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Garden Gate:  Why are carrots so difficult?  |
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FebruaryViolet
True Blue Farmgirl
4810 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4810 Posts |
 Posted - Mar 15 2010 : 08:26:49 AM
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Or maybe they're not for you, but I've tried the last 2 seasons and they turn out all spindly and anemic, or hairy and tiny, or they just don't do diddly squat. Or...ants get them. Frustrating.
What's your secret with carrots?
I'm debating putting them in again, but I want to be sure that I can actually get a couple!
Musings from our family in the Bluegrass http://sweetvioletmae.blogspot.com/ |
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Fiddlehead Farm
True Blue Farmgirl
4562 Posts
Diane
Waupaca
WI
USA
4562 Posts |
Posted - Mar 15 2010 : 08:45:27 AM
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Really loose soil and lots of compost, also make sure you thin them out so they are a couple of inches apart.
Why not go out on a limb, that's where all the fruit is! "Mark Twain"
http://studiodiphotosite.shutterfly.com/
farmgirl sister #922 |
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Annika
True Blue Farmgirl
5602 Posts
Annika
USA
5602 Posts |
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FebruaryViolet
True Blue Farmgirl
4810 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4810 Posts |
Posted - Mar 15 2010 : 09:12:26 AM
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Thanks, Diane...I will try again (I'm devoting just a small section this time to SEE how i do :))...less margin for error!
Annika, that was what happened last year to me...that combined with hair and anemia and I really didn't want to even TRY eating them!!!
Musings from our family in the Bluegrass http://sweetvioletmae.blogspot.com/ |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22944 Posts
22944 Posts |
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1badmamawolf
True Blue Farmgirl
2199 Posts
Teresa
"Bent Fence Farms"
Ca
USA
2199 Posts |
Posted - Mar 15 2010 : 10:11:40 AM
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over watering and under watering are also death to carrots, evenly moist soil, lots of compost and loamy soil are best
"Treat the earth well, it was not given to you by your parents, it was loaned to you by your children" |
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FebruaryViolet
True Blue Farmgirl
4810 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4810 Posts |
Posted - Mar 15 2010 : 10:54:13 AM
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In reading some online resources and your suggestions here, I'm thinking I overwater and don't thin nearly enough. Those darn seeds are sooooo tiny! I will give it a shot again and see if I can beat em'.
Musings from our family in the Bluegrass http://sweetvioletmae.blogspot.com/ |
Edited by - FebruaryViolet on Mar 15 2010 10:54:30 AM |
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Tanna
True Blue Farmgirl
195 Posts
Tanna
Fort Worth
TX
USA
195 Posts |
Posted - Mar 15 2010 : 11:48:41 AM
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I had great success with a raised bed of carrots.
Good luck to your carrots this year. They are so good fresh from the garden.
Tanna |
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FebruaryViolet
True Blue Farmgirl
4810 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4810 Posts |
Posted - Mar 15 2010 : 11:56:37 AM
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Sadly, Tanna, mine have been in raised beds each year! Thanks for the "luck"...I'm really hoping they work this time.
Musings from our family in the Bluegrass http://sweetvioletmae.blogspot.com/ |
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Sheep Mom 2
True Blue Farmgirl
1534 Posts
Sheri
Elk
WA
USA
1534 Posts |
Posted - Mar 15 2010 : 12:00:02 PM
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What variety are you growing? My soil is pretty sandy and I do little or nothing except weed and thin and get great carrots. Perhaps it is drainage and the type you are growing.
Blessings, Sheri
"Work is Love made visible" -Kahlil Gibran |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22944 Posts
22944 Posts |
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Marybeth
True Blue Farmgirl
6418 Posts
Mary Beth
Stanwood
Wa 98292
USA
6418 Posts |
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FebruaryViolet
True Blue Farmgirl
4810 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4810 Posts |
Posted - Mar 15 2010 : 2:02:01 PM
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LOL, Alee...they're pretty ugly. So ugly I wasn't at all interested in eating them! I wonder..I also just read that your soil can be TOO nutrient rich if you have hairy carrots. Who knows?
In answer to Sherri's question, they were a couple of heirloom varieties that were supposed to grow in shallow soil, which is why I chose them. Think I might just get some at the garden store and see how it goes. Nothing fancy this time!
Musings from our family in the Bluegrass http://sweetvioletmae.blogspot.com/ |
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Ingrid
True Blue Farmgirl
432 Posts
Ingrid
BC
Canada
432 Posts |
Posted - Mar 15 2010 : 4:45:16 PM
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Also plant onions with the carrots and it keeps the bugs away. Works great.
Give thanks to yourself everyday for all the wonderful things you do! |
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graciegreeneyes
True Blue Farmgirl
3107 Posts
Amy Grace
Rosalia
WA
USA
3107 Posts |
Posted - Mar 15 2010 : 6:16:29 PM
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Loose soil for sure - my carrots always turn out okay but I have had a really hard time getting them out of the ground some years.
Amy Grace
Farmgirl #224
"use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without"
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Bear5
True Blue Farmgirl
13055 Posts
Louisiana/Texas
USA
13055 Posts |
Posted - Mar 15 2010 : 7:42:29 PM
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Jonnie:
We are planting carrots for the first time. I'll let you know later how ours are doing.
Marly
"It's only when we truly know and understand that we have a limited time on earth- and that we have no way of knowing when our time is up- that we will begin to live each day to the fullest, as if it was the only one we had." Elisabeth Kurler-Ross |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22944 Posts
22944 Posts |
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Fiddlehead Farm
True Blue Farmgirl
4562 Posts
Diane
Waupaca
WI
USA
4562 Posts |
Posted - Mar 16 2010 : 06:20:03 AM
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Another thing that I do to keep the pests away is to surround the carrot rows with crushed egg shells and coffee grinds. Keeps away the pests!
Why not go out on a limb, that's where all the fruit is! "Mark Twain"
http://studiodiphotosite.shutterfly.com/
farmgirl sister #922 |
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FebruaryViolet
True Blue Farmgirl
4810 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4810 Posts |
Posted - Mar 17 2010 : 04:08:52 AM
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Thanks for that tip, Diane. I'm very anxious to see how this year goes. I'll lick these carrots, yet!
Musings from our family in the Bluegrass http://sweetvioletmae.blogspot.com/ |
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Garden Gate: Why are carrots so difficult? |
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Why are carrots so difficult?
