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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06 Jan 17, Mel (New Zealand - temperate climate)
Our current seed has yielded white, purple/black and orange and they are all lovely. It is a bit to get used to but if they taste fine I suspect cross pollination or someone muddled up the seed.
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22 Dec 16, oli (New Zealand - sub-tropical climate)
My Carrots turned white years ago, cross pollination i guess. we love them white and kept the seeds.
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11 Nov 09, Liz (New Zealand - temperate climate)
Meeghan, Carrots and parsnips will take about 3/4 weeks before you see anything above ground. Carrots look a bit like blades of grass when they start. Tom, there's probably too much fertiliser in your soil. See the comment from Skip (02/11)
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Showing 21 - 23 of 23 comments
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My carrots grow best in a bed where something else has grown the previous year. I DON'T fertilize carrots, because as soon as they find a little bit of nitrogen, they fork, and they're really hard to clean. I sprinkle the seed and press it into the wet soil. I then put some old palings on top, and don't check them for a few days.After four days or so, I check to see if they're popping up. As soon as a few of them have popped up. I lift the boards, and put them on little blocks of something, to be about 1-2 inches off the ground. This protects the small carrot plants from the sun, and helps to keep the moisture in a bit. After a week or so, they are big enough to take the boards away, and voila, they should grow pretty well. Just thin them out after a couple of months, so you have some baby carrots for salads/steaming/whatever, and the others will grow to beautiful fat vegies. Chantenay are my faves, they just seem to have a sweeter more robust taste. Don't forget to water during summer.

- adam synnott

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