[gardener247]

i've double dug and added sand and am going to sieve to a quarter inch... will this be enough to get straight carrots the bendy forked ones are soo hard to peel   what do you do to grow them well in the soil

[Ice]

The less nutrition in the soil the less they will fork.  If they grow in nutritious soil they will think wey hey, loads of food, I'll send out loads of roots to take advantage.  If there is very little nutrition they will keep growing downwards in order to find it.

Also, if the root hits a stone they will fork to go around it.

I use a 50/50 mix of bagged compost to sharp sand to grow mine.

[penance]

As mentioned before, try not use the heavy grass mulch as this will break down causing more N to be available.

[viettaclark]

I've just pulled up swede and celeriac that looked so healthy but produced NO edible roots (excepy 2 tennis ball celeriac) and I'm sure that was due to too much nitrogen.
I know flowers and fruits need less nitrogen, more potassium. Is it the same for all the root crops?

[Trillium]

Most root crops benefit from both phosphorous and potassium (potash), the PK of NPK in fertilizers. Nitrogen helps plant foliage to grow strong. Phosphorous helps roots and flowers grow and develop. Potassium (Potash) is important for overall plant health.

[gardener247]

thanks that helps a lot this year im growing them where the spuds were last time 

[viettaclark]

Thanks Trill.