Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat

Growing => Grow Your Own => Topic started by: BabyStar on April 20, 2011, 20:01

Title: How long can carrots stay in the ground?
Post by: BabyStar on April 20, 2011, 20:01

Hi,

I am new to the gardening game and this first year is more than experimental! I am just wondering whether you can leave carrots in the ground once grown and just pull them when you need them? I read somewhere about doing this and if it conserves them then that would be great as don't know how else to store them as they are!


Many thanks.

Title: Re: How long can carrots stay in the ground?
Post by: prakash_mib on April 20, 2011, 20:24

I've seen people leaving carrots in the ground when the tops die. but with slight bit of fortune weather in the winter they would start putting shoots through. so it is bit of luck and you might find it very difficult to dig them out during winter.
5-6 years ago I saw in a garden program, the guy made a big bale of carrots and buried in ground and he said that will stay fresh for 6 months.
you can try using sandbox method to store them as well.
this is the first hit in google
http://www.carrotmuseum.co.uk/carrotstorage.html

Title: Re: How long can carrots stay in the ground?
Post by: peapod on April 20, 2011, 20:26

Welcome to the site BabyStar  :)

Hopefully you will find this site helpful...they have some good carrot tips

http://www.carrotmuseum.co.uk/carrotstorage.html (http://www.carrotmuseum.co.uk/carrotstorage.html)

Title: Re: How long can carrots stay in the ground?
Post by: muntjac on April 21, 2011, 20:48

if you want to store carrots over winter in the ground , simple idea is cover them with a 18 inch deep straw.thats what us farming types do and we had -18 3ft snow here in fife and the carrots came up loverly :tongue2:

Title: Re: How long can carrots stay in the ground?
Post by: BabyStar on May 18, 2011, 11:25

Thanks all!

Title: Re: How long can carrots stay in the ground?
Post by: griff on May 18, 2011, 16:11

i always plant a row of autumn king2 vita longa in July and harvest through the winter.
Dug the last ones up late march

Title: Re: How long can carrots stay in the ground?
Post by: Rampant_Weasel on May 18, 2011, 16:25

for those of you who clamp, is there a specific type of sand to use or will any do?

i used compost last year and the green parts started to regrow and they lost alot of taste when i cooked them but otherwise fine.i think i tried to store the wrong variety (sweet candle) so this year ive planted some autumn king also.