Planting carrots correctly and on time

Juicy, crunchy carrots weren't always so appetizing. In the Middle Ages, it was purple and was only suitable for animal feed. Only after Dutch breeders worked on the vegetable did it acquire its usual orange color and pleasant sweet taste.

Growing carrots is not difficult. The culture is unpretentious and does not require special conditions. But beginners may have difficulties at the stage of preparing and sowing seeds. In the article we will talk about planting and caring for carrots in open ground, we will tell you when to start sowing carrots, how to prepare seed material and how to care for plantings.

Timing of planting in open ground

When can you plant carrots? There are two known sowing methods - winter and spring. Let's talk in more detail about when and how to plant carrots in autumn and spring.

Winter sowing

In autumn, sow in early, mid or late November. The specific date is determined based on weather conditions. Sowing begins when the first snow falls and the soil freezes slightly.

Important! For winter sowing, only dry seeds are used. Otherwise, they will germinate and the seedlings will die.

The bed for autumn planting is prepared in advance and covered with film so that snow does not interfere with sowing. When the time comes to plant, the film is removed, grooves are cut on the surface of the soil and the seeds are laid out. Sprinkle them with dry warm earth prepared in advance. The plantings are not watered.

Carrots planted in the fall will produce their first harvest in June.You can then sow radishes, radishes, lettuce or cauliflower in the vacated bed.

Spring sowing

When to plant carrots in spring? The sowing time is determined based on the crop variety and growing region.

Early varieties are sown first. They begin to sow when the snow melts, but the soil is not yet very warm. In the southern regions this is March, in the Moscow region - mid-April, in the Urals and Siberia - late April-early May.

During this period, the earth is saturated with moisture, the seeds will sprout vigorously. To protect crops from frost, the beds are covered with non-woven material. For planting early varieties, the beds are prepared in the fall.

Mid-season and late varieties are sown from mid-May to early June.

Attention! When planted late, carrots are less susceptible to pest invasion, in particular the carrot fly.

Seeds planted in late spring and early summer no longer have enough moisture in the soil. Therefore, regular watering is required.

Each of these methods has its own advantages and disadvantages. Productivity largely depends on the weather. If the spring turns out to be early and warm, then carrots planted before winter and in April will please you with a harvest, and if it is cold and rainy, then carrots planted in May will grow faster.

Based on this, experienced gardeners recommend combining both methods of sowing crops.

Sowing dates according to the lunar calendar

When determining sowing dates, they also rely on the lunar calendar.

According to him, in 2020 the following days are suitable for sowing carrots:

• in March – 10-12, 15-17, 23-25, 27-30;
• in April – 2-9, 11-15, 24-27, 29, 30;
• in May - 1-4, 12-14, 21-23;
• in June - 9-11, 18-20.

Keep in mind that it is not advisable to carry out planting work during the periods of full moon and new moon.

Crop rotation rules

Crop rotation consists of alternating crops planted in the garden. This simple technique increases the fertility of the soil and allows you to rationally use the nutrients in it. In addition, crop rotation reduces the risk of disease development and pest damage to plants.

The rules of crop rotation are fully applicable to the cultivation of carrots. If they are not followed, the root vegetables will grow small, uneven and tasteless.

Important! The carrot bed is changed every 1-2 years. The root crop is returned to its original place only after 3-4 years.

Another reason why crop rotation should not be neglected when growing carrots is that its roots release toxins into the soil that inhibit the development of crops of the same family. Proper crop rotation neutralizes this effect.

Favorable predecessors

The most favorable predecessors for carrots are unrelated crops. Such as nightshades, for example. Orange beauty is also good to plant after legumes, cruciferous vegetables, potatoes, Luke, greenery.

Advice. In former cucumber beds, plant root crops no earlier than after two years. After cucumbers, the soil contains a lot of organic matter, which has a bad effect on the growth of carrots.

Unfavorable Precursors

You should not sow carrots after other plants from the umbrella family. First of all after parsley, celery, cilantro, parsnip.

In addition, avoid beds where other root vegetables grew in the previous season: turnips, beets, radishes, turnips. They all receive nutrition from the same layer of earth, thereby depleting it.

Landing technology

How to plant carrots correctly? Planting seeds begins with their preparation and processing.

Seed preparation and processing

Unprepared carrot seeds take a long time to germinate, up to three weeks. The fact is that the essential oils they contain prevent swelling and the appearance of sprouts. Therefore, to speed up germination and improve germination, the seeds are soaked.

Important! Dried, granulated and glazed seeds have already been processed and covered with a special nutritious coating. Such granules do not require additional preparation. They are sown dry so as not to wash off the protective film.

Unprepared seeds are soaked in a gauze bag in hot water (50-60°C) for 20-30 minutes. This allows the essential oils to be washed out. Then soak the cooled seeds well in a growth stimulator: “Epine” or “Zircon”, in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions.

After soaking, the seeds are dried to a free-flowing state so that they do not stick to each other and to your hands during sowing.

Site selection and soil preparation

The carrot bed is prepared in advance, in October. Choose a sunny and level place so that rain and watering do not wash the seeds from the soil.

In the selected area, the soil is dug up, removing weeds and insect larvae. Humus, peat, wood ash, and sand are added. The surface is leveled and small furrows 1.5-3 cm deep are made. The top of the bed is covered with boards or film to prevent excess moisture from getting into the furrows.

Advice. Plant garlic, onions, and marigolds next to the carrot beds. These plants repel pests with their scent.

Carrots love loose, well-moistened soil. It is better if the soil is neutral or slightly acidic. Acidic soils are alkalized by adding ash or dolomite flour. Sand and peat are added to clay soil to increase its breathability.

Planting scheme and technology

Pre-soaked and dried seeds (or ready-made pelleted seeds) are sown in prepared furrows.

The depth of seed placement depends on the sowing method. When planting in winter, the seeds are planted 3 cm deep. When planting in spring, 1.5-2 cm are planted. 20 cm are left between rows.

If sowing is carried out in autumn and early spring, then watering the crops is not required. If in late spring-early summer, then the bed with crops is watered with warm, settled water.

Unusual planting methods

Let's talk about several unusual ways to plant carrots:

1. Dry method. The simplest and most popular. Dry seeds mixed with sand are poured into a salt shaker and scattered along the grooves. Disadvantages: high consumption of seeds and the need to thin out seedlings.
2. Liquid method. The seeds are mixed with a paste, which is poured into a teapot. The resulting mixture is watered over the furrows. Pros: the seeds are evenly distributed in the liquid, the consumption is low. Cons: labor costs for preparing the paste.
3. Landing on the tape. Seeds are glued onto newspaper or toilet paper with paste at a distance of 5 cm from each other. Pros: the seedlings do not need to be thinned out and the ribbons with seeds are easy to plant (place them in furrows and cover them with soil). Disadvantages: labor-intensive preparation of tapes.
4. Landing in the snow. In winter, barrels are filled with snow and store in a cold room. Before planting, a thin layer of snow is poured into the furrow, carrot seeds are distributed on top and covered with soil. Pros: Even seed distribution. Cons: Snow can be difficult to make.

Features of care

Caring for carrot beds involves timely removal of weeds, thinning of crops, watering, loosening and fertilizing the soil, and hilling the plants.

Irrigation mode

Carrots are watered from a watering can 1-2 times a week.Warm, settled water is used to moisten the soil. From the second half of summer, watering is reduced to twice a month. 3-4 weeks before harvest they are stopped altogether.

Fertilizing

If the soil has been properly prepared and fertilized before sowing, then there is no need to additionally fertilize during root crop growth. It is better to apply all fertilizers in the fall, during the preparation of the planting site.

If it was not possible to prepare the soil, then potassium-phosphorus fertilizers are applied during plant growth - twice in liquid form with a break of three weeks. Fertilizing stops a month before harvest.

Loosening and weeding

The next day after watering or rain, the ground is loosened, providing air access to the root crops. Hilling is carried out when the tops of the root crops are exposed, covering them with earth. When the sun hits the root crop, bitterness develops in the fruit.

Since carrots do not sprout quickly, many weeds have time to grow during this time. To prevent them from drowning out the seedlings, the crops are weeded.

Thinning

Thinning carrot plantings is combined with weeding and loosening the soil. During the first thinning, a distance of 2-3 cm is left between seedlings, and during the second - 5-6 cm.

Protection from diseases and pests

Carrot crops are slightly susceptible to disease. Problems can arise due to Alternaria and Phoma. These are fungal diseases that cause spots on leaves and areas of rot on root crops. Treating the beds with a 1% solution of Bordeaux mixture helps reduce the risk of developing these diseases.

Of the parasites for carrots, the carrot fly is the most dangerous. In the spring, she lays her eggs in the soil next to the developing root crop.The larvae emerging from the eggs gnaw tunnels in the carrots, which leads to its spoilage and rotting.

To repel carrot flies, onions, garlic, marigolds, and marigolds are planted next to carrot plantings.. Spraying crops with an infusion of onion peels (400 g per 5 liters of hot water, leave for two days) and orange peels (1 kg of peels per 10 liters of warm water, leave for two days) is effective.

Harvest dates

When determining the timing of harvesting, they are guided, first of all, by carrot variety. Early ripening varieties are harvested in July. If you delay harvesting, the fruits will crack and lose their juiciness.

Attention! Early carrots are good for eating fresh. It is not suitable for long-term storage.

Average ripening carrots ripen in 80-110 days. It’s also not worth keeping it in the ground, as this will have a bad effect on the taste.

Late carrots will take 110 days or more to mature. The fruits continue to grow until the air temperature drops to +4°C, but there is no need to wait for night frosts. For cleaning, choose a dry, sunny day.

Carefully dig up the carrots with a pitchfork and pull them out of the soil by the tops. Root vegetables are cleared of soil, greens are rolled or trimmed. After this, the carrots are air-dried for a couple of hours and stored.

Conclusion

Growing delicious juicy carrots is a simple process. To obtain crunchy, vitamin-rich root vegetables, it is important to prepare the seeds (or buy already prepared ones), choose a plot for the garden bed, taking into account its predecessors, prepare the soil and follow the rules of caring for the plantings. Then the orange beauty will reward you with a delicious and rich harvest!