How to Grow Carrots – The Gardening Register

Unless you are growing carrots for show purposes grow them as close as possible to avoid having to weed too much and make sure you water during dry periods.

Sow during early March under glass or between late March to mid August outside once all risk of frost has passed. Sow into deep, fertile soil and do not add manure or compost. Sow thinly and thin out to desired spacing.

Pull up small carrots from June and lift the main crop between October and December and store between layers of sand. Keep in a cool, dry place checking occasionally for any that may be rotting. They should keep until March.

Carrot Troubles
Trouble	Symptoms	Treatment	Prevention
Black Rot	Blackened Carrot Roots seen on stored carrots	Burn diseased roots	Store properly and do not use the same land for carrots next year
Carrot Fly	Reddish leaves which wilt in the sun. Seedlings die and mature roots are riddled with holes and will rot	None	Don’t grow near tall plants, sow thinly and destroy all thinnings
Clayburn	Not serious but will produce blackened roots	None	Dig out any clay in the soil before sowing
Carrot-Willow Aphid	Distorted, discoloured and stunted leaves and weak plants. Transmits Motley Dwarf Virus.	Spray at first sign of attack	None
Fanging	Forked roots	None	Don’t add manure or compost prior to sowing. Don’t make beds too firm
Green Top	Tops of carrots are green caused by exposure to the sun	None	Earth up around the carrots
Motley Dwarf Virus	Discoloured leaves, reduced growth and yield. Spread by Carrot-Willow Aphid.	None	Spray young carrots
Small Roots	Small carrots	None	Dig soil deeply and break up any clay by adding well-rotted manure or compost
Sclerotinia Rot	Mouldy Roots found on stored carrots	None	Ensure roots are firm and disease free before storing
Splitting	Split roots caused by heavy rain. These carrots will not store successfully	None but can still be eaten	Water regularly in dry weather and apply a mulch to conserve moisture
Swift Moth	Hollowed-out roots caused by caterpillars	None	Use Chlorophos to control
Violet Root Rot	Mouldy roots and yellowing leaves	None	Rotate crops