look all that appetising.

How long does it take to grow carrots?

Carrots are typically grown in quite a short time with many varieties reaching full maturity around the 60-70 day mark. There are some varieties that take much longer than that with up to 140 days until maturity. Check your seed packet for an indication of what to expect.

When to harvest carrots

As carrots grow under the soil, it can be tricky working out exactly when to harvest them but that’s part of the fun! Baby carrots are delicious and sweet so you can start harvesting much sooner than when they reach full maturity but I’d suggest giving them at least a month to establish. A good sign that a carrot is well developed is to look at the base of the greens – they tend to be a bit thicker with more mature carrots but definitely don’t make a rule out of it as you will find sometimes you’ll pull up a carrot expecting a whopper only to get a stumpy little one or vice versa. Remember that you can always use any stumpy carrots in stir fries, grated in salads or baking, soups, or stews. And when you do harvest, don’t forget you can also use the leaves/greens in salads, chimichurri, pastas or smoothies.

Mark’s top tips for growing carrots

Forked or stunted carrots is a sign that your soil is too hard and/or there are rocks or debris in the soil causing deformed roots as the carrot develops. For straight perfect roots, use a medium growing mix or soil that is friable (has small fragments and is easy to grow in). Sifting the top layer of soil in the garden bed to remove large rocks or debris and pre digging to loosen the topsoil can help.

You may also want to check out Mark’s videos: “Growing Lots of Carrots in Small Raised Bed Plus Tips” “5 Tips How to Thin Out a Ton of Seedlings”

How did you go growing carrots?

Mark and the Self Sufficient Me team love hearing about your growing success so leave a comment and a photo below to let us know how you went growing carrots.

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