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7 Important Things to Know About Growing Carrots

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Jonathon Engels, a long-time vegetarian turned vegan, is currently on a trip from Guatemala to... Read More

Organically grown carrots pulled straight from a garden bed full of rich soil taste miraculous compared to store-bought versions. The difference is not unlike how homegrown tomatoes are so much better than hothouse ones. Garden fresh carrots are infinitely more carrot-y.

Growing carrots, however, can be a bit hit-and-miss. As plants, they have certain needs and expectations that will make them much happier. When they aren’t happy, it can result in low harvest numbers, minuscule carrots, and various other oddities. So, a few tips can help with growing carrots well.

Start planting two or three weeks before the last frost (or in early fall).

Carrots are a bit of a middling vegetable in terms of temperature. They aren’t exactly cold-tolerant like kale or collards, but they also are heat-loving. The ideal temperature for carrots is between 50 F and 80 F.

More importantly and specifically, carrots germinate best when soil temperatures are just above 50 F. Timing this planting is important, and it’s typically about three weeks before the last frost date.

Direct seed them.

Carrots have no interest in being transplanted, a characteristic of most (if not all) root vegetables. For that reason, it’s best to plant those tiny carrot seeds directly into the garden bed.

The basic rule of thumb (with exceptions) for planting seeds is that they should buried no deeper than the size of the seed, so carrots should just be tapped in under a good dusting of soil, no more than a quarter of an inch.

Keep the soil moist for seeds to germinate.

In addition to needing cool—not cold or warm—soil to germinate, carrot seeds perform best when soil stays moist. They are small seeds so that young sprouts can dry out very quickly. Similarly, the young seeds are susceptible to being shifted around by erosion caused when rains are heavy.

A helpful trick for keeping soils cooler and moist is to cover the space with a loose application of light mulch, like chopped straw. The soil should only be partially covered with some exposure to the sun, but that little bit of protection goes a long way.

Sow them thickly and thin them out.

Plants like carrots, which have very small seeds with questionable germination, are best planted much more thickly than they will be spaced at maturity. Once the plants pop up to around two inches high, they should be thinned out to allow two or three inches between each carrot. This prevents carrots from being undersized.

Carrots can take a while to germinate, up to three weeks, so it’s important not to get impatient waiting for them to pop up. It’ll likely take a month or more before this thinning process gets underway.

Provide full sun for bigger carrots.

Like many plants, carrots can be grown in partial shade, but like most food-producing plants, they put out much bigger specimens when they have more exposure. Carrots will do much better in a full-sun setting.

This open approach to the sun does come with one caveat: As the summer gets into full swing and temperatures go up, mostly mature carrot plants will appreciate a bit of shade to keep them from getting roasted in the afternoon sun.

Use loose soil with no rocks.

Carrots are thought to enjoy sandy soil, which they do; however, the texture of the soil is what’s important. First of all, it needs to be nice and loose, a la sand, so that 1/ the carrot roots have no trouble forming and 2/ those roots need to grow big to keep the plant anchored.

The other go-to idea with planting medium meant for carrots is to keep it free of rocks. Rocks will cause the roots to be deformed carrots, which taste just as good but are more difficult to deal with.

Companion plant with leeks/garlic and tomatoes.

Companion plants are a good idea for maximizing garden space and often help to keep pests off of plants. Carrots benefit from being planted next to leeks and other alliums because the odor of these plants repels carrot flies.

Tomato plants are another good companion with carrots. The tomato plants start to provide shade for the carrots right about the time the summer heat gets too oppressive, and carrots help to aerate the soil for tomato roots. They can each be harvested without disturbing the other.

Growing carrots at home has a huge payoff because they taste so much more flavorful. Plus, carrots can be situated so that they don’t still steal a lot of space from those popular summer vegetables most gardeners get excited about.

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