How come we’ve neglected carrots?
The Raised Bed Gardener says carrots are ideal for containers and raised beds, they suit cooler climates, seed can be sown in containers at least 20cm deep or raised beds in early March, they can be planted close together and they can be harvested in 12 weeks: what’s not to like? He also says that they can be intercropped (planted between other plants) and will tolerate a bit of shade. A perfect plant – yet I’ve never grown them and don’t think any of our group have.
OK, so here’s the downside, it seems. Carrot fly: the seedlings need to be carefully protected with horticultural fleece or you can try and distract the fly with the overpowering smell of onions. Container grown carrots sound a bit like tomatoes, though more tolerant of cold: they need lots of water and feeding with potassium-rich tomato feed. And of course, they require a crumbly not a clay or stony soil as otherwise you get forked carrots. So we need
- a container at least 20cm deep
- planting compost mixed with vermiculite and some BFB (blood fish and bone)
- to construct a ‘cage’ over our container and tightly attach horticultural flee
- to raise the container at least 50cm above the ground if possible
- to water well and feed regularly
The small, early varieties – Amsterdam carrots – seem to be most suitable for containers. We’ve been donated two packets of Amsterdam 3 carrots, one via the RHS The Garden magazine. Definitely time to try! The BBC weather forecast for Brighton promised sun this afternoon – no sign so far, but at least no snow (last week), no wind, no rain.
There’s masses of guidance on growing container carrots:
London Road Station Partnership Blog 