carrots homefamily garden Virgin Media
Plant: February to May
Harvest: June to October
Carrots are easy, abundant and store for months; you can get the most flavour from early varieties and set down a main crop for storage into autumn and winter. You'll need plenty of space so they are best suited for allotments and gardens with a dedicated vegetable patch.
Carrots prefer bright conditions but can grow with some shade. Soil quality is really important for carrots; it's commonly said that they prefer a light, sandy soil, but you just have to make sure that it's well-dug, free from lumps and stones and in a relatively sunny place. However, sandy soil loses moisture quickly, so this type is better or early season carrots, but dig in some humus if your soil is sandy and you plan on growing them through summer.
Once you've chosen you soil and dug it over well a couple of weeks in advance, dig a couple of shallow trenches (2cm deep) with a trowel or fork and then sprinkle the carrot seeds every inch or so along the length of each row. Space the rows 8-12 inches apart. Cover with the soil again, and lightly pat it down, then water every couple of days, but not heavily. Check for seedlings after two or three weeks.
Crops that you sow in February and March should be protected with a "cloche" - a netting tunnel that you can place over the rows, available from garden centres - and you can harvest these in June. It's worth it as these early varieties are by far the tastiest. Plant from April and May for harvests through summer and into autumn.
When the seedling are appearing, remove the smaller ones as they reach an inch or so high, thinning the crop out a little; this gives the roots room to grow. Thin them in the evening; this actually helps keep the crop free from carrot fly, which can be a real nuisance.
Earlies can be harvested after around 12 weeks in June, while the main crop takes around 16 weeks. Harvest continues to the start of autumn.
Wait until the sprouting foliage begins to go a little brown and then start to harvest them; don't wait until the greens go very wilted.
Lay them in boxes and store in a cool dark place.
