Carrots are one of the most popular crops to grow, and they are actually quite easy. However, there are three top tips that we want to share with you if you’re planning to grow them this year:
- Carrots like to be planted in loose, light soil.
If you’re growing in pots, this is easily achieved by filling the pot with a good quality compost. If you’re growing in beds it can be a good idea to dig a trench and filling it with compost before planting, especially if you have clay soil. If you have sandy or loamy soil, you can relax and feel smug knowing that your carrots will be very happy! - Watch out for slugs in the early days.
Slugs have a knack of eating the tops of your carrots the minute you’ve planted them. We often hear from customers who have lost all their carrots just one night after planting them. It’s best to be prepared. We’d recommend putting a barrier of wool pellets, broken eggshells or grit around each plant, and set up some beer traps nearby on the day that you plant them. - Protect them from carrot fly.
These pesky flies LOVE carrots and will sniff them out to lay their eggs. When the eggs hatch the larvae burrow into the roots and ruin your crops. Lay horticultural fleece over your carrot plants to avoid this. It’s also worth planting onions/garlic/chives next to your carrots too to mask the scent and flummox the flies!