Moxie Gardener

Carrot tops off to a good start in my garden.

Carrots have a long history which includes changes in their color, taste, and use through the ages. The Babylonians grew them as herbs and used only the tops and seeds.

Greeks grew them too, but only used the mashed up roots medicinally. Carrots were used to treat tumors, bladder infections and as first aid for venomous snakebites.

No word on how effective that was.

During the Middle Ages carrots were used to sweeten cakes, desserts and puddings. In Asia today they are made into preserves, jams and syrups.

The Dutch developed an orange carrot to feed to their cows. Apparently, it gave a lovely rich, yellow color to the butter made from the milk.

Carrots will turn a person a lovely yellow color too, if one eats too many of them.

They are well-known for improving eyesight and there is scientific evidence that suggests they help to prevent cataracts of the eye.

Carrots will grow in soil that is not overly rich, as long as it is loose, friable, free of rocks, and well drained.

It takes up to three weeks for carrot seeds to germinate, so do what gardeners have been doing for years: plant radish seeds right along with the carrot seeds. The radishes will mark the place where the carrots are and will be ready for harvesting just after the carrots germinate.

Plant in early spring as soon as the soil can be worked. Carrot seeds are tiny—there are 20,000 in a teaspoon—but try not to plant them too thickly.(You’ll thank me later when it’s time to thin them.)

When the seedlings are about two inches high, thin them (ruthlessly) so they stand about two inches apart. When the seedlings reach about four inches high, thin them so they stand three to four inches apart.

Add a little compost to the soil each time you thin them. Or you can feed them with a liquid organic fertilizer, like fish emulsion or compost tea.

Be fastidious in removing weeds when carrots are small, as they do not compete well for water and nourishment. If you can see their orange tops, push some soil over them. It will keep them from turning green and bitter.

Carrots are ready to harvest about 65 days from germination. Go ahead, dig one up, brush off the dirt, and take a bite.

I dare ya.

Carrots are loved by all ages.

Carrots started out centuries ago as a bitter, pithy root and have been bred and selected to grow orange and sweet, popular all around the globe.  Carrots date back at least 5,000 years.  Pollen from carrots dating back even further has been found at neolithic sites.  The Latin name for carrots is Daucus Carota, a member of the Umbelliferae family.  The word “Carota” appears in writings dating back to 200 AD.

Carrots started out as red, purple or yellow in color.  The Dutch, in an effort to pay homage to their royal family, The House of Orange, bred orange carrots.  These Dutch-bred orange carrots are the ancestors of our modern carrots.

Carrots will grow in soil that is left unimproved after harvesting another crop for which the soil was improved.  They like a sandy, well drained soil free from rocks.  If you have clay soils you’ll have better luck with round or “half-long” type carrots.  Carrots even grow well in containers, as long as the container is twice as deep as the length of the carrots at maturity.

Sow seeds two weeks before your last frost.  The seeds will germinate faster and at a higher rate the warmer the soil is when they are planted.  Make successive plantings every two weeks until mid-summer.  Sow rather thickly and thin successively to a final spacing of 2 to 3 inches apart.  The later, larger “thinings” can be eaten as baby carrots.

Feed carrots plenty of potassium, (the third number on the fertilizer label), and go easy on the nitrogen (first number on the fertilizer label).  Too much nitrogen can cause the carrots to branch and fork and makes the roots hairy and fibrous.

Carrots are a good companion plant for tomatoes.  Both vegetables will benefit, growing lush green foliage and producing succulent tomatoes and carrots.

Home grown carrots are remarkably better tasting than grocery store varieties.  Children often dig them up, brush the dirt off, and eat the carrot with the greens hanging down, like a certain cartoon bunny.  I know I did.