If carrots were harvested in a timely manner and reliable storage methods were used, then the root crop can be stored, practically without losing its quality, for a year. Most gardeners prefer to grow vegetables in their own plots to be sure of the environmental purity of the product.
Determining the optimal date for harvesting carrots
Although carrots are not afraid of a decrease in temperature, you should not leave the root crop in the ground until frost. The following factors may influence the timing of carrot harvest:
- state of culture;
- temperature regime;
- characteristics of the variety;
- purpose of cultivation.
Each variety has its own ripening period, and then the carrots, which continue to be in the ground, lose their juiciness and sweetness.
It is necessary to take into account the period when biological ripeness occurs. By this time, the carrots should have a certain size and color, in accordance with the varietal characteristics. Under bad weather conditions, such ripeness may not occur at all, which is often observed in late-ripening carrot varieties. It is necessary to harvest carrots when the vegetable reaches technical ripeness. This decision causes a decrease in shelf life and reduces the volume of the harvest.
The temperature at which it is necessary to remove carrots is usually from 3 to 5 degrees. At this point, the root vegetables stop growing, so there is no point in keeping the carrots in the ground any longer. The first autumn frosts should serve as a signal when to dig carrots. Experienced gardeners claim that when digging carrots in warm weather, the vegetable may not withstand temperature changes when moving to the basement.
Rules for collecting late carrots
These varieties are characterized by the end of ripening with a gradual decrease in the average daily temperature. They can be kept in the ground until cold weather.
After the average daily temperature decreases in September, the growth of the tops slows down, but at the same time, microelements accumulate in the root crops, and the carrots ripen.
The vegetable accumulates the maximum amount of nutrients, which helps to increase its shelf life.
This requirement applies, first of all, to late varieties whose growing season lasts more than 110 days. Harvesting carrots can only begin in the second half of autumn. However, when the temperature drops to -3 degrees, there is a possibility of the crop becoming infected with gray rot.
Harvesting mid-ripening fruits
In mid-season root crops, ripeness occurs between 80 and 100 days. These varieties are juicy enough to be used in fresh vegetable salads. Such carrots are harvested starting from September 15th. A longer stay in the ground leads to a loss of juiciness and compaction of the pulp.
Early carrot harvest time
The growing season of early carrots is quite short - no more than 80 days. These varieties ripen in mid-summer. Usually, selective harvesting is carried out as the root crop reaches 1 cm in diameter. Carrots are used in baby food, for making salads, and are suitable for consumption raw.
The main disadvantage of early varieties is that root vegetables cannot be stored for long periods of time. If you keep carrots in the ground for a longer period, the roots will crack and lose their taste.
When digging root crops out of the ground as necessary, it is necessary to bury the resulting holes so that they do not cause the carrot fly to penetrate nearby root crops.
If all the carrots are removed from the garden at the same time, then in their place you can plant cabbage representatives (head lettuce, bush beans, broccoli, kohlrabi or cauliflower).
Characteristic signs for starting cleaning
Knowing the growing season of a particular carrot variety is not enough to accurately determine when to remove carrots from the garden. It is important to inspect the culture visually.The most characteristic sign that indicates fruit ripening is yellowing of the tops, in particular the lower foliage. If the middle leaves begin to change color, this may mean that the plant is sick or the harvest period has already passed.
Another clear sign of a ripe carrot is the formation of lateral roots. This feature indicates seed formation. If such signs are present, collection should not be postponed.
Collection rules
Properly organized harvesting will help preserve vegetables for a long time in proper conditions without loss of quality. You should stop watering the beds 7 to 15 days before harvesting.
It is better to dig up root vegetables on a fine sunny day so that the fruits do not get wet in the rain, and then they are better stored. It is advisable to pay attention to the lunar calendar - cleaning is best done on days with a waning moon. According to gardeners, this contributes to better keeping quality of the crop.
Digging and pulling out fruits
Small fruits can be removed from the ground by pulling the tops, without using garden tools. But it is better to dig up elongated root crops first with a pitchfork or shovel. It is advisable to moisten the soil before harvesting, which will simplify the process of pulling root crops out of the ground. After pulling out, it is not recommended to remove the stuck soil by hitting the carrots against each other - this can cause damage.
Dig up the root crop, using careful pressure on the shoulder of the shovel, as even minor damage to the root crop can lead to infection by pathogenic microorganisms and further rotting. The digging should be done away from the root crop - so that the carrots rise along with the top layer of soil.
Tops trimming
If you leave the leaves on the harvested root vegetables, the tops gradually draw the juices out of the carrots. Greens should be removed after the soil remaining on the root crops has dried.
It is better to cut the leaves with a knife. The cut is made along the top, going about 2 mm deeper into the root crop, but it is not recommended to tear off the leaves with your hands. This will help protect the crop from premature germination in the spring. If root crops are intended to produce seeds, leave 1.5 - 2 cm of tops.
Drying
The root crops, peeled from the tops, are laid out under a canopy in the shade to dry. The next day, you can select sick and damaged vegetables.
Whole and healthy ones are taken away for further storage in the cellar, but it is advisable to use damaged root crops soon and not put them together with the rest of the harvest. Frozen specimens should be thrown away, as they lose their ability to resist diseases.
You should not leave carrots to dry in the open air for a long time. This will cause the root crops to wither, reduce their juiciness and taste characteristics, and harm their keeping quality.
Bookmark in the cellar
The shelves in the cellar where the harvest will be stored are pre-treated with a solution of copper sulfate. Carrots can be placed in boxes with calcined sand. The sand is periodically moistened to better preserve the fruit. Sometimes sawdust from coniferous trees is used instead of sand.
In some villages, chalking is used, that is, root vegetables are dipped in a chalk solution and then dried. Or they simply dust the root vegetables with dry chalk powder. This helps reduce the likelihood of pathogens entering the fruit.
There is a known method of immersing carrots intended for winter storage in a solution of onion peels or immersing root vegetables in a liquid clay mass with further drying.
Storage organization
To ensure optimal temperature conditions when storing carrots in winter, it is necessary to maintain the temperature in the basement in the range from 0 to +3 degrees. Of no small importance is the absence of light and maintaining air humidity within 90%, especially at the initial stage of storage.
Before storing it in the cellar, you can keep the crop at a temperature of about +12 degrees, and then select damaged specimens for current needs. Only healthy fruits are stored.
You can store the harvested crop in plastic bags only after thoroughly drying the carrots. Root vegetables are placed tightly inside polyethylene, and then the bag is tied. Small cuts can be made for ventilation.
When storing in a box with sand, it is pre-wetted at the rate of 1 liter of water per bucket of sand. A two-centimeter layer of sand is poured onto the bottom of the box, and root vegetables are placed in it at some distance from each other, and sand is again poured on top.
