Harvesting Carrots

  • I decided to try a second attempt at growing carrots and planted these on December 14th. They have looked to be growing well, but you never know until you pull them. I did choose a six-inch variety hoping they would be longer than the first ones I planted last year.

    A blog reader named Wendy left me this comment which helped explain why my last crop was short.

    “Hi! I think your carrots look great. They will never grow really long in a raised bed because they have a long tap root that takes up the water. Once that spindly little root at the pointy end of the carrot hits the base, the carrots will stop growing. Show gardeners grow carrots in deep buckets or even trash cans!
    I suggest you harvest all of them soon.” – Wendy

    Thanks Wendy for the help! That certainly makes sense. I found this informative read on how to grow carrots in containers if you are thinking of growing them. I harvested my carrots yesterday and was happy they were a bit longer than the first ones I grew. Even though they were short, I will tell you they tasted great! I put them in a stir-fry with some other veggies from my garden. Today I am taking them to school to share with my class, as they are always excited to see anything that comes out of a garden.

    Hindsight, the tiny ones I pulled were very squeezed and tightly planted to others. I am slowly learning my lesson about thinning and over planting. Next time I will space out the seed a little more and thin them when they get more mature. I have learned they will never get very long in a raised bed, but I will plant again because they are easy to grow and so delicious, even if they are short.

    To make any stir-fry dish:

    Add the veggies to a hot skillet with a small amount of coconut oil or olive oil. Add them in the order of which ones take the longest time to cook. To this dish I added them in this order:  carrots, potatoes, onion, kale, cabbage, and finally broccoli. Sear the veggies at medium to high heat, turning often. Keep adding layers of veggies and stir often. Add seasoning and a small amount of water, cover and turn off heat. Enjoy!

    The dish I made last night had everything from my garden except the 3 small potatoes and the broccoli. I am growing both broccoli and potatoes in my garden now and I can’t wait to harvest both.

    If you are new to my garden site, here are the benefits of gardening the Raised Urban Garden way and feel free to click around and see what else I grow.

    how-to-garden-raised-bed-gardening-table-garden-041113-16

    how-to-garden-raised-bed-gardening-table-garden-041113-17

    how-to-garden-raised-bed-gardening-table-garden-041113-32

    how-to-garden-raised-bed-gardening-table-garden-041113-21

    aaa how to garden raised bed gardening table garden 041113-20

    Add the veggies to a hot skillet with a small amount of coconut oil or olive oil. Add them in the order of which ones take the longest time to cook. To this dish I added them in this order: carrots, potatoes, onion, kale, cabbage, and finally broccoli. Sear the veggies at medium to high heat, turning often. Keep adding layers of veggies and stir often. Add seasoning and a small amount of water, cover and turn off heat. Enjoy!

    Add the veggies to a hot skillet with a small amount of coconut oil or olive oil. Add them in the order of which ones take the longest time to cook. To this dish I added them in this order: carrots, potatoes, onion, kale, cabbage, and finally broccoli. Sear the veggies at medium to high heat, turning often. Keep adding layers of veggies and stir often. Add seasoning and a small amount of water, cover and turn off heat. Enjoy!


    April 12th, 2013 | 7 Comments |

7 Responses and Counting...

  • Angela 04.12.2013

    So glad I found your post on Pinterest. My son and I have planted our very first garden and carrots were included. We are in a raised bed, so now I know what to expect. I’m excited {more than I thought I would be} to see what we harvest. Thanks for this great information.

  • Melanie

    Angela,
    Thanks for letting me know about your garden. How fun to garden with your son. My kids love my garden too! Good luck to you and please keep in touch and let me know how your garden is doing! So fun, kids love carrots!
    Melanie

  • Chiquita Latina

    I am so happy to have found your site! I am so interested in starting a raised garden in my back yard!

  • Melanie

    Yeah! so happy you are excited about gardening! Good luck to you and stay in touch and let me know how your garden is growing,
    Melanie

  • Melanie

    Chiquita,
    Yeah! To get excited is the first step! Good luck and let me know how your garden is growing!
    Melanie

  • Laura F.

    Just purchased your plans today and I’m very excited to get my raised garden bed made! I plan on making a garden for my grandkids to help with and enjoy. Since I have bad knees a garden would have been impossible. This is the perfect solution! Thank you for sharing this with us!

  • D. Simkovic

    How can you tell when it’s time to harvest your carrots?

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