How to Grow Carrots in Mid-Atlantic States

Prepare the garden plot no later than February by tilling 1-foot-deep furrows. Probe the broken ground with a garden rake for stones and remove them. Spread well-rotted compost around the plot and rake it in with an iron rake.

Heap dirt in the carrot plot with a shovel and hoe, so as to create a raised bed. Cover the plot with black plastic sheeting to prevent weeds from taking hold during the late winter and early spring.

Plant carrot seeds from late April to mid-May, depending on whether you whether you are in a warmer part of the mid-Atlantic. Coastal Virginia gardeners might want to plant in late April, but not gardeners in upstate New York. Whenever and wherever you plant, dig one or more rows of shallow holes with a garden trowel, about 1 inch deep and 8 inches apart. Place one seed in each hole and cover the hole with dirt.

Water the carrot plot regularly, but lightly, using either a sprinkler system or a watering can, depending on the size of your plot. Increase the amount of water only if hot drought conditions in late July or August, as you near harvest time.

Monitor the carrots starting in late July for signs of maturity. The top foliage will start to wilt when the carrot is ready to harvest, and in the mid-Atlantic, most of the carrots will be ready sometime in August.

Pull up the carrots as they mature. You may wish to pull up and harvest all the carrots once most of them reach the harvesting stage, rather than continue pulling them up individually or in small groups.