Roots of orange
Outdoor Living|Backyard & Outdoor Living #48
One of the most popular and health-giving of veggies, carrots are a must for the garden and the plate
JENNIFER STACKHOUSE
Roots of orange

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.

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Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.

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