The best reason to grow carrots in winter is that carrots taste better after few frosts, due to the accumulation of sugars in the roots. Make sure that soil remains airy and easy to drain with the added moisture.Ĭarrots take a long time to grow to maturity, up to four months.
Water carrots to at least one inch per week to start, and then two inches as roots mature. To reduce evaporation and warm the soil, try covering your carrot bed with old blankets for the first five to six days. Carrots take a long time to germinate, and prefer moist soil for the first ten days. Mulch or cover with vermiculite during the germination period. Carrots don’t take up much space, averaging six carrots per square ft, and can be sown every three weeks for multiple harvests throughout the winter.
#OVERWINTER CARROT SEEDLINGS FULL#
Sow carrot seeds ¼” deep, and 3” to 4” apart in an area that gets full sun to partial shade, at least six hours of sun per day. Rondo and Early French Frame are also good choices to sow around the interior edges of your greenhouse. If you’re planting in a hoop house or in the ground in a greenhouse, Chantenay carrots develop stocky roots that become sweeter in cool soil. Good choices for winter carrots grown in containers or grow bags are Little Finger heirloom, a small carrot only 4 inches long and 1-inch thick, and Thumberline heirloom, a round carrot, good for thicker soil. Best Practices to Grow Carrots in Winterįirst, choose your seed variety. A 40-degree average temperature is perfect for carrots! Depending on which variety you are growing and your local growing conditions, carrots may take anywhere from 2 to 4 months to mature. Carrot seeds are slow to germinate in the cooler weather, but they need cool temperatures for developing sweet, well-formed roots. This makes the deep, loose soil of a raised bed or planter a great choice for growing carrots in winter.Ĭarrots can tolerate frost and like cool temperatures. Raised beds and containers generally drain well but allow for plenty of watering during root development.
Carrots dislike too much moisture, and will generate thin, hairy roots, destroying their texture, if not well-drained. Sand and peat moss are also good soil additives to encourage the light, airy soil carrots prefer. Old coffee grounds work well for carrots.
If the soil has stones or clumps, carrots can become stunted or misshapen.Īvoid fertilizing with nitrogen-rich materials, which can cause forking and off-shooting of roots. They like loose, sandy soil to allow plenty of room for root development. Average soil temperature should be around 40 degrees to start your carrot seeds. For growing outdoors without shelter, we recommend waiting to plant until around 5 weeks before your expected last frost.Ĭarrots are easy to grow year-round, but must have proper soil conditions to thrive. Carrots do not like to be transplanted, so they will need to be planted where you will harvest them, but they can do well in 12″ to 18″ depth containers. If the soil outside if not frozen, or if you are growing in a greenhouse, covered raised beds, or planters, you can start carrots as early as January.
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