Carrot
Also called Garden carrot.
| Light | full sun |
|---|---|
| Water | Every 5 days in the growing season, every 14 in winter |
| Humidity | medium |
| Difficulty | moderate |
| Height | Up to 30 cm (12 in) tall |
| Pets | Cats not known, dogs not known |
Pet safety not established for this species.
Edible here means commonly eaten. Nothing on this site is medical or dietary advice.
Carrots are easy to grow and hard to grow well, and every fault comes down to the soil. Stones fork them, fresh manure forks them, heavy ground stunts them, and uneven watering splits them. A deep container of sieved compost gives better carrots than most garden beds and keeps them above the carrot fly, which flies low. Sow thinly, direct, where they are to grow, because a transplanted carrot never makes a straight root, and thin the seedlings in the evening or on a wet day, since the crushed foliage is what draws the fly. Successional sowings every three weeks from early spring give a supply rather than a glut. The early short rooted varieties are the ones to try first.
Ailments observed
| Holes chewed in the leaves | Carrot fly larvae tunnelling the roots rather than the leaves. Grow under fine mesh or in a container raised above knee height, and avoid thinning on a still evening, since the smell attracts the fly. |
|---|---|
| Spots on the leaves | Leaf blight in wet crowded rows. Thin the row so air moves, and water the soil rather than the foliage. |
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