Carrot Challenge: My Approach to Growing Container Carrots from Seed
Welcome to the first part of of my challenge of growing carrots from seed in a container on a balcony in August! Carrots are among the many quick growing, cool temp loving crops that can be started in late summer and harvested in the fall.
A typical August day where I’m from averages 90 degree plus days. However, this August has only reached averaged closer to 80. With autumn on the horizon, I decided to take the chance and try something new.
Now, I want to be crystal clear on my approach to growing these carrots. It is purely experimental and the goal of this post is to show you in real time how I went about things, what I know I will end up doing wrong and what actually worked out for me in real life.
Day 1: Sowing the Seeds August 10th
The morning of August 10th was the first sunny day after an entire week of rain and thunderstorms. My husband was out of state on a boys trip. There was absolutely nothing standing in my way.
I picked out “Nantes half longs” whatever that means, from my local grocery store because that was the first picture of a carrot that I saw. I filled a 3 gallon container (with proper drainage holes!) with Miracle Gro potting soil specifically for seed starting and haphazardly sprinkled the tiny brown seeds on top. I gently dusted over them with soil and misted them thoroughly. I placed a bell cloche on top, said a prayer, and waited.
Day 5: Little baby hairs August 15th
Green!
I have multiple babies popping up and I’m super excited! I’ve been sure to check them each morning and mist them thoroughly. Since I’m starting them from seed, I’ve been careful not to let the soil dry out and to make sure the cloche stays on to create humidity. There is a notch on top to turn the temperature down and allow for air flow.
Day 10: Lots of seedlings! August 20th
My seedlings look like a little patch of grass!
With daily watering and the temperatures averaging on the cooler side, these babies popped right up.
Now, I planted them waaay too close together (again, extremely experimental) but after they grow a little bit more, I will focus on thinning them out to ensure I get the best crop that I can for fall.
Since carrots have a long taproot they do not like to be transplanted, which means when thinning them out, the unlucky ones go straight in the compost.
For now, these guys seem to be happy and thriving, so stay tuned for how they turn out — and maybe turn into soup!
