Roots of orange

One of the most popular and health-giving of veggies, carrots are a must for the garden and the plate

- JENNIFER STACKHOUSE

CARROT

Common name: Carrot

Botanical name: Daucus carota

Family: Apiaceae (carrot family)

Aspect and soil: Sun; deep, well-drained soil

Best climate: All

Habit: Biennial, grown as an annual root vegetable

Propagation: Seed

Difficulty: Easy

Carrot growing has had a real shot in the arm in recent years, with the availability of carrots in many colours. While there’s nothing wrong with traditional orange carrots — indeed, there’s lots of good in a carrot — adding yellow, white and tones of red and purple to the carrot colour palette has turned them from ho-hum to very exciting and fashionable.

SOIL PREPARATION, CLIMATE

The best-shaped and most flavoursome carrots are harvested from deep friable soil that’s free of stones, clods and added organic matter. A deep, sandy loam produces long, straight carrots, whatever colour you plant. When preparing soil, dig it over to at least a spade’s depth as that’s the depth the roots penetrate. In very acid soils (below 5.5), dig in a little lime.

Take care, however, not to incorporate lots of organic matter such as compost or fresh manure where carrots are to grow. There is a link between excess organic matter and forking of carrots. A good option is to sow seeds in soil that was fertilised for a previous crop, such as a leafy vegetable. Alternatively, dig in an organic fertiliser other than manure several weeks before sowing seed.