How to Grow Carrot Transplants

Fill 2-inch diameter peat pots with potting soil. Set the pots inside a shallow tray.

Add 1 inch of water to the tray. Soak the pots in the water until the soil’s surface becomes moist. Empty any remaining water from the tray

Sow two carrot seeds in each pot. Place the seeds on the soil’s surface and press them into the surface with your fingertips.

Cover the pots with clear plastic. Place the tray of pots in a warm area, such as near a sunny window or on top the refrigerator to germinate.

Remove the plastic once the carrot seedlings emerge, typically within one to two weeks of planting. Pinch the smaller seedling in each pot if both seeds germinated. Move the tray to warm, sunny location.

Water the seedlings when the soil surface begins drying. Fill the tray with 1 inch of water and allow the soil in the pots to soak up the water, as they did initially. Empty the extra water from the tray once the soil surface moistens.

Transplant the carrots two to three weeks after they germinate, before the roots get too long. Tear the rim of the peat pot off prior to transplanting the carrots, so the torn rim is even with the soil inside the pot. Tear or cut the bottom out of the pot so it doesn't interfere with the growth of the taproot.

Dig the planting hole in the garden bed so it's the same depth as the peat pot. Set the pot in the soil and fill in the hole, covering the rim of the pot with soil. The peat wicks moisture out of the soil if any of it protrudes above the soil surface. Space the carrots approximately 3 inches apart.