On Root Vegetables
Root vegetables have gone from being staple crops that kept us from starving during the cold winter months in generations past to the hip new star in side dishes and main dishes in this new “vegetable forward” fad that’s all the rage these days. The term “root vegetables” can pretty much be applied to any vegetable that has edible parts that are grown underground (and it is, at least in the culinary world.) From sweet potatoes and yams, to beets and parsnips, ranging from rutabagas and the exotic Kholrabi to the common carrot and the medicinal ginger – and some even include garlic in the list!
While this family of vegetables is quite large, they all share some of the same qualities. Root vegetables are basically “storage organs” that are low in calories but high in vitamins, minerals and antioxidants and in nature are used by the plant store energy for when the temperatures drop and nutrients become less plentiful for the plant. We, as humans, also use them as a kind of “storage organ” as root vegetables keep for a long time under the right conditions. In times past root vegetable were stored in a “root cellar” (or, as the British say, “earth cellar”) which is an underground (or at least partially underground) storage facility where they were used as a valuable source of carbohydrates during winter. While root vegetables are generally high in carbohydrates they are also a low-glycemic food in comparison to grains and rices.
Carrots (Daucus carota)
I’ll never forget the first time my son, Ronin, planted carrots in his small box garden. He was only a few years old and he took the entire packet of seeds and dumped them into the corner of the small raised bed. I chuckled to myself and thought, “This is a teachable moment.” I was certainly right, but not in the way I thought it would happen! Just imagine my surprise when we went to harvest and he plucked a perfectly formed carrot out of the ground. I was shocked! I pulled back the dirt and it revealed a uniform crop of perfect carrots. The seeds that were crowded out and could not grow formed tiny orange pellets with small leafy tops that rested on the shoulders of the giant Danver carrots. It was a teachable moment, indeed. For both of us. (Picture above is not of the story I just told. Those are just a sampling of a crop from last summer.)
The carrots we eat are a selectively bred form of the wild carrot which is native to Europe and Southwestern Asia but they probably originated in Persia where they were grown for their seeds and leaves. Our modern cultivars of carrots were bred for having a much larger taproot than the wild carrot as well as a better texture and taste. As far as nutritional value, carrots are high in beta-Carotene (this is what gives a lot of carrots a vibrant orange color) as well as Vitamins B, C, E and K. They are also high in fiber as well.
Types of Carrots
While carrots can come in many different colors – white, orange, yellow, purple and magenta – there are basically four different types: Danvers, Nantes, Imperator and Chantenay. When we picture carrots in our minds, we are typically thinking of Imperator as those are the bright orange, tapered root carrots that are typically sold in grocery stores. If you are looking for a highly nutritious Imperator strain that is absolutely stunning I recommend Atomic Red Carrots as they become a brilliant red color when cooked. They are also high in lycopene. Danvers are a strain that are medium in size and are a simple cultivar for the home gardener. I grow this strain every year and they are delicious especially when you harvest them as baby carrots. Nantes carrots, such as this Scarlet Nantes strain, are a favorite for snacking and juicing and also freeze well. They grow to around 6-7 inches and have a high sugar content so this is a great choice for growing if you have children. Chantenay carrots are a stout, short type that are grown by commercial operations because of their high yield. These are the types of carrots that are typically found in process and canned in your local grocery store. Carrots were originally purple before Dutch growers selectively bred some mutated strains to the point where they took on a bright orange color. You can still find strains that are purple! I am looking forward to planting this Cosmic Purple strain in my garden this summer.
How to Grow Carrots
Carrots grow best in deeply tilled, loose, sandy and loamy soil that has a lot of organic matter. You don’t want to try to start your carrots indoors as the root system is so sensitive transplanting will either kill the plant or you will end up with badly malformed carrots. If your soil is too rocky they can also be stunted by trying to grow into a rock and you end up with carrots that are very bizarre and tiny (some fine examples of this in the picture above.) While I used to carefully follow the instructions on the seed packet as far as spacing, these days I tend to overplant and then thin the seedlings to about an inch or so apart. Carrots are not heavy feeders, so you do not need to use nitrogen-heavy fertilizers (these will just cause more proficient growth on the stems and leaves NOT on the taproot) and I do not recommend using fresh manure as this will lead to greater root growth coming off the taproot (will give them a “hairy” appearance!) Be sure to water them well especially before the stems emerge from the ground as a hard, dry soil top will prevent them from germinating properly. Carrots benefit greatly from companion planting; the practice of planting certain crops near each other to either increase yield or ward off pests. One particularly nasty pest that plagues carrots is the carrot fly and a great way to deter them is to plant your carrots with onions, leeks and chives as their pungent odor will drive off the carrot flies.
Summer Harvest – Sow seeds outdoors roughly 3-5 weeks before your last frost date. If you are in southwestern Pennsyvlania your last spring frost can vary anywhere from April 23 to May 10.
Fall Harvest – Sow seeds directly into outside soil during mid to late summer. Do this at least ten weeks prior to first fall frost. For southwestern Pennsylvania that would be October 10th, but of course that could be a week or so earlier or later. (all frost dates from Farmer’s Almanac)
Winter Harvest – The cold ground will act as “nature’s refrigerator” and carrots can be left in the ground (covered if you are having heavy frost) as long as the temperature doesn’t dip below 20 degrees according to Jean-Martin Fortier, in his book, “The Market Gardner.” This has been my experience as well and the carrots become sweeter. Another thing to note is that in certain climates carrots can be overwintered into the spring if kept covered using poly low tunnels. However, Curtis Stone, in his book “The Urban Farmer:Growing Food for Profit on Leased and Borrowed Land,” that “If the carrot bed is in a low-lying area where water settles, this will not work, as the carrots will rot as soon as the soil thaws after a freeze.”
Carrots can be stored in a cold cellar/root cellar for up to 6 months.
Why Should You Grow Your Own Carrots?
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