[harry]

I have sown carrot seeds in trays of compost and want to transplant them in the ground. Has anyone managed this successfully ? It has been suggested you can make a hole and drop the seedlings in and fill with water, the same as with leeks.

[rosiecider]

Hi Harry
I am still a newby to this gardening and have never heard of this, I always plant my carrots in old kerb it recycle bins with old compost so far carrot fly has missed them but this will be the year

[simonwatson]

Carrots are generally not transplanted as they quickly grow a deep tap root which, if disturbed or obstructed, will result in very odd shaped carrots. If the tap root has already reached the bottom of the tray and is wandering along, then they're already ruined. I'd dig one out and check before going any further.

If they haven't reached the bottom then just transfer to a hole the same depth as your tray and water well. Try and make sure the ground you're transplanting to is well dug and light, not hard and heavy, or the carrot will just stop at the boundary and you'll end up with little ball shaped carrots.