Growing Carrot

Daucus carota : Apiaceae / the umbelliferae family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec
P P             P P P P

(Best months for growing Carrot in New Zealand - cool/mountain regions)

  • P = Sow seed

January: water well

September: broadcast sow

  • Easy to grow. Sow in garden. Sow seed at a depth approximately three times the diameter of the seed. Best planted at soil temperatures between 46°F and 86°F. (Show °C/cm)
  • Space plants: 2 - 12 inches apart
  • Harvest in 12-18 weeks.
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Onions, Leeks, Lettuce, Sage, Peas, Radishes, Tomatoes, Beans, Celery, Rosemary
  • Avoid growing close to: Parsnips, Beetroot, Dill, Brassicas, Fennel

Your comments and tips

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31 Dec 11, Keith Goodwin (Australia - temperate climate)
Michael I would say you have a snail or slug problem
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31 Oct 11, clem ward (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
so what soil do you grow carrots in mine are always stunted and deformed clem..
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28 Oct 11, Bruce (Australia - temperate climate)
Pull one up and have a look.
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28 Oct 11, Bruce (Australia - temperate climate)
Carrots are very small seeds and should be planted as shallow as possible. One method is to mix the seeds with a handful or two of dry sand and run out in a line or sprinkle on the area you plan to grow them. They should be watered enough to keep the sand constantly moist until germination. After that daily in hot weather.
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26 Oct 11, Vivienne (Australia - temperate climate)
Hi .... I've just started to pick some of my carrots to check how they are going ( first timer) and they are small and curly, great tops it makes you think they are ready. I have planted the in a veggie mix soil, they are in full sun and are watered every day. They still taste great.
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28 Oct 11, Bruce (Australia - temperate climate)
If the carrot tuber is mis-shapened, twisted, curley or forked the soil is too heavy or has too much humis or other vegitable matter. In WA they grow acres of beautiful straight carrots for the Asian market in almost pure sand. If the tops are huge and small tubers the nitrogen content in the soil is too high.
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25 Oct 11, matt (Australia - temperate climate)
how many seeds do you plant at each station and how much do you water them.....each day or less?
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01 Dec 11, BCW (Australia - temperate climate)
One way to plant carrots is to mix the seed with a cup of sand,make a small shallow groove in the soil with your finger in a line where you want to grow them and run the sand/seed mix into that groove,then water. The seeds are tiny and must not be planted too deep so need to be watered twice daily till they have all germinated otherwise they will dry out and die.
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23 Oct 11, zoe (Australia - temperate climate)
How do you know when carrots are ready to harvest?
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31 Oct 11, Digger Dave (Australia - temperate climate)
Expose the top of the carrot carefully through the soil, if the top of the carrot is the size of a ten cent piece or bigger pull it up, if not cover it back up and have another look an a weeks time, it works for me...
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Hi Brenda, without checking with mixture it’s very hard to diagnose the problem. However I can offer a few maybe’s in the absence of physically looking at everything. Firstly the problem definitely appears to be with the mixture or something you are doing rather than the plants themselves. They are all cool weather crops so temperature is not an issue. If the mixture was “young”, i.e. not fully composted then it could be a simple nutrient “tie up” of the 5 in 1 (presume that’s a fertiliser in this case) by the mixture which means that if you let it be for a while and turn it over a few times it will come good and be suitable for later use. Secondly if the mixture is not inherently well drained you could well be over watering (you said daily). Take a handful of the mixture an hour after watering and give it a good squeeze. If water drips out easily then you are over watering. However, if the mixture handful just falls apart easily when you open your hand then maybe you are not watering enough as you only say watering and not “good watering”. I hope this helps… John Bee, Master Gardener.

- John Bee

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