[wapello]

Ask away vagabond, lot of good gardeners here ive found out a few things that helped me,
learn by others mistakes,,,

[JayG]

No such thing as a stupid question, only stupid answers (and very rarely is there only one 'correct' answer when it comes to gardening matters!  )

[AnneB]

And you can always make soup out of the wonky ones if you scrub them well.

I always cover carrots with very fine mesh so that carrot flies cannot lay eggs at the base of the leaves, and then there are no nasty black tunnels in the carrots

Completely agree with Sunshine's advice to cover carrots with fine mesh to keep out carrot fly.  I have tried growing them higher up or putting a barrier round and it didn't work at all for me.   
Other tips I have found useful include having soil with no stones and a good depth, and not manured the previous autumn. All of these things help you get straight carrots.

I don't bother sowing before the first week in May as earlier (for me in Bradford) means the soil is too cold and I don't get good germination.

I try and sow fairly thinly.   This means I don't spend time faffing about taking off the netting to thin the carrots.  The smell of carrot thinnings attracts carrot fly, so I try and disturb them as little as possible, only to weed when I have too.

Here is one of last year's efforts. 

[Vagabond]

That looks like a lovely carrot, Annie! I haven't netted anything yet - I'll have to look for netting in our local hardware store.

[al78]

Why on earth do people keep sowing carrots inside and then transplanting them with the same disastrous results. I've yet to see a seed packet or gardening book that suggests you do this. Just read the instructions!

For those (i.e. me) who have problems getting carrots going outdoors (either no germination or grazed down by slugs within a week of appearing) I can see why some would want to try starting them indoors first.

[Growster...]

I always grow carrots inside in a bucket, (usually in the spring) then stand it high up outside when they're showing.

Shorthorn or those little globe beast carrots don't mind being shoved around, but like any root veg, they prefer their tap root to stay intact!

Don't worry, Vagabond, the squonky carrots are often the best tasting, (like parsnips) and as said here, a good wash makes them perfect for a delightful salad or a soup!

Seed packet instructions are no substitute for experience, so do your own thing ;0)

Best wishes!

[AlaninCarlisle]

It mystifies me, but Dobbies (part of Tesco) garden Centre and Homebase sell carrot seedlings in small plastic trays for transplanting. In fact, believe it or not, last season Homebase were selling parsnip seedlings too!

[Mr Dog]

No such thing as a stupid question, only stupid answers (and very rarely is there only one 'correct' answer when it comes to gardening matters!  )

Ask 3 gardeners the same question and you'll get at least 4 different answers.........

[hamstergbert]

Ask 3 gardeners the same question and you'll get at least 4 different answers.........

....and every single one of them is right.

[snowdrops]

Hardly surprising with all the ones in garden centres that you can buy that you thought you could transplant them. I feel the garden centres etc ought to refund people when they find out it's not a good idea. What bothers me more is that it might put 'newbies' off growing their own because like you you feel it was a 'rookie' mistake.
I think when starting out you need to concentrate on growing a few types of veg well & each year add a few more to your repertoire. I recommend that to clients when learning to cook etc too

[Sparkyrog]

As this is a carrot thread both myself and a couple of friends have had problems germinating carrots this year . Anyone else had the same problem ?

[brokenglass]

We are all beginners at this lark as every year is different

[micou]

As this is a carrot thread both myself and a couple of friends have had problems germinating carrots this year . Anyone else had the same problem ?

Mine are being quite reticent. They're in a nice sandy loam and getting some decent sun on the beds but they're coming up very half-heartedly. I reckon I've got about 50% germination from what I can see. On the other hand, they're in a bed which has quite a lot of old mulchy bits in the soil still, and I wonder if actually they are growing all right but I can't see them properly yet because they're taking ages to get past the bits of bark etc. Plus it's not been warm.
However we are finally having some warmth and everything is getting a bit of a boost so with any luck they might get a wriggle on this week...

[Vagabond]

My carrot growing attempts seem to be doomed! I sowed more seeds between the (moved) seedlings in the hope of getting a few straight carrots along with what will probably be some very wonky ones.

Then my friends and their three lively children paid us a visit. I was happy to let the kids play outside with our new puppy - but one of them carried her up the steps to my vegetable beds where they caused havoc! I later found footprints on my carrot and beetroot bed!! Not amused - especially as these children's parents have an extensive vegetable patch, so they should have known better.
I've done what I can to gently replant the disturbed seedlings but god knows what's happened to the sowed seeds.

Is it too late to sow more seeds in another part of the bed?

[hamstergbert]

I'd suggest sowing more, no question.

Apart from anything else, it is usually the case that later sowings when conditions have improved have a reasonable chance of pretty well catching up earlier sowings.