Carrot
Q. I have planted carrots several times with no luck. Why won't they comeup?
A. Do not plant them too deep. Sow the seeds on top of the bed and gentlyrake them in, covering the seed only about 1/4 inch. Germination will increaseas soil temperatures decrease. Keep your planting area moist. Don't crust orharden the soil on top of the bed with direct sprays of water.
Q. What causes the top of my carrots to be green rather than orange?
A. Greening of the top of the carrot is caused by sunlight. Heavy rain canwash away the soil from carrot roots exposing them to the sun. An off-flavoris often associated with this green color. Remove the tops before consuming orcanning the carrots.
Q. Why are my garden carrots short and stumpy instead of long and slender likethose in grocery stores?
A. The problem is probably variety selection. The Nantes or Chantenayvarieties, which are genetically short and thick, are recommended for homegardening. Those sold at grocery stores are the Imperator type and inherentlylong and slender. Carrot length can be affected by excessive moisture duringgrowth.
Q. What causes my home garden carrots to be tasteless, woody and often bitterinstead of sweet and tender?
A. These problems are associated with growing and environmental conditionsduring the maturing period. Carrots grow best and develop highest sugars whentemperatures are between 40 degrees and 80 degrees F. The best carrots areplanted in fall for early winter harvest. Carrots are cold hardy, but shouldbe planted so they mature before temperatures drop below 20 degrees F. asdamage or death can occur. Plantings can begin in late summer or early falland continue until about 90 days before temperatures are expected to average 85degrees F.
Q. Each year my spring-planted carrots send up a seed stalk. What am I doingwrong?
A. Carrots are biennial, growing from seed to flower-producing plants over twoyears. Carrots or many other biennial crops, such as cabbage, will produceseed stalks the first year if young plants are subjected to cold weather.Carrots which produce seed stalks often lack flavor, are woody and have poortexture.
Q. What causes my carrots to be pale yellow instead of the typical orangecolor?
A. Although there are varietal differences in root color, this problem couldbe caused by environmental conditions. Carrots maturing under warmtemperatures or high moisture conditions lack good root color. These carrotsalso have poor flavor and texture. Plant carrots so they mature underrelatively cool temperatures that average less than 80 degrees F. Avoidexcessive soil moisture.
Q. The foliage of my carrots is infected with brown lesions which cause theleaves to decay.
A. This is a leaf blight of carrots and is caused by two fungi. This can becontrolled by spraying with chlorothalonil. Begin at the first sign of thedisease and repeat at 10- to 14-day intervals. Extended periods of highhumidity caused by dews and intermittent rain contribute to the development ofleaf blight of carrots. If not controlled, leaf blight can reduce the yield.Discontinue when weather conditions change.
Q. When I dug my carrots, I found galls or swelling on the roots.
A. These are root knot nematodes. Root knot is a species of nematode whichcauses galls or swellings on plant roots. It restricts the uptake of nutrientsfrom the root system to the foliage, resulting in a yellow and stunted plant.Root knot lives in the soil and can survive on a number of weed and vegetablecrops. It is best controlled by planting a solid stand (close enough for rootsystems to overlap) of marigolds three months before the first killing frost offall and/or planting cereal rye (Elbon) for a winter cover crop. Cereal ryeshould be shred and tilled into the soil 30 days before planting a springcrop.
Q. The foliage on my carrots looks yellow with multiple sprouting at the crownof the root. The roots have numerous small roots on the main root.
A. This is aster yellows, a virus disease of carrots which is carried by leafhoppers. There is no control for the disease other than a good insect programcoupled with removal of the diseased plants once the disease symptoms begin.
Q. My carrots are rotting at the soil line. On close examination, I find thetop of the root covered by a white fungal mat.
A. This is southern blight of carrots. It is a soil-borne disease and can becontrolled by combining a good foliage fungicide program, deep burial oforganic material so undecomposed leaf tissue is not in the upper zone of thegarden soil and rotation.
Q. My carrots die rapidly during the warm months.
A. This is cotton root rot and is caused by a soil-borne fungus. It attackscarrot roots causing rapid death of the carrot. On close examination of theroot system, you will find it to be completely decayed. The only control forthis is rotation. Plant carrots so they will mature in cool months. Cottonroot rot requires a hot soil to develop and grow at its rapid stage. Plantingcarrots in the fall and winter months to mature before the soil warms up willreduce losses from this fungus.
Q. Once I harvest my carrots and place them in the crisper, they soondeteriorate into a slimy, foul-smelling mess.
A. Most often this is associated with bacterial soft rot which enters thecarrot at harvest time through cuts and breaks. To control this, wash carrotsthoroughly. Broken or damaged carrots should be consumed immediately. Afterwashing, place them in a crisper and keep them at a cool temperature.
Q. What causes my carrots to be forked or double?
A. Damage to the growing tip of a young carrot. Common causes include soilinsects and nematodes which feed on the growing tip resulting in branching ofthe carrot root.
