Growing carrots in the garden is easy enough to do when you know the right way to plant and tend them through the entire season. As a root vegetable, carrots grow in flavor and size the longer they are left in the ground, but there are a lot of other factors that can make all the difference between having a decent crop to harvest or hardly seeing seedlings sprout. If you have never grown carrots in the past but want to give them a try this year, follow these five easy steps to growing success.
Growing plants from seeds are common that is the reason why some people who are new to gardening or farming assume that plants can only be grown from seeds. However, raising plants from seeds is one of the many ways to grow plants. Not all plants grow from seeds. Some plants such as ferns and mosses grow from spores. While other plants grow asexually by cutting, grafting, layering, budding, and hybridization.
Many vegetables, despite having been cut, tend to sprout again, as a sign of survival and as a sign of the great power of nature, which always clings to life. Today we are going to see how we can do to recover a carrot after having eaten much of the root and keeping the top. Regrowing carrots is extremely easy and anyone can do it. All you need is some time and effort. This is a method of growing carrots without using seeds. Seeds can grow and die most of the time and have a very disappointing effect. However, with most carrots, it’s possible to regrow a plant from the carrots itself.
Planting Carrots from A Carrot
To plant a whole carrot in the ground to grow a carrot plant, just place the carrot into the soil about 1/2 inch below the surface. Plant in full sun in light, well-draining soil. The seeds can then be saved for next growing season and planted to possibly grow new carrot plants
Planting Carrots From Cuttings
It’s quite simple you just need to place on the saucer. Give it some water and leave it in a sunny position now you don’t want to be giving it the midday Sun. So it doesn’t only get too sunny.
Procedure For Planting Carrots Without Seed
The procedure for planting carrots include the following
Choose Your Carrots
There are several different varieties of carrot you can choose from, depending on your type of soil and personal preference. Common types of homegrown carrots include:
- Amsterdam – Small and thin, they grow to about 3 inches
- Danvers Half-Long – A thin, strong carrot with rich flavor that grows to about 7 inches
- Imperator – Thin and deep-growing, it grows to about 10 inches
- Little Finger – Small and sweet, it grows from 3 to 5 inches, and considered “gourmet”
- Paris Market – Very short, about 1.5 inches in diameter
- Red-Cored Chantenany – Great red-orange color, very wide, grows to about 6 inches
- Thumberline – A round carrot growing to about 2 inches in diameter
Carrot are ready to plant early in spring, just after the last major frost as come and gone. Like all root plants, carrots grow best in cool weather climates, between 60 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit. If the climate is too hot, the carrots might not grow as large, and might have an overpoweringly strong flavor. Conversely, if the climate is too cold (below 55 degrees Fahrenheit), they will grow too long and thin, with a pale color. However, growing carrots is fairly easy because they are so resilient. Often, they can be planted in early spring and left in the ground until late fall.
Inspect Your Soil and Fertilizer
The type of soil used is an important factor in determining how carrots grow. The best soil for growing carrots is moist, yet well-drained and loose to about 1 foot in depth. Stay away from soil that contains a lot of rocks and twigs; they will interfere with the growth of the roots.
Carrots do not do well in soil that is too acidic. Test your soil’s pH balance; ideally, for carrots, it should be between 6 and 6.5. You should also make sure that your fertilizer does not contain too much nitrogen (about three-fourths to 1 cup urea per 100 square feet is appropriate).
What you put on your soil is also important. Never use a weed fertilizer on your carrot garden, as it contains weed killers that will also kill your vegetable plants. Also, avoid topping your soil with fresh manure; it will cause the roots to fork, thus diminishing the size and shape of your carrots.
Plant the carrots
Before you plant your carrot, make sure you deeply till the soil. Breaking up the soil so that it becomes loose will help the carrot seeds sprout deep roots. Plant the carrots about half-inch deep in the soil, and about 1 inch apart. Space your rows at least 15 inches apart. If your garden space is limited, consider growing your carrots in separate containers in raised beds.
When you are finished planting, cover the carrots with a thin layer of mulch, such as shredded bark or straw, to help keep them moist. You should also sprinkle the soil with water, but you must be careful not to let the top form a crust.
During the first few weeks after you have planted your carrots, the plants will be too small to successfully survive against weeds. You will need to take special care to weed your garden thoroughly during this delicate time. Again, don’t use any anti-weed fertilizers or weed-killing sprays, as these will damage your vegetable plants and/or expose them to chemicals that could be poisonous when ingested.
Another tip on how to grow carrots is to continually thin your plants as they grow. If you skip this important step, your carrot plants will become too crowded, and they will grow with very small or no roots.
You must also look for signs of insects and other pests harming your crops. Pests common to carrot plants include carrot root flies, flea beetles, leaf hoppers and rodents. The insects eat the plant and spread diseases that can harm the plant. Instead of using potentially harmful insecticides, try using a floating row cover that will provide a barrier to insects while allowing sunlight and rain to reach the plants. Rodents are also notorious for eating up carrot crops. For them, carrots are a tasty treat.
Harvest the Carrots
You can harvest your carrots whenever they reach their desired size. You can usually tell when they are ready to harvest because the thick, upper end of the carrots will push up out of the ground slightly. To dig out your carrots while keeping them intact, use a spade to loosen the soil around them, then push the roots from side to side and, finally, pull them out of the ground by their stocks. They should come up easily.
Store Your Surplus
Carrots handle storage very well, as long as they are handled carefully. Before storing, wash your carrots to allow air to circulate better and to remove any organisms that may speed the decaying process. Cool the carrots immediately at about 40 degrees Fahrenheit to increase their shelf-life. The best storage conditions for carrots are at about 32 degrees Fahrenheit with about 99 percent relative humidity. Carrots also fare better when stored away from fruits that give off ethylene gases (such as apples and pears), as these will turn them brown.