- Carrot picture
Never would have imagined something coming out like this.They're tasty also,very sweet.
Thought I would share. Happy new year everyone.
-
btrowe1
- Senior Member
- Posts: 202
- Joined: Thu Feb 16, 2012 6:57 pm
- Location: South Glens Falls Ny,Zone 4B
Mid winter carrot picking..
Ran out of carrots in my crisper so I went outside to the outdoor storage and picked these beauties.
That's a full size soup spoon, these things are still growing, My outdoor storage is the carrots are in the ground buried under mulch and a piece of roof rubber.
Never would have imagined something coming out like this.They're tasty also,very sweet.
Thought I would share. Happy new year everyone.
That's a full size soup spoon, these things are still growing, My outdoor storage is the carrots are in the ground buried under mulch and a piece of roof rubber.
Never would have imagined something coming out like this.They're tasty also,very sweet.
Thought I would share. Happy new year everyone.
-
Countryladiesgardens
- Green Thumb
- Posts: 309
- Joined: Mon Apr 07, 2014 11:05 am
- Location: Canada Zone 7
- Contact: Website
I think I've got the same storage system, btrowe1!
The carrots were in the open garden until fall. They were then pulled and moved to a "pit" I dug in a bed not far from the backdoor. They have at least 8" of soil on them and that many inches of pine needles.
The ground around the storage area is frozen and snow covered. The carrots are easily accessible. They share the pit with parsnips and celery root. Everything is nice and sweet at this time of year
!
I could have provided the same protection where they grew in the garden but it wouldn't have been convenient and would have required moving more soil and pine needles.
Steve
The carrots were in the open garden until fall. They were then pulled and moved to a "pit" I dug in a bed not far from the backdoor. They have at least 8" of soil on them and that many inches of pine needles.
The ground around the storage area is frozen and snow covered. The carrots are easily accessible. They share the pit with parsnips and celery root. Everything is nice and sweet at this time of year
!I could have provided the same protection where they grew in the garden but it wouldn't have been convenient and would have required moving more soil and pine needles.
Steve
-
btrowe1
- Senior Member
- Posts: 202
- Joined: Thu Feb 16, 2012 6:57 pm
- Location: South Glens Falls Ny,Zone 4B
Your close DigitS, I left mine growing in place in the ground never pulled or moved just covered them all over with a whole bunch of mulch.
I google searched storing carrots and saw that way on one of the post and decided to try it,Seems to be working great nothing frozen and they still seem to be growing, a wee little bit.
It"s nice to have fresh carrots in the deep of winter, YES??
I google searched storing carrots and saw that way on one of the post and decided to try it,Seems to be working great nothing frozen and they still seem to be growing, a wee little bit.
It"s nice to have fresh carrots in the deep of winter, YES??
-
applestar
- Mod
- Posts: 30550
- Joined: Thu May 01, 2008 7:21 pm
- Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M(11/B)
Yes, my carrot growing techniques need more work since my results are a hit and a miss -- also, I have problems with wireworms or maybe carrot fly maggots? Getting into the roots that are left in the ground for too long. Also, after the summer drought, the fall rains seem to cause them to split/crack.
But if I ever figure all this out and get a reliably large harvest, I'm going to try a method I came across in a Cat Who... book. In the book the cache was being used by smugglers to hide their loot, but it is apparently an alternative to a root cellar -- bury a trash can almost to the top rim, layer the roots that will withstand this kind winter storage alternating with (? sand/leaves/pine needles/straw ?) Then make a leaf/straw pile on top of it to insulate and cover with tarp.
There are several variations to this :
-- Make drainage holes but be sure to bury on a hill/slope so there is no standing water that could come up into the can. Cover the drainage holes with insect barrier screens duct taped into place.
-- Don't make drainage holes but have adequate raised bottom (gravel/sand/bricks) so stored veg's won't be soaking in any condensation dripping down the sides and pools on the bottom.
-- Make a dry well around the can, fill with leaves or straw, put down plywood on top rim of the well then cover with straw and tarp.
-- cover with tarp, THEN make a leaf/mulch pile....
...etc.
But if I ever figure all this out and get a reliably large harvest, I'm going to try a method I came across in a Cat Who... book. In the book the cache was being used by smugglers to hide their loot, but it is apparently an alternative to a root cellar -- bury a trash can almost to the top rim, layer the roots that will withstand this kind winter storage alternating with (? sand/leaves/pine needles/straw ?) Then make a leaf/straw pile on top of it to insulate and cover with tarp.
There are several variations to this :
-- Make drainage holes but be sure to bury on a hill/slope so there is no standing water that could come up into the can. Cover the drainage holes with insect barrier screens duct taped into place.
-- Don't make drainage holes but have adequate raised bottom (gravel/sand/bricks) so stored veg's won't be soaking in any condensation dripping down the sides and pools on the bottom.
-- Make a dry well around the can, fill with leaves or straw, put down plywood on top rim of the well then cover with straw and tarp.
-- cover with tarp, THEN make a leaf/mulch pile....
...etc.
Wait a minute! That's a mystery not a gardening or food preservation book, AppleStar!applestar wrote:. . . But if I ever figure all this out and get a reliably large harvest, I'm going to try a method I came across in a Cat Who... book. . .
Sounds like it might work ...
You had to do some research to come up with some of those ideas, right? I mean: They didn't discuss those variations in the novel, did they?
Steve
-
rainbowgardener
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 25279
- Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2009 6:04 pm
- Location: TN/GA 7b
We had a brief warm up, which I took advantage of by actually working in the garden for the first time since November! YAY!! I was doing what should have been fall clean up if the cold hadn't slammed down so early, cutting down old tomato vines and pepper plants, etc. I found a few carrots that never got harvested and pulled them. These were not stored like you were talking about, the plant was just still sitting in the ground. The carrots are kind of bumpy and rooty, but not rotten or mushy or anything. Haven't eaten them yet, they may turn out too woody or bitter or something, but I will give it a try.
The ground was actually pretty workable, so I went ahead and spread some new carrot seed, just to see what would happen. It's a couple months earlier than I usually plant it!
The ground was actually pretty workable, so I went ahead and spread some new carrot seed, just to see what would happen. It's a couple months earlier than I usually plant it!
Carrots are pretty tough!
If I leave them uncovered, freezing will burn off the top of them. They may not rot all the way down the root, however. They aren't living into the next year but some of the root will still be there. It probably wouldn't take too much snow cover to properly insulate carrots but it would probably have to come in October here, before severe frost.
I get quite a few beds dug out in the fall and toss winter-killed plants in before covering with soil. In July this year, July (!), I was digging in one of those beds. What do I turn up? A carrot. Most of the root was in real good shape ... buried under what was once, a big pile of rotting plant material and about 8" of soil! That carrot root tissue wasn't able to grow when spring arrived, survived several weeks of summer, too
! Probably should have cloned it ...
Steve
If I leave them uncovered, freezing will burn off the top of them. They may not rot all the way down the root, however. They aren't living into the next year but some of the root will still be there. It probably wouldn't take too much snow cover to properly insulate carrots but it would probably have to come in October here, before severe frost.
I get quite a few beds dug out in the fall and toss winter-killed plants in before covering with soil. In July this year, July (!), I was digging in one of those beds. What do I turn up? A carrot. Most of the root was in real good shape ... buried under what was once, a big pile of rotting plant material and about 8" of soil! That carrot root tissue wasn't able to grow when spring arrived, survived several weeks of summer, too
! Probably should have cloned it ... SteveI realized as I was reading this explanation on the WA Post webpages this morning that I had said carrots are "tough".
Wait a minute! I didn't mean that they are now difficult to chew
!
I meant that they survive cold temperatures well and, incidentally, become sweeter in cold weather. Here's WA Post and a biochemist to explain "Why carrots taste sweet ..."
Steve
Wait a minute! I didn't mean that they are now difficult to chew
!I meant that they survive cold temperatures well and, incidentally, become sweeter in cold weather. Here's WA Post and a biochemist to explain "Why carrots taste sweet ..."
Steve-
btrowe1
- Senior Member
- Posts: 202
- Joined: Thu Feb 16, 2012 6:57 pm
- Location: South Glens Falls Ny,Zone 4B
Just pulled some more today, I will add some pics of what I did and how I covered them. Must have worked we did have that freeze that saw -30s up here this past winter so I will be doing this again...
It's really cool to be able to give away "fresh" carrots to friends and family all through the winter months..
People in the Northern Climates should try it..PUTS A ON YOUR FACE.
It's really cool to be able to give away "fresh" carrots to friends and family all through the winter months..
People in the Northern Climates should try it..PUTS A
ON YOUR FACE.