Growing Carrots – All year planting tips

Carrots are great value because they are extremely easy to grow and you can get a very high yield in a small space. Their uses are endless. You can cut them up and use them uncooked in salads, put them in a blender and drink the juice, steam them, put them in stir fries or mash them.

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Grown all year round Carrots are most economically grown from seeds, germination is fast with seedlings appearing within 2 weeks.

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Carrots love light soils, which are rich in organic matter and manures. Searles Premium Compost is ideal to dig into your vegetable garden to add all the nutrients they need. You will only require a small amount, approx 1-2 cm deep and then dig this into the soil to a depth of about 15cm. Be sure to plant them in full sun to achieve strong growth. If the soil in your plot is of good quality liquid fertilising will not be necessary. One of the main problems associated with Carrots is over feeding with nitrogen thus giving you beautiful foliage above the ground and lack of root development below which doesn't produce good Carrots. Searles Liquid Potash is excellent because it is high in potassium and phosphorous which is essential for strong root development.

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Another problem encountered is branched or misshaped Carrots. This is due to stones, clods and large lumps in the soil and also from over feeding with nitrogen rich fertilisers. Working the soil to remove any lumps can prevent this. A good practice with carrots is to plant them in a garden bed that has just finished a crop of "above ground" vegetables. This will ensure that the soil is not over rich in Nitrogen.

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There are many varieties of seeds available, from long, medium and Baby Carrots. Many carrots are able to be sown all year and are ideal to grow in our climate. All Searles carrot seeds have been chosen for their virus resistance and ease of germination and growth.

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A few handy hints for Carrots are to mix the seed with washed river sand. This will give you an even spread of the seedlings when sown directly into the garden. Because it is mixed with the sand there is no need to cover the seed. Watering will cover them enough for them to germinate. The other handy hint is to grow Carrots fast for a nicer taste. So with their great taste, easy to grow and versatility there is sure to be a space for them in your vegie garden.

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