Are carrots perennial plants?
Written by
Michael Sullivan
Reviewed by
Prof. Charles Hartman, Ph.D.To grow carrots as annuals while considering their biennial biology, the first step is timing. Even though carrots are a biennial crop that takes two years to complete their lifecycle, gardeners harvest them after the first year. I had a patch of carrots I left unharvested until summer. By the end of summer, the carrots attracted lots of pollinators to the lacy white carrot flowers, but I had woody, inedible roots.
Biennial Lifecycle
- Year 1: Root and leaf development
- Year 2: Flowering and seed production
- Cold vernalization required for flowering
Annual Cultivation
- Harvest before winter dormancy triggers
- Replant every 3 weeks for continuous crops
- Prevents fibrous texture from maturation
Carrots can be used for seed saving by letting overwintered carrots flower, taking healthy roots, and replanting them in spring. My Zone 6 garden produced viable seeds after a mild winter, even though Queen Anne's lace cross-pollinated with them and we got some strange hybrids. To keep your strain pure, pay attention to isolation distance.
Utilize markers for succession planting. I always plant radish seeds mixed in with carrots, as they will germinate quickly, marking the rows and breaking up soil crust in the process. Once the radish harvest is over, carrots will fill up the spaces left by the radish. The idea of growing more than one crop takes advantage of space and makes thinning them easier.
Read the full article: How to Grow Carrots: Complete Guide for Beginners
