Carrots in containers

[prairiegarden]

Nobody local seems to grow carrots at a rational price for bulk and so need to do something for winter supplies, so trying some containers ( digging is difficult now,  I can just manage to plant but digging up carrots, parsnips etc. not going to happen). The problem so far is watering. Probably the potting soil is wrong, it drains very fast so it tends to dry out at the top and stay somewhat soggy at the bottom. If I put more drainage in I'll be adding water daily. They're under lights but are having a distressing tendency to topple over whenever they get watered. This is the first I've tried, they're Little Finger.

anyone have any suggestions? Does the container need to be deeper maybe? it's only about 8  
inches high, was hoping that would be deep enough for the baby carrots.

[paquebot]

If they are toppling just from warering, they are weak from no wind. Turn a low fan on them for a couple hours a day to firm them up. Also, water from the bottom. Remember that the most roots of a carrot begin at the end of what we see. 8" depth isn't hardly deep enough even for Little Finger. Under normal conditions, a chantenay variety may have a root system almost 8' deep and those carrots are only 6" to 8" long. I'll be planting Oxheart in a container about 18" deep which may or may not work well. That's a short one but wide.

Martin

[prairiegarden]

Thought I might be pushing it with such a shallow container but was hoping a 3-4 inch carrot would cope. They all straighten up again after a while but they're using energy to do that rather than grow. ah well, it's all a learning curve. The fan is an interesting idea thank you.

[mskrieger]

I grew carrots in containers on a rooftop very successfully one year. The containers were big plastic file bins, bought from some big box retailer for a few bucks each (on a roof, weight was a big concern.) They were about 2 feet deep--we filled them about 16" deep with organic potting soil mixed with some sand and coarse lime. We were well pleased with the harvest, and didn't use a special baby carrot, rather planted whatever seed I happened to have on hand. Grew 'em outside the whole time. Martin's details about root system are surely accurate--perhaps we just got lucky with 16" of potting soil.

Kim

[paquebot]

Ended up planting 5 varieties of carrots. Each will only get to maximum 8" long. The containers were all 15" deep and filled with old horse manure and soil mix. One is 15 gallons and the other 4 are 10 gallons. Each is set an inch or so into the soil so that the roots may continue growing through the drainage holes. They should supply us with all that we need.

Martin

[philagardener]

Which varieties are you planting, Martin? It sounds like you put in your Spring crop all at once rather than staggered sowing?

[mskrieger]

So you've already set them outside, Martin? Are you using the winter sowing technique? Or leaving the containers open to the elements? I planted my carrots in the ground a week or so ago, rather rashly, and am now regretting it. Time will tell whether the seeds survived the freezing rain and wind we got immediately after a few nice days.

[paquebot]

Not winter here despite what should be expected for last of March. In the ground, radishes, snow peas, spinach, and turnips are up. Dick Raymond once said that if a gardener doesn't lose something to a late frost, he isn't planting early enough. Those vegetables can be sown in late-fall and then come up naturally. I've done that with beets and chard as well.

The carrot varieties are Dragon, Burpee's Kaleidoscope Blend, Laguna, Oxheart, and Jung's Rainbow Hybrid. Fully exposed to today's 49ºF and rain other than pieces of chicken fencing to prevent squirrels from investigating. More Oxheart will also be planted in ground elsewhere which may not be available until early May.

There is really no need to stagger carrot planting. Despite most being in the 60 to 70 days maturity, they can be left in the ground for twice that long with no ill effects. The short maturity times of some make them ideal for planting after peas.

Carrot seed, by the way, will germinate at 40ºF but may take 40 days to emerge. Optimum is around 75ºF and may appear in 6 days.

Martin

[mskrieger]

Reassuring words on the germination temperatures and times! Thanks.

[shoshannah]

I want to do some winter seeding this year.

paquebot,

Not winter here despite what should be expected for last of March. In
the ground, radishes, snow peas, spinach, and turnips are up. Dick
Raymond once said that if a gardener doesn't lose something to a late
frost, he isn't planting early enough. Those vegetables can be sown in
late-fall and then come up naturally. I've done that with beets and
chard as well.e here

On winter sowing:  Is it more based on temperature when you plant winter over carrots, radishes, etc.

If temperature is too warm would the seeds start sprouting? 

How cold does it need to be?

Do you sow more like nature's self seeding by putting on top of soil?

Or shallow covering to keep from getting eaten? 

Would planting like this keep down the wire worm damage?

Susan

 

Susan

[paquebot]

Susan, in cold zones, time to sow those which I mentioned is whenever daytime temperatures are not expected to get much more than 40ºF. At low temperatures, the process of waking takes a long time and will be suspended if too low and resumes when more favorable conditions exist. This leads to earlier germination in the spring since the waking-up time was already started during the late fall.

Update on my carrots is that they have surpassed all expectations. Only the Oxhearts were thinned to allow for their wide growth. The others were left to remain as they emerged. Most are growing real tight together and normal size which means that any which could not compete are not there. Also, there have been a few which bolted in each pot. I believe this was due to my not watering on a regular schedule. A days without water was enough to shock them into attempting to produce seeds.

Martin