Carrots are fun to grow, and homegrown carrots taste way better than store bought carrots. Growing carrots from seed can be a bit tricky, but it’s worth it to have freshly harvested carrots from your garden! This post will show you the steps for planting carrot seeds the right way, so that you can grow straight, beautiful carrots every time.
How To Grow Carrots From Seed
The key to successfully growing straight, beautiful carrots is planting the seeds directly in the garden in early spring. Carrot seedlings should never be transplanted. Why?
Well, have you ever harvested carrots that were deformed or had multiple roots? Yep, one of the things that can cause that is transplanting carrot seedlings.
Deformed carrots grown from seed
Where To Grow Carrots
Carrots need a very loose and well draining soil in order to grow straight and beautiful too. Hard soils, as well as really rocky soils can also cause carrots for fork or become deformed.
Amend hard soils with rich compost and remove as many rocks, sticks and other large pieces as you can. Carrots grow best in full sun, but will also grow in part shade.
Harvesting carrots grown from seed
When To Plant Carrot Seeds
You can plant carrot seeds as soon as the ground is workable in the spring. Carrots are frost tolerant, so early frost won’t hurt the seedlings as they start to grow.
Carrot seeds ready to sow
Planting Carrot Seeds Step-By-Step
Since carrot seeds are so small, it’s easiest to sprinkle the seeds rather than plant them one at a time. I take my finger and draw a shallow line in the dirt, then I thinly sprinkle the carrot seeds into the line I created.
Once I’ve got the line done, I push the dirt back over the seeds and gently pack it down. If you plant your carrot seeds like I do, keep in mind that you’ll need to thin the seedlings out once they start to grow.
Thinning seedlings is really hard for some people (myself included!), so if you don’t like doing that, I suggest taking a bit more time and planting the seeds about 3 inches apart.
Direct seeding carrots
After you’re done planting carrot seeds, keep the soil evenly moist (but not soggy) until the seeds start to grow. Soon you’ll have cute little carrot seedlings popping up.
Leave your carrots in the ground later in the fall, and let them be touched by the first few frosts before you harvest them. Frost makes them taste sweeter. So try it out and see if you can tell the difference.
Harvesting carrots from my garden
Do you want to learn how to easily grow any type of plant you want from seed? Then you should take my online Seed Starting Course! It’s a fun, fully comprehensive course that you can go through at your own pace any time you want, and from anywhere. Enroll and begin today!
Otherwise, if you just need a quick-start refresher, then download a copy of my Starting Seeds Indoors eBook.
More Posts About Growing Seeds
- How To Plant & Grow Lettuce From Seed
- How To Plant & Grow Radishes From Seed
- How To Grow Spinach From Seed: Step-By-Step
- A Beginner’s Guide To Growing Vegetables From Seed
Share your tips for planting carrot seeds in the comments below.
John Page says
A way to spread carrot seeds is to mix the seed with a handful of washed sand thoroughly and then spread evenly in your shallow trench then cover with a potting mix. then water regularly to keep moist .
Works well with radishes as well. You won’t need nearly as much thinning out
Amy Andrychowicz says
Great tip for an easier way to evenly sow those tiny carrot seeds. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
aiger says
this is really helpful because I have some carrot seeds in my bag
thanks:)
Amy Andrychowicz says
You’re welcome! Hope your carrot seeds grow well for you. 🙂
Jeannette Rexach says
Hi, I live in San Juan, Puerto Rico. I planted purple carrot seeds in a pot last September after reading your post & in December I checked & they had not grown so I just forgot about them. To my surprise about two weeks ago picking some tomatoes I noticed the carrots had grown. Why they took so long frankly is a big ?
Amy Andrychowicz says
Oh, that’s great news! Glad to hear your carrot seeds grew. I’m not sure why they took so long to germinate either, they have a very wide temperature range for germination, so I don’t think that was the problem. Maybe the the soil was too dry or something.
Perla Sofia Curbelo says
Thanks for the tips, Amy!
This season is my first time growing carrots. I bought the seedlings from a trusted nursery. I’m growing them in containers. As you recommend, they’re in loose soil and under full sun. Here in Puerto Rico the weather is getting much hotter (mid 80’s & 90’s), so i hope it doesn’t disturb them! They look very happy! Looking forward to harvest them in early Summer!
Amy Andrychowicz says
You’re welcome! Good luck, I hope they will grow well for you!
Ashley says
Such awesome tips! I’m adding carrots to my garden list this year!
Thanks so much for sharing your creativity at the The DIY Collective this week! Please come back next week to show off your latest project!
Have an awesome week!
~ Ashley
Amy Andrychowicz says
Awesome! Thanks for stopping by!
Laura says
THIS post is great too!
Amy Andrychowicz says
Thanks!
Melinda Fish says
Do you have any DIY plans for cages for blueberry bushes? Could you use the tomato cage plans and cover them with screen?
Thanks!
Amy Andrychowicz says
I don’t have any plans specific for blueberries. You certainly could use the tomato cages and cover them with screen, that’s a great idea!