Late carrots

[Brenjon]

Is it too late to sow carrots now without net protection and what is the chance of harvesting them if and when mature without fly damage
regards Brenjon

[Beryl]

I made a sowing yesterday Brendon but under fleece. I wouldn't like to take any chances with the dreaded fly.
The carrots may not be as big but you should get a reasonable crop.

Beryl.

[AdeTheSpade]

I also made a sowing yesterday, the first was Amsterdam 3 Sprint, which is apparently a quick growing one, and Parmex which grows round roots, and I'm hoping they'll both be a reasonable size by the time they have to be harvested. Forgot to net them though, so thanks Beryl for reminding me! And I'm really hoping to get some carrots this time, as I've lost count of the number of packets of seeds I've sown and only got about 3 or 4 carrots out of the lot! Grown some in big containers though, thank goodness, cos they've done really well, as they always seem to do.

So I think you should be OK but I do think you'd be at risk of the carrot fly if you don't use some sort of protection, so if netting's out of the question, perhaps try loads of spring onions near and around them to try and ward the blighters off. Also read somewhere (could have been KG) that if you soak 2 or 3 garlic cloves (crushed) in a bucket of water and water the carrots with that every week or 2, that should also help. Good luck!

[Tigger]

You can also grow them in a box/tub in your greenhouse/tunnel right through the winter. I do that with beetroot, kohlrabi and white turnips, as well as carrots and a few others.

[Mike Vogel]

I have sowed carrots in July and August in the past and have had good results, as you get [a] quick germination because of the warmth in the soil and [b] late summer and autumn rain to help them grow. It is also said that early and late sowings avoid the worst of the carrot-fly damage, although, like Beryl, I would use fleece or some other sort of protection.