Topic: How to grow Giant Long Carrots.

[vegmandan]

If anyone's interested in how to grow some of the Long Show Carrots then I've done a short YouTube video.
I'm far from being an expert but had some crackers last year using this method.
No secret to it whatsoever just a bit of preparation,(filling a barrel with sand) and the right seed (I use Medwyns) and you can get some cracking results.
All the compost mixes are on my blog.
I'm trying to take the myths out of show veg and give everyone the buzz of pulling a 4ft carrot just for a laugh.
P.S Don't laugh at my daft Yorkshire accent. ;D

Link below.

YouTube - Allotment Diary : How to grow Giant Exhibition Long Carrots & Parsnips

[Joe11]

like it m8, good video. And they sure are some loooong carrots lol. Do you just pull em up or you got to dig em out?

[Robert_Brenchley]

I don't think the root would pull out with the carrot!

[saddad]

As Robert says you can't pull these, not even out of sand... some grow in split earthen ware pipes for ease of removal. There is no such thing as a "daft" Yorkshire accent...  :)

[luckycharlie]

   Hi 

    Just shown my three year old grandson. Quote " They are very big aren't they. Can we have one for dinner?"

   Guess what I will be trying

   BTW he really thought they were funny


   X Chas

[vegmandan]

like it m8, good video. And they sure are some loooong carrots lol. Do you just pull em up or you got to dig em out?

You just pull em out, no digging whatsoever because they're in compost theres not much resistance.

[noorie]

Well done, fantastic achievement, my carrots used to be very similar to me, two or three legged most of the time and fat, until I cleaned the soil from most of the stones. Last year they were 10inch generally and straight.

[Dandytown]

I sowed some carrots yesterday in seived compost/soil mix and am hoping for some slender carrots without any forking or corkscrewing.  If I do well I'll try giant next year.

[Busby]

The most fantastic carrots I have ever seen were at a farmers' market in Tunisia, they were about the size of a fat man's forearm. Huge piles of them. I presumed they had all been grown in sand.

[pete JB]

Hi there
I have your blog bookmarked for carrot growing. I`m doing stump rooted ones this year (as a 1st attempt)
The blog was great with loads of good advice. I hope things will go ok this year.

Thanks and good growing

Pete

[saddad]

The most fantastic carrots I have ever seen were at a farmers' market in Tunisia, they were about the size of a fat man's forearm. Huge piles of them. I presumed they had all been grown in sand.

I have high hopes for "Red Elephant" from HSL... for girth rather than length...  :)

[Karen Atkinson]

my carrots got attacked by root fly last year even tho they were in a 2.5ft container...how did yours escape?

[saddad]

Mine are in a wilko's dustbin... very fine mesh is the only real answer... some don't know they are supposed to saty near the ground...  ;D

[Squash64]

Your website  http://www.allotment-diary.co.uk  is brilliant!

I love the way you have so many photos and the friendly way it is written. :)

[shirlton]

Have added your site to my favs so that I can browse through it at liesure. I just love learning something new.

[pumkinlover]

so have I!

[vegmandan]

my carrots got attacked by root fly last year even tho they were in a 2.5ft container...how did yours escape?

To be honest I'm not sure...luck probably.

I'm going to use some Garlic spray this year which the National Carrot Champ seems to swear by.

It seems to be more important to mask the smell of the carrot rather than spraying or protecting them.

But Ideally you can completely surround your carrots with Enviromesh and take any thinnings home.

I did spray them once with some Provado Bug Spray really early on but to be honest I just think because my plot is in such a windy spot they don't seem to be a problem....thankfully

[davyw1]

my carrots got attacked by root fly last year even tho they were in a 2.5ft container...how did yours escape?

You may find its not about keeping the carrot fly out but getting rid of what is already in your soil/mix before planting

[shirlton]

I hope you don't mind me asking Davy but is it feed you put in the compost mix?. I am asking because all the advice I have had is not to feed carrots unless you put some bonemeal in the bottom of the bin.

[davyw1]

I hope you don't mind me asking Davy but is it feed you put in the compost mix?. I am asking because all the advice I have had is not to feed carrots unless you put some bonemeal in the bottom of the bin.

As Dan will tell you there is really only one meathod for growing long carrots but growers have their own recipes which they add to their mix, there is very little point in putting feed in the bottom of the dibble if you cant get the carrot to grow down to it.
The feed mix is  1 part Superphosphate 1part Potash two parts lime(carbonate) and calcified sea weed but i use Blood Fish and Bone
I make up my mix by measuring in a plastic bucket then throw on a clenched handfull of each fertilizer and the lime mix it together then into the dibble
If i was to put anything in the bottom of the dibble it would be Potash

hope this helps