When is the best time to plant spring carrots?
SummarySpring carrots are generally sown from late February to early March. After preparing the soil, open furrows, water moderately along the bottom of the furrows, then form ridges for mechanical sowing or manual dibbling, and cover with fine soil after sowing. Spring carrots can be harvested about 100 days after sowing.
1. Planting Time
Spring sowing is generally done relatively early, around late February to early March. Carrots prefer a cool climate and are suitable for growing at temperatures of 15-25°C.
2. Soil Preparation and Sowing
1. Before planting carrots, first open furrows about 3-4cm deep, then water moderately along the bottom of the furrows. After the water has completely seeped in, form ridges for mechanical sowing or manual dibbling, and after sowing, cover with a layer of fine soil.
2. After planting, to prevent weed damage during the seedling stage, spray 60 ml of oxadiazon herbicide per mu on the ridge surface, diluted with about 30 kg of water. About 2 days after spraying the herbicide, cover the ridge surface with plastic film, close all vents and keep the temperature inside the shed at around 25°C, which helps promote earlier emergence of carrot seedlings.
3. Thinning and Final Thinning
1. To prevent seedlings from becoming leggy and to harden them, after the seedlings have emerged evenly, remove the plastic film on a windless morning.
2. During the seedling stage, thinning is generally needed twice. When the seedlings grow 2-3 true leaves, start thinning, removing all weak, overcrowded and inferior seedlings, keeping plant spacing at about 3cm. When the seedlings grow 4-5 true leaves, start the second thinning, keeping seedlings according to different planting methods, with a planting density of about 22,000-27,000 plants per mu.
4. Cultivation and Earthing Up
Cultivate and earth up according to the carrot planting method. After ridge planting and removal of the plastic film, carrots can be appropriately cultivated during the growing period to conserve soil moisture. To improve the economic value of the carrot's fleshy root, cultivate and earth up to the shoulder of the carrot root to prevent abnormal color of the fleshy root.
5. Heat Preservation
1. Carrots planted in early spring face relatively low temperatures. In the early growth stage, to raise the temperature, you can remove the film at night and cover it in the morning according to the humidity inside the shed, leaving both ends of the shed film open for ventilation. Afterwards, to extend the lighting time, gradually remove the film in the morning and cover it at night.
2. After April, once the temperature has stabilized, ventilation should be maintained at all times, keeping the daytime temperature inside the shed stable at around 25°C and the nighttime temperature stable at 10-15°C, not lower than 10°C.
6. Water and Fertilizer Management
1. Carrots do not need much watering during the seedling stage. Generally, after final thinning of greenhouse carrots, to control seedling growth and promote root growth, water appropriately to settle the roots. When the seedlings grow 5-6 true leaves, water once. When the plants enter the rapid growth stage, to prevent excessive leaf growth, control the amount of watering, watering about once every 20 days.
2. When the plants enter the fleshy root swelling stage, apply sufficient water and fertilizer, keeping the soil surface alternately dry and moist. Apply 15-20 kg of three-element compound fertilizer per mu by flushing, together with watering.
7. Timely Harvest
Generally, carrots can be harvested about 100 days after sowing according to their specific growth conditions and market demand, with all harvesting completed around late May or early June.