These are my itty bitty baby carrots and I was wondering if anyone had secrets to growing great carrots they would like to share. I haven't had luck with growing carrots in this vegetable garden, but when I lived here in the 80s I grew super ones in red clay! Do carrots prefer a leaner soil and am I planting them at the wrong time? They have frustrated me.
The same time I planted these carrots I planted a bunch of garlic (regular cloves I bought in the grocery store and elephant garlic). I love growing garlic as it is the only thing that grows ALL winter for me. Then in late May I have tons of fresh garlic. Garlic is very easy to grow. Plant it about two inches deep in good soil and leave it alone until next year. It will grow some green stems before the weather turns really cold, then the stems will die back a little and turn brown but all will bounce back in April. Give it a try and let me know your tips for growing carrots as I sure would like to pick some this year.
in the garden.....
The same time I planted these carrots I planted a bunch of garlic (regular cloves I bought in the grocery store and elephant garlic). I love growing garlic as it is the only thing that grows ALL winter for me. Then in late May I have tons of fresh garlic. Garlic is very easy to grow. Plant it about two inches deep in good soil and leave it alone until next year. It will grow some green stems before the weather turns really cold, then the stems will die back a little and turn brown but all will bounce back in April. Give it a try and let me know your tips for growing carrots as I sure would like to pick some this year.
in the garden.....
No luck with carrots from me. We planted them in our garden in Germany and they grew in funny curve type shapes. Most of them never made it to eating size as the mole or vole got them! Those pesky little critters! arggggg
ReplyDeleteThe Saint tried to grow garlic in Germany also and did not have any luck. We don’t have a veggie garden here in GA as the animal population would munch them faster then we could pick them! So I just have flowers now. Although, last year I planted 3 tomato plants and had a harvest of over 100 tomatoes from those three plants! I never fertilized them but did plant them in Miracle Grow dirt! Just suckered the stems and watered them a few times during drought times...
I love growing garlic -- it's so easy. The only things I do differently are that I cover it with pine needles when it starts freezing outside, and when the flower stalks sprout in the spring I cut them off.
ReplyDeleteCarrots I've never tried.
I was wondering what to do with those flowers and don't understand why they even flower. I will cut them off next year. Thanks! Don't you just love fresh garlic? I mince mine and mix it in cream cheese for a tasty spread on crackers. Very good.
ReplyDeleteSkeeter-where do you get miracle gro dirt? Do you mix it in the dirt? 100 tomatoes from three plants is a bunch! Why no tomatoes this year?
I get the dirt at Wal-Mart or Lowes. They have it in houseplant or Garden type dirt. It is expensive buy I never fertile and things produce blooms like crazy. I mix a few cups with the soil in the ground as I plant the item. Then I let Mother Nature take care of the rest!
ReplyDeleteI did not plant tomatoes this year because I did not want to get involved with veggies due to the wild animals in our yard. Plus I don’t have a good place for a veggie garden. Last year, I had planted them at the edge of the flower garden and they kind of looked funny there!
I love your pictures of your beautiful garden. I have filed them on my computer under "Friend's Garden Pictures" and may post some from time to time. Is that ok? The lantana is the first one to go on the blog because it is sooooo beautiful. I don't know why I have never grown it before but next year for sure.
ReplyDeleteYou must have a lot of animals in your yard and it can be frustrating when they eat all of your produce. I like your idea of planting some veggies on the end of the flower garden though-maybe hide the veggies in amongst the flowers?
Feel free to Post any pictures you like. I try to post on the Pet People weekly so I know you can post more then one picture at a time. So you may want to post one of the lantana up close to see the detail and one from afar so you see how it spreads out and has tons of blooms.
ReplyDeleteThey bloom from late spring until the first hard frost. They do not require lots of water and I have never fertilized mine! Plus down here in GA, they return each year. Not sure if they would return up there in TN or not but your winters are not as harsh as they were when I was growing up in Clarksville back in the 60’s so they may survive now. Well you know we are under Global warming right? Ha, I don’t buy Global warming as an excuse to raise taxes but politicians are trying. I watch the weather each day to see what to expect in the form of rain, wind, etc, gardeners must keep up with such facts ya know. Our weather always reports the daily temp, the normal temp and the record low and highs with dates held. This summer during all that “Global warming” 100 degree temps, some of the record highs held on and they were set in the 1920, 1950’s etc. Heck I saw some from the late 1800’s!… So I don’t buy the Global Warming theory! Do you??? Ops, sorry to get off subject…