To Make Carrots Tasty And Beautiful

2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38

How happy the gardener is when the carrots are smooth, juicy and sweet! However, it does not always work out the way we want. Sometimes a vegetable comes out of the ground "with its feet" or tastes bitter. How to avoid such crop disadvantages?

Why do carrots grow "legs"?

The main reason that carrots start branching in the soil is damage to the roots of the root crops. And not only pests can cause such harm to a vegetable, but also the garden itself by its inept handling of carrot beds.

First of all, you should beware of damage to the carrots by the bear. This gluttonous pest begins to dominate the beds even when the seedlings appear only 5 cm above the ground, and in the meantime it is already eating up the tips of the roots. From such an impact, the root begins to branch. And a zealous gardener may not even notice the presence of the parasite, because the moves of the bear and its larvae can not always be found in the garden, and the seedlings have not yet wilted. Therefore, it is necessary to take measures to combat the bear even before the harmful fruits of its life become visible to the naked eye: lay out baits, monitor the cleanliness of the site.

No less damage than a bear and other gnawing parasites can be inflicted by the gardener himself when caring for his carrot. For example, this happens with careless loosening. It also happens on thickened plantings when they start thinning. The roots of neighboring plants could intertwine, and when pulled out, they could break off.

The summer resident also needs to be very careful when carrying out dressings. If you do not follow the instructions, overdo it with the dosage, you can burn the roots, and from such damage they also begin to branch.

Why do carrots taste bitter?

The bitter taste appears in the root crop for various reasons. As for leaving, you need to make sure that the carrot does not show its bare "shoulders" on the surface of the earth. From this, the peeking tops turn green and give a bitter taste to the entire root crop. Therefore, you need to spud the carrots or hide the beds under a layer of mulch.

It is also important not to overexpose the crop in the ground. When the harvest is late, the carrot grows overgrown with a "beard". These white suction roots are designed by nature to help the root crop through the winter. And if the carrots remain in the beds for a long time, and are already starting to get colder, this is a signal for them that they need to prepare for winter. And this process is accompanied by the synthesis of substances that also cause a bitter taste. Remember that early varieties trigger these mechanisms more quickly.

In the meantime, the carrots are still in the beds, you need to protect them from parasites. If damaged by a carrot fly, the vegetable will also taste bitter. To prevent the parasite from laying eggs in your garden, it is recommended to mulch the soil. Planting carrots and onions together helps to confuse the carrot fly. By the way, this tandem will also protect the onion from onion flies.

When the carrot is harvested and tastes great, you need to be able to preserve it. After all, when stored in unsuitable conditions, the taste of carrots also deteriorates. If you leave it in a humid room for the winter, this is favorable conditions for the development of such fungal diseases as white or gray rot, phomoz. The growth of the fungus is also signaled by the appearance of a bitter taste.

And in the future, in order to reduce the risk of developing diseases and avoid a bitter taste, you need to be interested in the variety chosen for planting and buy those that are more resistant to fungus and initially have the characteristics of sweeter ones. If you do not know the origin of the seeds, it is better not to collect seed from such carrots. Even if the crop tasted good, it can be a hybrid, and its offspring will not repeat the maternal qualities.