Grow Your Own Carrots

Each carrot that you pull from your garden bed after months of waiting and wondering what's happening down there will feel like a little piece of magic. Not the type of magic where you wave a wand and say some words in a different language. The type of magic where you gain a new appreciation for how teeny tiny seeds become our super-nutritious food.

And all with very little effort from you. Once planted, watered in, and thinned, carrots can pretty much take care of themselves. The hardest part for you, the gardener, is just being patient while your carrots do their thing underground.

When you pull your little root treasures from the soil, the wait will have been oh so worth it! Homegrown carrots are such a treat. Those perfectly orange sticks from the store will never taste quite as good as the carrots you pull from your own garden.

When to Plant Carrots

Carrots thrive in cool weather and can be grown in the spring and fall in colder climates or during the winter months in warmer climates. When I lived in Chicago, I planted carrots in late August for a fall harvest. When I lived in Houston, I planted carrot seeds throughout the colder months. If you've got 60 to 90 days of nice, cool weather (mostly temps between 45 and 75°F) up ahead, that's a great time to plant some carrots.

Don't worry about trying to plan around your first or last frost date. Carrots don't mind a little bit of frost. The taproots actually sweeten a bit with a light freeze. We'll talk more about using garden covers to extend your carrot growing season in the carrot tending section.

How Much Sun Do Carrots Need?

Carrots need about 6 hours of direct sunlight a day for good, strong root formation under the soil. You might still get a lot of green growth on your plants with fewer hours of sunlight, but that growth will mostly be above the soil instead of below, where we want it most.

Because carrots are overall smaller plants whose greens don’t grow very tall above the ground, you’ll need to be careful when choosing the location for your carrots so that your larger plants don't hog all the sun. Days of growing under the shade of a larger plant can stunt and slow their growth. I did a little experiment one spring where I planted carrots in two different raised beds. The bed that got more sun produced carrots that were noticeably larger and more developed than those that grew in the bed that was shaded by my neighbor's house for most of the afternoon.

Where to Grow Carrots

I prefer to grow most of my root vegetables in raised garden beds. Raised beds offer numerous benefits, including better drainage, weed control, and great soil from the very beginning. Because carrots need a good bit of vertical space to accommodate their taproots, your raised bed, container, or grow bag should be at least 12 inches deep.

Carrots can take a while to germinate and grow, so I've found that they do best when planted all by themselves in a bed or along the outer edges of a bed. If you're interplanting, it's best to get your carrots started in the garden first so that their leaves have plenty of time to grow up to four to six inches before the other plants around them take off. Otherwise, you run the risk of those other plants blocking the sun. I sometimes grow carrots alongside lettuce plants, but I avoid planting carrots near other root crops like beets and radishes.

If you're interested in companion planting, here are the best carrot companions.

How to Start Carrots

Carrots are very sensitive to being moved, so I don't recommend starting carrot seeds indoors and transplanting them out later. If you see carrot seedlings for sale at a garden shop, resist the temptation to buy them. Instead, grab a packet or two of seeds and sow them directly in the garden.

Seeds are a much cheaper way to get your carrots started anyway. Since you only get one root for every plant you grow, you'd need to buy or transplant a lot of carrot seedlings to harvest enough for a satisfying appetizer.

In addition to saving an entire bed for your root crops, you might also sow seeds successively over several weeks. As long as the temperatures remain in the optimal range, you can plant more carrot seeds every one to two weeks during the growing period. 

Steps to Sow Carrot Seeds

Follow these simple steps to direct sow carrot seeds:

Step One

Use a hori hori or a long trowel to loosen the soil down to about 6 to 8 inches across the planting area. Break up large soil clumps and remove pebbles, weeds, and plant debris. That way, your carrots can send their roots down deep without too much pressure. Once the soil is nice and loose, add a fresh 2- to 3-inch layer of compost. Go over the soil surface with a little hand rake and then press it flat with your trowel or hori hori. 

Step Two

Carrot seeds are itty bitty. You can do your best to space them about 3 fingers apart at the time of planting, or you can sprinkle them broadly, knowing you'll need to come back later and thin them. Wait until you've sown all your seeds before you cover them up. These seeds are so tiny they only need to be planted ¼ inch deep, so you can just sprinkle a light layer of compost over them. (We've got an entire post on how to plant carrots from seed if you'd like more details on the different sowing techniques.)

Step Three

Water the seeds in gently. Keep the bed consistently moist but not soggy while you're waiting on the carrot seeds to geminate, which can take up to 3 weeks. Make sure to mark where you've planted your carrots seeds so you don't forget during the long wait till germination.

How to Thin Carrot Seedlings

Once your carrot seedlings have begun to sprout, it's time to assess your seedling spacing and thin as needed. Thinning seedlings is an important step to avoid overcrowding and provide enough space for carrots to develop. Root crops tend to be sensitive little things—they’re constantly aware of their surroundings and will sometimes refuse to grow more if they sense there’s another plant that needs space nearby. 

Look for seedlings that have popped up too close together. I use my fingers to measure if the seedlings are the right distance apart (based on an image in my mind of how big the mature root should be). If you're more technical, you can aim to have 2 to 4 inches between each carrot plant.

Pick one of the seedlings to remove, ideally whichever one seems a little more spindly or less hardy than its neighbor. You can either pull the entire seedling out, tiny root and all, or you can trim the extra seedling at the soil level with a pair of scissors. The second is less likely to disturb the roots of the remaining plants.

Because carrots are so sensitive to competition, you might come back in another 20 days or so to see if you need to do a second round of thinning. That way, the remaining carrots will have plenty of room to develop nice, juicy taproots. Some gardeners will even do a third round of thinning.

You'll also want to keep the growing area weed-free. Once a week, take time to hand-weed and clear the soil area around each carrot of any plant debris like fallen leaves.

If you’re entering a busy season in life where you know you can’t commit a lot of time to tending the garden but you’re hoping to still have a harvest, growing root crops like carrots can be the answer. Once planted and thinned, carrots really only ask that you weed, water, and harvest when the moment comes.

Let's look at how to tend your carrots while they're growing in your vegetable garden.

Watering Carrots

Consistent water after sowing carrot seeds is essential to make sure those seeds make it to the seedling stage. During germination, seeds need to swell to the point of bursting, and to get to that point, they must stay wet for days. While the soil doesn’t need to be soaking, it should be a little moist to the touch. If you allow carrots to dry out during their germination or early growth period, you can delay the growth of their roots by days or even weeks.

Once the green tops start to show, carrots need at least one inch of rain or water per week. The easiest way to ensure that you've got consistent water long term is to install a drip irrigation system that can put water at the root level, where carrots need it most, rather than the leaf level. You can set a watering schedule for your root crops for every couple of days. Avoid overwatering, which can cause root rot. Aim to keep the soil evenly moist.

Fertilizing Carrots

Our goal with root crops is to feed them organic food that will help them grow bigger, stronger roots. I usually just add a layer of compost at the time of planting and then push more compost around the base of each root throughout the growing season.

If you'd like to apply an organic fertilizer, look for a product with an N-P-K ratio where the second and third numbers (for phosphorus and potassium, respectively) are higher than the first number (for nitrogen). You don't want to add too much nitrogen, or you'll end up with lots of green carrot tops and very small roots.

The best time to apply this fertilizer is when you're planting your carrots. Work the fertilizer several inches into the soil to put it right where your developing roots can reach it. Both the phosphorus and the potassium will encourage carrots to form thick roots. Avoid adding these nutrients later in the carrot growing season, or you'll encourage the formation of flowers, which you don't want.

Hilling Carrots

Carrots sometimes send the shoulders of their roots above the soil line too early, which can result in a too-thin root. If you see part of the underdeveloped root above ground, simply hill fresh soil around the exposed root. Hilling is the process of pushing compost or soil up along the main stem of the plant. By hilling soil, you’re essentially burying your carrots a bit deeper so they can more fully develop before harvest.

Regulating Soil Temperature for Carrots

Ideally, your soil temperature will be between 55 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit for the best root formation. Using garden covers can help you regulate your soil temperature and extend your growing time.

If it's cold out when you first sow carrot seeds, you could, for example use frost cloth or a cold frame to keep the soil warm enough to sprout seeds. If you're planting carrots in late summer or early fall when it's still a bit too warm, you could instead use a shade cloth to cool the soil. Then, as the seeds sprout and temperatures decrease a bit, remove the shade cloth and allow the plants to grow in the open air. 

How to Harvest Carrots

The challenge with waiting on carrots to grow is the uncertainty of when exactly they'll be ready. Looking at the carrot greens can give you at least a hint as to what’s happening underground. In general, the root’s size imitates the growth aboveground. 

Depending on the variety you're growing, carrots can take anywhere from 35 to 70 days to harvest, with an average of about 55 days. In warmer weather, they may take longer to mature. You can, of course, harvest a couple of the leafy greens growing up top at any point after they start growing.

When your carrots are ready to harvest, you should be able to easily see their crowns, or shoulders, poking through the soil. If not, gently brush away a bit of the dirt around the carrot tops to take a peak. Ideally, the shoulders should be about 3/4 inch to 1 inch in diameter. You might also notice the root's color is vibrant.

Follow these steps to harvest your carrots:

STEP ONE

Water the garden well the night before so that the soil will be nice and moist.

STEP TWO

The next morning, use a hori hori or trowel to dig around the base of the carrots to loosen the soil up a bit. This prevents the carrot tops from breaking off when you're pulling on them.

STEP THREE

Gently tug on the bottom of the carrot tops to pull each carrot up. Shake your little root treasure to free some of the dirt.

How to Store Carrots

Rinse your carrots in cold water and allow them to dry completely. Trim off the carrot greens, leaving just about an inch or so attached.

If you happen to have a root cellar or a basement that stays nice and cool, you can pack your carrots in a container with some sand and then keep the lid ajar. They'll keep for up to 2 months this way. Otherwise, your carrots will go in your fridge's produce drawer inside a perforated plastic bag.

They'll last a few weeks before they decline in flavor and consistency. If your carrots look a little limp, try soaking them in cold water to revive them.

How to Enjoy Garden-Fresh Carrots

We often boil down the nutritional benefits of carrots as good for eye health, but they're really just all around good for you. In fact, carrots are one of the most nutritious vegetables you can grow in your garden. They're rich in vitamins A and C and fiber. And guess what? The leafy green tops have even more vitamin C than the root, plus vitamin K. Carrot greens taste like a combination of carrots and parsley.

My favorite way to enjoy fresh carrot greens is to chop them up and toss them into soups the way I would fresh parsley. They also work well in pesto and chimichurri sauce. Using them is a yummy reminder that you can enjoy so much more of the plant when you grow it yourself.

The roots are, of course, incredibly versatile. You can eat them raw when you're craving that satisfying crunch, steam them, toss them into soups and stews, or roast them with some olive oil, salt, and pepper for the perfect side dish for just about anything (add some rosemary if you have it). If taproots are on the smaller side, I usually enjoy them raw and crisp as snacks for on-the-go, and when taproots are larger, I use them to make garden-fresh carrot juice.

Enjoy the Crisp, Sweet Goodness of Your Homegrown Carrots!

If you've never grown your own carrots before, you might expect the roots to be nice and smooth like the carrots from the grocery store. In reality, they will probably be lumpy and bent; they might have stretch marks and even little white hairs (those are actually just tiny roots); they might even look a bit deformed if they encountered an obstacle underground. But to you, they will be the most beautiful carrots ever.

Because you grew them yourself. You sowed the seeds, watered them in, and took the time to thin them. You tugged on each little stem to reveal the taproot your soil has been nourishing these past couple of months. Maybe you were feeling a little impatient for your carrots to just grow already, but now you'll be in awe that so much grew from such a tiny seed in a matter of months.

And they will taste incredible—so crisp and sweet. You won't be able to wait until you can plant another round of carrots.

Thanks for being here and making gardening ordinary again, one little root at a time.