Planting carrots in spring in open ground
Carrots are one of the main vegetable crops in our country. Everyone can grow it, but it is important to sow it on time and correctly. We tell you when to plant carrots in the spring in open ground

Rules for planting carrots in spring in open ground

Sowing seeds is problematic – it turns out very thick, and then you need to pull the seedlings. It is very long and difficult, besides, with this method of growing, up to 2/3 of the seeds actually go to waste – you can no longer plant the pulled plants. However, there are ways to sow seeds profitably.

Mix with sand. Seeds can be mixed with river sand in a ratio of 1:3. In this case, the crops will be sparse – exactly what you need.

Sow one seed at a time. If it is difficult to find sand, you can simply sow 1 seed at a distance of 5 – 6 cm from each other. Yes, this is a routine and boring job, it takes a lot of effort, but, firstly, you will significantly save on seeds, and secondly, you will save time later – thinning the beds 2 times is much longer and more difficult than sowing 1 seed at once.

But before the seeds are sown, they need to be prepared. The problem is that they sprout with great difficulty, because they are saturated with essential oils – they prevent the emergence of sprouts. You can get rid of it if you soak the seeds in hot water for 24 hours (the temperature should be 40 – 50 ° C). At the same time, every 2 – 3 hours the water must be changed – firstly, to drain the essential oils, and secondly, so that the water is hot again.

You can speed up the preparation of seeds – for this you need to pour a little water into a glass, literally to a height of 1 cm, add a few drops of hydrogen peroxide and soak the seeds for 30 minutes.

And then they can be sown.

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Planting dates for carrots in spring

Carrot is a cold-resistant crop, its seedlings withstand frosts down to 4 °C (1), and the seeds germinate at a soil temperature of 3-4 °C. Therefore, carrot seeds can be sown after April 20.

But it’s still better to be guided by the weather. If the spring is early, already in the first days of April it becomes warm, then the sowing date can be shifted to the 15th. With a cold, protracted spring, it is better to postpone sowing for May – from the 1st to the 5th.

Planting scheme for carrots in spring

The classic sowing scheme is as follows:

  • between rows – 15 – 20 cm;
  • in a row – 5 – 7 cm.

Carrot seeds are sown to a depth of 1,5 cm (2).

Popular questions and answers

We talked about growing carrots with agronomist-breeder Svetlana Mikhailova – she told how to save money on sowing and caring for carrots.

How to save on carrot seeds?

Choose seeds in white bags – they are 7 to 10 times cheaper than colored ones. And look at the number of seeds. Some manufacturers pack them individually – in a bag of 150 – 200 pcs. For others – 1 – 2 g each. It is more profitable in grams, because in 1 g of carrot seeds there are about 750 pieces. The packages are the same price.

How to save on sowing carrots?

Sow individually, and not all over, as advised in the literature. This is more difficult and takes more time, but then the carrots do not have to be pulled through. Pulled out extra plants can no longer be planted, which means that this is money down the drain.

How to save on caring for carrots?

A large expense item when caring for carrots is top dressing. Now there are “specialized” fertilizers on sale, on which it is written: “Spring”, “Summer”, “Autumn”. They have a classic set of elements: nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium. But they cost more. Therefore, choose simple fertilizers: ammonium nitrate (nitrogen), superphosphate (phosphorus) and potassium sulfate (potassium). They are more profitable.

Sources of

  1. Fisenko A.N., Serpukhovitina K.A., Stolyarov A.I. Garden. Handbook // Rostov-on-Don, Rostov University Press, 1994 – 416 p.
  2. Yakubovskaya L.D., Yakubovsky V.N., Rozhkova L.N. ABC of a summer resident // Minsk, OOO “Orakul”, OOO Lazurak, IPKA “Publicity”, 1994 – 415 p.

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