Since ancient times, carrots have been considered a healthy and tasty crop. Bright color and sweet taste make it indispensable in the culinary art. And thanks to the richness of vitamins and healthy minerals, the vegetable occupies a worthy place among healthy foods.
As a garden crop, carrots are not too whimsical and capricious. With proper planting and regular good care, you can collect a rich harvest, and dishes from this root crop will become an indispensable meal on your table.
How to plant this vegetable in the ground? Do I need to water the carrots after planting? What actions need to be taken for its full growth and productivity? Let's find out.
Carrot. What kind of fruit is this?
In short, carrots are a two-year-old root crop that has a high yield and a rather long shelf life. However, to achieve this, he must be looked after.
True, good care is also not enough. So that the vegetable does not lose its freshness and attractiveness for a long time, so that it has pleasant taste and characteristics, it must first be properly planted in the ground.
Actions before landing
Before asking the question "how to water carrots after planting", you must carefully prepare for such an important matter.
The place reserved for this culture should be sunny and open. It is best to plant carrots after cucumbers, tomatoes, cabbage, potatoes, onions. This should be done in April-May, when warm days have already been established, and the soil warmed up to eight degrees above zero.
The earth must be loosened and fertilized in advance, and soaked in seeds for early germination.
Actions during rooting
Then on the beds it is necessary to make shallow grooves, pour them with water and put seeds in them. They should not be placed too close to each other. It is enough to withstand one or two centimeters between a pair of seeds.
Do I need to water the carrots after planting right away? It is desirable. It is even recommended to cover the sowing place with foil or unnecessary things. Thus, the moisture necessary for the culture will be preserved in the earth.
Remember that it is better not to use a hose when watering just sown seeds - a powerful jet pressure can wash valuable grains out from under the ground cover.
Further carrot care
How often do you need to water the carrots after planting? It is very important not to overdo it.
Of course, if the summer is quite rainy, then the extra liquid will become superfluous for the orange fruit. However, in a dry season, life-giving moisture will benefit both the growth and taste of carrots.
It is important to water regularly and little by little, while it is recommended to use a watering can with a spray. It is also necessary to ensure that the soil moisture is at the same level. Why is it important?
How often are carrots watered after planting? The life-giving moisture of the potato and the life-giving, which determines the fertility of the soil. If it is too dry, then the fruit will grow stale and bitter. If the earth is constantly wet, then the root crop will become clumsy, ugly and tasteless.
Specific watering frequency
Let's look at how to water the carrots after planting during the entire maturity.
In the first month, it is important to subject the vegetable to regular watering every five days, since during this period the roots are actively forming. The next month, the root crop should be watered only four to five times in the mornings and evenings.
After the final formation of large green tops, carrots should again be watered more often, as in the first month.
In August, the root crops are no longer subjected to abundant water procedures. They can be done in a week and a half, as the vegetable has almost taken shape and gained the necessary mass.
What water to use?
Many avid gardeners are interested in not only the question of how to properly water the carrots after planting, but also what kind of water it needs to be done.
Of course, the best moisture for irrigation is warm rain. Therefore, you can collect rainwater in bulk containers and warm it slightly in the sun before use. However, the summer can be dry, so carrots can be watered with well-maintained (during the day) water from a well or spring.
What else needs to be considered when deciding how to water the carrots after planting?
First of all, it should be remembered that one water may not be enough for a vegetable, so it is worth feeding it with a special solution. How to do it and when?
Wet dressing carrots
A month after the first shoots, the root crop should be thinned out. For this, a distance of two to three centimeters is left between the sprouts, after which the bed is abundantly moistened with complex top dressing.
How to cook it? On a bucket of water put a spoonful of Kalimagnesia and urea. Or they breed manure (in a proportion of one to fifteen) and water it with soil.
The next top dressing of the plant is carried out three to four weeks after the second thinning. The distance between root crops should be leveled to four to five centimeters, and top dressing should be done after heavy irrigation with water.
How to fertilize the soil this time? You can use a solution of potassium sulfate (two tablespoons per bucket) or an infusion of ash (half a liter of ash per bucket). Calculate the make-up preparation so that five liters of the finished liquid is taken per meter of a regular bed.
In early August, the root crop should again be fed, using the same means as the second time.
End of watering: when?
However, many are interested not only in how to water the carrots after planting in the ground, but also in the question of when to finish watering.
There is no definite answer to it. It all depends on weather conditions and the rate of ripening of the fetus.
If you see that the carrots have grown enough, and the weather is rainy, then you should not water the vegetable with short clear days. If the root crop has almost formed, but the air is glowing from the heat, it is worth continuing to irrigate until the harvest.
At the same time, remember that each carrot should be watered so that water penetrates under the soil to the depth of the entire fruit (twenty-five to thirty centimeters).
So, we decided on the watering schedule. How now to find out if each root crop receives enough nutrient moisture? To do this, you need to make small calculations.
Certain watering standards for carrots
The graph “How to water carrots after planting” (by months) is very simple and convenient to use. Here is a summary of it.
In May, it is necessary to water the beds 6-8 times at the rate of five to six liters per square meter.
In June, the number of liters per square meter increases to ten to twelve, while the number of procedures decreases to four to six.
In July, the total number of liters increases again, to twelve to fifteen, while the number of irrigations decreases to four.
In August, the volume and quantity of irrigation are sharply reduced to indicators of five - seven and one or two, respectively.
What is mulching culture
An important way to maintain soil moisture after watering is mulching. What is it and what does it eat with?
Mulching is the covering of the earth's surface. When the culture has risen sufficiently above the ground, its roots (or root crops) should be carefully covered with organic or inorganic mulch. What is included here?
Organic mulch is a natural material from foliage, grass, hay, needles, bark, sawdust. Inorganic is pebbles, gravel, polyethylene and so on.
It is best to use organic mulch, as, by decaying, it becomes fertilizer for plants. But there are also disadvantages. This coating attracts unpleasant insects, larvae and worms. It also deteriorates and needs to be replaced.
What are the benefits of carrot mulching?
- Moisture is retained in the soil.
- The number of weeds is reduced.
- Soil erosion is prevented, its friability is preserved.
- Overheating of the soil in the summer and freezing in the winter is prevented.
- Helps prevent the likelihood of pests, infections and diseases getting into the soil and on the root of the plant.
- Your time is saved, as the number of irrigation and the amount of liquid used are reduced.
If you decide to use mulch, it is important to remember that it must be changed several times during the season. In addition, in order to thin out the root crop and fluff up the earth near it, you should carefully remove the previously laid mulch and, possibly, update it.
So, we already know how to properly water the carrots, how and when. And now let's get acquainted with the common mistakes of gardeners that they make when caring for this root crop.
Avoid unnecessary mistakes
Irregular or too abundant watering is considered the most important mistake of amateur summer residents. This can happen due to the fact that inexperienced gardeners try to save time, so they either fill the garden so that the fruits rot, or forget about it for a long time, as a result, the vegetable dries up. To avoid this, it is necessary to draw up a specific watering schedule for each crop separately and adhere to it.
If the soil has already dried up, then it is necessary to restore its moisture slowly and gradually.
Another mistake may be a high bed. Remember: carrots should be planted on a flat surface so that it receives enough moisture and oxygen. However, if the garden is located on a swampy area, the arrangement of high beds will only benefit carrots.
Another mistake, as we have said, is the use of a hose. This method of irrigation can damage not only carrots, but also all other vegetable and even fruit crops.
As you can see, it is very important to properly water vegetables and root crops. Their taste, external data and productivity depend on this.
So, you have received comprehensive information about how, when and how to water carrots after planting (and beets, by the way, too, because this is also a root crop). Caring for vegetables is a serious and time-consuming task, however, you will be fully rewarded for caring.
Rich and tasty harvests for you!