Growing Carrot

Daucus carota : Apiaceae / the umbelliferae family

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	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 8°C and 30°C. (Show °F/in)
Space plants: 5 - 30 cm 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

A hardy root vegetable which grows well in deep cool soil.

Carrots take about 3 weeks to show themselves and the first leaves look like grass.

If broadcast sowing, mix with radish seeds which will germinate quickly and indicate the sown area. In hotter or dry areas, water well before seeding then cover with boards to maintain the moisture and cool soil for more successful germination. Check every week or so.

Over fertilised ground will produce split roots. Protect against carrot fly. It is best to put carrots in a different area of the garden each year for four or five years.

Culinary hints - cooking and eating Carrot

Steamed or raw carrots are tasty. Cook them in a small amount of water until nearly dry then add a pat of butter and teaspoon of brown sugar to glaze.
They can be added to most casserole-type dishes.
Grate raw carrots and add to salads

Your comments and tips

21 Oct 21, John (New Zealand - sub-tropical climate): Do you have a recipe for use of kerosene on carrots? Thank you
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10 Nov 21, Tony Baker (New Zealand - cool/mountain climate): diesel or kerosene in a spray bottle will kill any broadleaf weeds and deter carrot fly. Don't go crazy with it though!
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17 Nov 21, Graham (New Zealand - cool/mountain climate): Years ago (it seems forever) living/working on the hydro dams along the Waitaki River in the South Is. we grew carrots... hoed between the rows to control weeds, and after the carrots had produced their first 2 feathery leaves it was just a light spray with kerosene... That did the job!
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05 Sep 21, max guthrie (New Zealand - cool/mountain climate): Hi I have had lots of trouble growing Carrots here near Arrowtown ( so do all our neighbours ) with Black Rot or Carrot fly I have tried Neim Prills and white sugar but we still get it quite badly do you have any tips. Cheers Max.
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22 Sep 21, Tony (New Zealand - temperate climate): Carrot fly seems to be getting rampant, you can buy resistant seed. One way to prevent them is to spray with diesel/kerosene which not only deters flies but kills weeds! The only sure way is to buy some biomesh insect screen and put it over the carrots as soon as you sow them. Make sure there are no gaps at the bottom though as the fly operate at about ground level.
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11 Sep 21, Joss (New Zealand - temperate climate): Hi Max, I have been growing carrots in large black plastic pots and have had no trouble with any bugs or nasty things. I sow the seed one by one in separate holes and in a circle around the pot, cover with some sacking and then lay a couple of largish stones to hold the sacking down till they sprout and then uncover them. I hope this helps. Joss Roberts
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20 Aug 21, Eden (New Zealand - temperate climate): Great tips. This is really a piece of helpful information.
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14 Apr 19, Rob (New Zealand - cool/mountain climate): Do carrots need a lot of sun
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09 May 19, (New Zealand - sub-tropical climate): Looks like NZ cool/mountain climate zone doesn't work for carrots. Try the aussie cool zone for carrots. Plants need sunlight 6-8 hours generally.
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17 Apr 21, Michael (New Zealand - sub-tropical climate): I find that difficult to believe given that all of the commercial carrot growing in the North Island is done in the volcanic plateau around Ohakune and Rataehi.
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I thought I might mention: after you harvest your first crop of carrots you probably have enough time to grow a crop of the smaller varieties of radish. Radishes: ******** Germination temperatures: ideal 15c - 25c acceptable 10c - 30c ************ Germination time: 5 -10 days *************** Growing temperatures: ideal 10c -18c intermediate to short day lengths -Growth must be continuous and rapid for good quality. Acceptable grow temps 4c – 24c. Roots of globe varieties tend to elongate and develop poor shape in hot weather when the tops also grow taller and larger than in cool weather. Long days induce flowering or seed stalks (bolting) and with warm weather the seed stalk may develop so rapidly that no edible root is formed *************** Days to harvest: Regular radish reach market size in 21 to 28 days. Chinese radish take 50 to 90 days (or more) to mature. ** A regular radish seed can produce a radish from planting to harvest in about 33 days. This crop also likes short day lengths and cooler temps making it an ideal crop to “squeeze” in late in the season, before the first frost. With a first potential frost date of October 15 – you could direct sow radish seeds like Cherry Belle, or French Breakfast (both with about 21 days to harvest from seedlings) on September 7th and reasonably expect to harvest your radishes before the first frost. You could also sow in trays and then plant them out… if real-estate is an issue, or if you need to get the radishes started before your harvest your carrots (timing) ************* Storage and Conditioning the recommended storage temperature is 0 C with a relative humidity of 95% to 100%. Topped radishes packaged in perforated plastic bags will keep for 3 to 4 weeks. Bunched radishes will keep 1 to 2 weeks. ********** Temperature information was gleaned from: ATLANTIC PROVINCES AGRICULTURE SERVICES and amalgamated with information from individual radish varieties such as Cherry Belle. ****** if you don't harvest your radishes on time they will be pithy/mealy

- Celeste Archer

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GardenGrow

Keep your garden growing - see what to plant right now

Growing Carrot

Daucus carota : Apiaceae / the umbelliferae family

Culinary hints - cooking and eating Carrot

Your comments and tips

GardenGrow

Keep your garden growing - see what to plant right now

Growing Carrot

Daucus carota : Apiaceae / the umbelliferae family

Culinary hints - cooking and eating Carrot

Your comments and tips

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