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Post by durgan on May 22, 2010 16:49:46 GMT -5
www.durgan.org/URL/?GSXVO 22 May 2010 Planting Carrot Seeds The type of carrot is Chantenay Red. Carrot seeds require constant moisture and cool temperatures (Less than 80F or 27C) to germinate. The top layer of soil on a bright sunny day can exceed this temperature. Top soil Germination takes from about 11 to 22 days. Thinning carrot seedlings is not a pleasant chore and is very inefficient, since one is often pulling the desired more vigorous plant. By enclosing the seed in s small piece of toilet paper and wetting, the seed is enclosed in a wet environment, and spacing is much easier to achieve. Adding the softwood bedding wood chips will prevent the soil surface from drying and getting excessively hot when the Sun is bearing down. I will be posting a follow-up on this method as to efficacy as time progresses.
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Post by tomstrees on May 26, 2010 14:27:23 GMT -5
I tried something different this season for my first shot ever at planting carrot seed:
I took long 2x4s and laid them in a straight line in garden -
dug 1/2 deep in soil
planted carrot seed
lightly covered seeds
(heres the kicker) - instead of watering the soil covering the seeds, I watered the 2x4 instead - enough liquid lightly flowed over on top of the soil - NOW - the 2x4 also worked as a mulch to keep soil warm, and retained moisture.
Once they all came up - I thinned to 1 plant per 2 inches
they are doing very well, and I'm going to do succession plantings to have them throughout the season ~>
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jcm05
Administrator
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Post by jcm05 on May 27, 2010 6:09:14 GMT -5
Cool idea T. I have used promix to cover sown carrot seeds in the past which has worked well, but my laziness has caused me to get away from that the past two years and germination has still been strong. The reason is only to stop the soil surface from crusting over. Maybe its the nice, loose loamy soil in my beds. I have never bought into the whole soaking seeds in damp paper towels/toilet paper thing. I have seen nothing that proves otherwise to me. Just keep the soil surface moist and the seeds will stay moist as well. I can't imagine what a PITA it is to wrap tiny carrot seeds in little balls of TP. The day I am forced to do that is the day I quit gardening.
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Post by tomstrees on May 27, 2010 8:41:56 GMT -5
Cool idea T. I have used promix to cover sown carrot seeds in the past which has worked well, but my laziness has caused me to get away from that the past two years and germination has still been strong. The reason is only to stop the soil surface from crusting over. Maybe its the nice, loose loamy soil in my beds. I have never bought into the whole soaking seeds in damp paper towels/toilet paper thing. I have seen nothing that proves otherwise to me. Just keep the soil surface moist and the seeds will stay moist as well. I can't imagine what a PITA it is to wrap tiny carrot seeds in little balls of TP. The day I am forced to do that is the day I quit gardening. yup - no way - I have enough things going on - I don't need carrots to be a PITA as well. I've never soaked seeds for any plant - but peppers could help I guess. The above method I tried ? Is awesome J - no fuss ? no muss - the wood "keeps them in a nice line" (if you're into that), keeps the soil moist for germ & shades a bit from wind/crusting - all you have to do is thin them because so many come up, lol (that day takes some patience) my soil these days ? Amazing - in the fall & spring back fill with compost and all that "fish meal" in there from bluefish & stripers after filleting over the years and especially this season. We're having a great run as not just my fish go in there but the old mans as well - "watch where you dig" hahahaha  |
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stratcat
Tomato Fanatic
Tha Green Bomb!
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Post by stratcat on May 27, 2010 9:35:55 GMT -5
From Crockett's Victory Garden in the 70's, I got the tip to cover the carrot seeds with sand, water and stick a board over the row until the carrots sprout. Water as needed. Works.
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Post by redneckplanter on Dec 5, 2010 10:57:04 GMT -5
just my two cents..lol
i tilled the area in one of my shredded leaf piles.
and just broadcast the carrot seeds out there.....danvers if i remember correctly...
so far doing fine with a lotta carrots..lol
some now in the two three inch range...and sweet...smiles
cabbage aint doin so well....lol
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Post by flowerpower on Dec 6, 2010 7:57:12 GMT -5
From Crockett's Victory Garden in the 70's, I got the tip to cover the carrot seeds with sand, water and stick a board over the row until the carrots sprout. Water as needed. Works. I have this book also. It's awesome.  |
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Post by GunnarSK on Dec 7, 2010 16:49:55 GMT -5
I have this book ( Crockett's Victory Garden) also. It's awesome. I got some Flakkee seeds from Train at IDig, and mostly followed his advice, which works even in deep and hot Texas, and stresses that you have to use good (fluffy) soil. He and Blane are experts on this. |
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Post by reubent on Mar 9, 2011 14:20:42 GMT -5
prepared the soil, lightly sprinkle the seeds on in bands, stir them in the surface, water with a little kelp extract in it, cover with foam board supported on boards just a bit for shade, and weighted down to prevent wind from playing with it. And then check on it every day, keep surface moist, and remove foam board as soon as the sprouts appear. Needs to be fairly weed free soil, I was using woods dirt that I hauled in.
My ideal growing environment will be a greenhouse with heat under the beds (hot water through pex tubing in a cement heat plate) and a big air conditioning system. Keep the temp steady year round. Then I can grow a steady supply for my future produce market.
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grunt
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Post by grunt on Mar 9, 2011 16:35:17 GMT -5
I use this, and don't have to thin and waste seed later:   I drop one or two seeds into each hole (two inch spacing) = it takes me a bit longer to do the initial planting, but I don't have to thin later. I do a quick hand watering a couple of times a day until the carrots germinate and get large enough to mulch around. Bank the mulch up around the stalks, and forget about weeding, and water about 1/3 as much as without mulch. The mulch also cuts down on the severity of carrot fly damage. |
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hillbillypie
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Post by hillbillypie on Mar 9, 2011 19:15:13 GMT -5
Dan your gardening wisdom is amazing. I saw your little contraption a month or so ago and meant to say something about it then. Great idea. You should post some of your things in the garden shed. --S
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jcm05
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Post by jcm05 on Mar 10, 2011 9:19:43 GMT -5
Nice idea Dan. I use a planting board for much of the stuff I sow including carrots that I made a few years ago after seeing it used on the victory garden show. Essentially its a 1x4 board thats 4 feet long that I ripped one side to a point and marked intervals of 3, 4, 6, 12 inches on for spacing requirements. Sorta like the one below but much narrower.  |
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Post by veggie maker on Apr 27, 2011 0:32:06 GMT -5
I use a narrow strip of plywood also... since carrots handle a bit of frost I need to get them in early and under the Arizona sun they still need a bit of cover and we never have enough rain so they also get irrigated at least twice a day till about an inch tall.... they also need to be exposed to the sun slowly and hardened a bit before the plywood leaves the row permanently ... then I have to cover the row with a chicken wire row cover to keep the quail from eating all of them... if the grandkids didn't like them so well, I think I would not grow carrots.. as they prove to be the most time consuming of my vegetable garden.... I also used a 6in hoe and cut a trench about 2inches deep filled with potting soil, sowed the carrot seeds then covered with a bit more potting soil.... this helps to hold moisture in my sandy loam enough to at least cut down a bit on watering.
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