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Carrots, like other vegetable crops, should be harvested on time so that they are well stored throughout the winter.

Most likely, the question of when to harvest carrots from the garden would not have arisen at all if the weather conditions had been bad: in cold and rainy weather, any gardener strives to harvest the crop as quickly as possible so that the root crops do not begin to rot on the vine.

On the one hand, when the air temperature decreases in the first autumn month - September - the growth of the above-ground part slows down or completely stops and the vegetable crop concentrates all its efforts on the ripening of the root crop: it increases its size, while simultaneously accumulating vitamins and microelements. It seems that I would like to give carrots this opportunity - to grow bigger and sweeter.

On the other hand, if you are late with harvesting, the carrots will begin to grow again: they will produce new roots. You've probably already encountered this phenomenon: you dig up carrots, but they are hairy from the roots. This is not good, because during the secondary wave of growth, carrots take strength from the root crop, which worsens its vitamin properties, and the quality of storage sharply decreases.

Typically, re-growth is observed in fairly warm, but moderately humid weather: when the gentle sun warms during the day, rains moisten the soil in doses, and night temperatures do not fall below 10 degrees.

It is precisely in this weather that there is a risk of overstaying the carrots in the garden.

When to Harvest Carrots

When do you need to harvest carrots so that they are on time and without deterioration in quality due to weather conditions?

If the carrot is large, then this is not even discussed: by this criterion, most likely, part of your garden bed has already been emptied (for salads or preparations).

But, there are several other compelling signs or reasons when you should remove carrots from the garden immediately or focus on a specific date:

1. one or two leaves from the bush have already turned yellow and this indicates that the process of ripening of the root crop has completed. You can pull out such a carrot without thinking. Carrots are not potatoes: you can’t wait until all the tops turn yellow and wither, then it will be too late to just throw them away.
2. pull out a couple of root vegetables in the garden and if the carrots are shaggy from the roots, then remove them immediately: as mentioned earlier, this is a sign of regrowth, which must be stopped immediately.
3. if a pulled carrot is cracked, this happens not only from excessive moisture, which is also not good, but also from overripeness of the root vegetable
4. On the packet of carrot seeds that you sowed, it is usually written that from germination to technical maturity it takes 80-100 days. If you sowed on May 15, the seedlings sprouted on June 2, then you can aim for harvesting the carrot bed on September 2-12.
5. Carrots of mid-season and late varieties (intended for growing for storage) should be collected a month before the onset of frost. You can roughly estimate this period. For example, if in your region night temperatures drop to zero at the end of September, then, accordingly, you need to harvest carrots at the end of August. You can’t wait for frost, like carrots will be sweeter, because this is not true: a frozen vegetable cannot be stored; it will rot very quickly and should be immediately used for preparation or on the table.
6. Since ancient times, it has been believed that carrots should be harvested before September 13th Kupriyan or Crane Assembly-beginning of the flight of cranes to warmer regions. Previously, September was called “supply season”, because until September 13, they harvested not only carrots, but also other vegetables (potatoes, beets, turnips, rutabaga, pumpkins, zucchini) and fruits (apples, pears).

How relevant is it in current conditions unforeseen climate change It’s not clear to rely on ancient dates and folk signs, but try to record the day the cranes fly away in order to correct the shift in weather conditions in your region. For example, we have middle lane In Russia, for the second year now, all seasons (spring, summer, autumn, winter) have moved forward by a month. Maybe everything will return to normal?!

When to harvest carrots in 2018

What astrologers say when to harvest carrots in 2018 according to the lunar calendar:

1. Cleaning should not be done on the days of the full moon or new moon. These days a person should not interfere and interrupt life vegetable crops, which causes plants to become stressed and begin to lose their vitality within the shortest possible time. In ordinary language: they will not be stored, but will wither and dry out very quickly.
2. in 2018, such days in August are August 11 (New Moon) and August 26 ( Full moon), and in September: September 9 (New Moon) and September 25 (Full Moon).
3. For long-term storage For root vegetables, you need to choose days on the waning moon. The waxing moon is favorable only for heights. Not all days on the waning moon are suitable for harvesting carrots. various reasons, including September 13, 2018
4. Astrologers recommend at the end of August - August 29 and 31, and in September specifically only on September 3 in the sign of Gemini (23 lunar day) the collection of fruits that are in the ground: carrots, potatoes, beets, rutabaga, turnips. And also, they don’t mind September 7th (in the sign of Leo).
5. In the second half of September, we can recommend the days of the waning moon: September 26,29,30. If you have late carrots and a favorable climate, then you can harvest them at the end of September wonderful harvest carrots, given that in your region the first frosts will only be at the end of October. And also, it is appropriate to harvest at the end of September early varieties of carrots planted in the second period (in June and July), even in the regions of central Russia, but taking into account the weather: according to meteorologists (in our region), the temperature will be below freezing at night for the first time ( -2 degrees) is exactly September 29.30, and daytime is October 21.

To sum up the question of when to remove carrots from the garden, you need to focus on the carrot variety, planting date, climate, weather conditions, weather forecast for the next month and obvious signs of carrot ripening.

Carrots are the most common vegetable found in Russian gardens. When grown, it is quite unpretentious, but in order to grow and preserve root crops you need to know some nuances.

Agricultural practices that improve the quality and keeping quality of carrots

Carrots need very loose soil without lumps and pebbles. Therefore, they dig deep to 20-25 cm and carefully break up all the lumps. In dense soil, carrots grow small. The crop grows well on loose, rich soil with a sufficient admixture of sand. The soil must be neutral or slightly acidic (pH 5-6.5). If the acidity is high, the soil should be limed a year before planting carrots, or, in extreme cases, in the fall.

When planting and growing, you should not apply a large amount of fertilizer; the vegetable becomes woody and loses its taste. You can’t even add half-rotted manure; it will cause the carrots to rot right in the ground.

Before sowing, it is advisable to keep the seeds for half an hour in running water or soak them for 2-4 hours. When soaked, the seeds are washed out essential oils, preventing germination. Reception allows you to get friendly and quick shoots. Sow carrots in the most early dates at a temperature of at least 4°C. Pre-winter sowing of root crops is possible. In the northern regions and the middle zone, late sowing of the crop is acceptable (the first ten days of June), if at this time the temperature does not exceed 18-20°C.

After sowing, in hot weather, the bed is watered from a watering can with a divider, but not very abundantly, otherwise the seeds will go deep. The crop needs sufficient watering during the first period of growth. Then she gets enough precipitation. And only if the summer is dry, the beds with plants are watered once a week.

The beds should not be allowed to become overgrown with weeds during the germination period and in the first half of the growing season until the tops cover the row spacing.

Weeds sprout before culture and make it difficult to germinate. And it’s very difficult to see rows of crops in a continuous green carpet. Therefore, the rows are covered with peat so that they are clearly visible, and the rows are weeded without fear of damaging the seedlings. Without weeding during this period, the root crops become smaller.

When the plants have 2 leaves, they are thinned out, leaving a distance of 10 cm between them. You can leave 5-7 cm, and then gradually pull them apart, using young, growing root crops for food.

Carrots are a potassium lover, so they are given one potassium supplement per season. Potassium fertilizer should not contain chlorine, since the crop does not tolerate it.

Root deformations

Multi-tailed specimens are often found. Carrots form a branched root crop in the following cases.

1. When transplanting. The culture does not tolerate transplantation. Transplanted root crops always branch. Their growth point is at the end of the root, and when transplanted, the root bends or breaks off, the growth point is injured, and the root can no longer grow in length. Dormant buds awaken on it, each of which produces a new root.
2. During the process of growth, the root encounters a pebble or lump of earth that it cannot overcome. Then the central axis stops growing and bifurcates. The soil for the crop should be loose to a depth of 30-40 cm.
3. Excessive doses of nitrogen. Fertilizers should not be applied in any form, and even during planting, nitrogen should not be applied. Neither compost nor humus is added under the carrots. Do not water with grass fertilizer under any circumstances. If there is too much nitrogen in the soil, then the vegetable not only branches, but also cracks, and quickly rots during storage. For the same reason, carrots should not be planted after legumes.
4. Adding lime during planting also causes root branching. Ash should not be added during planting.

In addition to branching, other deformations occur. If the main root passes through dense layers of soil during the growth process, then constrictions form on it.

If there is excess moisture in the soil in the last 35-45 days of growth, the roots crack. Therefore, 1-1.5 months before harvesting carrots, watering is stopped.

When to dig carrots from the beds

The timing of carrot harvesting depends on the variety and sowing time of the crop.

1. Early varieties carrots can be dug up after 80-90 days (Amsterdamskaya, Parisskaya Karotel varieties).
2. Mid-season varieties are ready for harvesting in 100-120 days. These include the Nantes and Shantane varieties.
3. Late varieties are dug up after 120-160 days (varieties Berlicum, Valeria (another name for Flakke)).

The main sign of ripening of root crops is the appearance of white hairs on them - these are sucking roots. If the crop is not dug up at this time, the roots will grow, the root crop itself will become woody and sprout.

Any variety must remain in the ground for at least 80 days, then the vegetable will become an acceptable size for harvesting and some sugars will accumulate in it.

Late carrots, if they are not overgrown with hairs, can be dug after frost, since the crop is not afraid of cold weather. In the ground, root crops can withstand temperatures down to -5°C without freezing. After freezing, the bitter substances in them are destroyed and the carrots become sugary.

If there are no white hairs on the carrots, you cannot dig them up. The harvest is not yet ripe, sugars and amino acids have not accumulated in the roots, metabolic processes are very intense. When digging carrots ahead of time, the root crops are not stored, quickly rot or become dry, flabby and tasteless. Early harvesting is permissible only if the crop is immediately processed.

Harvesting carrots

Dig carrots on a dry, cloudy, cool day. Since the root crops are long (15-20 cm), there is no need to pull them out of the ground by the tops; they often break. To dig carrots, the soil is lightly raked from its tops, then dug with a shovel, lifting the carrots and removing them from the ground. Long root vegetables are dug up to the fullest extent, otherwise they will break off.

Do not dig up carrots with a pitchfork, since it is easy to pierce the root vegetables, then they will not be stored. Root cuts heal quickly, but punctures do not heal for a long time. When digging, an infection often gets into the puncture and the root crop rots. During storage, the tissue around the puncture becomes woody and rough, the vegetable itself loses a significant amount of sugars and becomes tasteless.

Short-fruited varieties (for example, Karotel) are pulled out by the tops; their root crops are short, round and do not break during harvesting. However, in the case of very dense soil, even these varieties have to be dug up.

The dug carrots are placed along the edge of the bed, and after harvesting is completed, they immediately begin to process the crop.

Preparing the harvest for storage

Preparation of the crop for storage is carried out within 1-2 days. When the process is delayed, the root crops lose a large number of moisture, become flabby, the process of destruction of sugars occurs and vegetables become tasteless. Preparation for storage consists of:

• removal of tops;
• washing root vegetables;
• top trimmings;
• crop sorting;
• drying.

Tops removal. Immediately after digging up the carrots, all tops are removed. The leaves evaporate water very strongly, and if they are not trimmed in time, the root crops wither. The tops can be twisted or cut with a knife

Washing. After removing the tops, the root vegetables are washed. You can add potassium permanganate to a container of water until it turns slightly pink. The solution disinfects vegetables, and they are stored much better. You don’t have to wash the crop, it doesn’t affect the keeping quality in any way. Washing is more of an aesthetic characteristic: washed carrots are more pleasant to pick up than dirty ones with lumps of earth.

Trimming the top. During the washing process, the green top, where the growing point is located, is removed from the carrots. The shelf life of such vegetables increases, they evaporate less moisture and do not germinate during storage. It is necessary to trim the top when washing; if it is removed along with the tops, then an infection can occur.

Sorting. When washing, carrots are immediately sorted. Root crops that are cracked, diseased, or damaged during harvesting are discarded. Such specimens are not stored, since they are a source of infection for the entire crop.

Ugly root vegetables are stored separately. Despite its unattractive appearance, multi-tailed carrots lie no worse than normal specimens.

The rest of the harvest is sorted according to the size of the roots into large, medium and small. Small carrots are usually loose and wither faster, so they are stored separately.

Drying the crop. Washed root vegetables are dried for 3-4 hours outside or 6-7 hours under a canopy. Vegetables are laid out in one layer and turned regularly. On a sunny day, the harvest is dried under a canopy. Then they are put in a dark and cool place, preferably the temperature does not exceed 8-10°C for 7-10 days. During this time, the carrots form a skin, the wounds heal and all specimens unsuitable for storage are identified. After drying, the vegetables are re-inspected and stored.

Basic rules for storing carrots in winter

Carrots are more difficult to preserve than beets. Early varieties are not stored under any conditions. They are grown for sale, for canning, consumption and processing in the summer. Average and late varieties stored until spring under proper conditions. The main thing is to reduce the evaporation of moisture from the surface of vegetables. Short root vegetables spoil the fastest. The longer and wider the vegetable, the more stable it is.

The dormant period of carrots is shorter and deeper than that of beets; they breathe more intensely and germinate earlier. To increase shelf life, it is necessary to strictly adhere to the storage requirements of this root crop.

1. Air temperature +1-3°C.
2. Humidity 85-95%.
3. Constant flow of fresh air.
4. Darkness. In the light, the sugars contained in the vegetable are quickly destroyed.

Temperature and humidity during storage should not fluctuate greatly.

You can store carrots in winter where these conditions are met. It’s easiest for residents of private houses; there is always room for harvest there. In apartments, the harvest is stored on the balcony, in the refrigerator, pantry, basement or in non-residential buildings: sheds, garages.

Every gardener knows the truism of farming: growing carrots and beets is half the battle, the main thing is that they last as long as possible. Without this, the difficult and troublesome land business loses all its meaning, because usually summer residents plant not two beds, but much more for the purpose of winter supplies.

In order for root vegetables to be well preserved and not lose their taste and vitamins, it is necessary to dig them up in time.

When can you pick carrots and beets? This depends on a combination of many factors:

• growing region (north or south);
• weather conditions (rains or dry and warm autumn);
• specific variety (early or late ripening vegetables);
• degree of maturation.

It is worth considering that the harvest time for these root crops is different: beets are harvested earlier, and carrots are harvested a couple of weeks later. In any case, it is important to let the fruits ripen well, otherwise unripe vegetables will quickly wither and rot in the basement.

To understand whether beets or carrots are ripe, you need to dig up one fruit with a pitchfork: if it has small white branching roots, the vegetable is fully ripe and ready for harvest.

There is one more nuance: in the case when autumn is dry and warm, it is better to postpone harvesting for now, because vegetables will be better off in the garden than in the cellar. But if prolonged rains are forecast, it is better to remove root crops from the garden before they arrive. Otherwise, both carrots and beets will become saturated with moisture, which will significantly reduce their shelf life and even their taste.

Beet harvesting

A characteristic feature of growth is that top part the fruit protrudes above the soil surface. This entails an earlier harvest compared to carrots, because if the beet bed is caught in frost, there is a risk of the root crops freezing. Such vegetables will still be useful for consumption, but they will no longer be stored.

After harvesting, the beets must be removed from the tops using a knife or scissors, without damaging the fruit, and dried.

Harvesting carrots

Unlike beets, carrots tolerate the first frosts well, so it is better to postpone their harvest until they occur. The main thing is not to forget to “put” the tops on the ground.

Experienced gardeners claim that carrots that have survived the first frost in the garden beds are stored better, since the fruits are stored in the cellar after they have cooled down.

But it is still necessary to dig up root crops before the onset of permanent frosts, because it is stable low temperature won't bear it. The tops can be unscrewed by hand, leaving a small tail, and the vegetables can be dried.

Grow good harvest carrots and beets - that's half the battle. It is equally important to harvest the crop in time so that it does not begin to rot in the ground and to select correct method storage This article will describe when to harvest carrots and beets from the garden in different regions. Information will also be provided on how exactly to collect carrots and beets and under what conditions to store them.

When to remove carrots and beets from the garden?

Gardeners' opinions on when to remove carrots and beets from the garden vary greatly, and this is not surprising. There are a huge number of different climatic zones, varieties of carrots and beets, types of soil, sowing and care methods - and all this affects the harvest time. Additionally, there are two types of fees.

• In the first case, gardeners harvest the crop as soon as it is ripe.
• In the second case, summer residents wait several days after full ripening for the root crops to rest in the ground and prepare, so to speak, for winter storage.

Both of the above options have their own reasons and summer residents successfully use them, so you can choose any of them - if you wish, but it’s better to try both options and choose the one that is permanent fits better Total. However, it is important to remember and adhere to one rule - carrots and beets are harvested before stable cold weather sets in with temperatures below -3 degrees Celsius!

It is not recommended to rely on neighbors in the garden to dig up crops, because the time of sowing, care, and fertilizer for the soil with them, as a rule, differs, and therefore the ripening of root crops can be carried out in different time!

Experts note that it is better to dig up carrots after reaching technical ripeness. Main sign– yellowing of the tops. But it is important to take into account weather conditions. During dry months, yellow tops may not indicate ripeness, but may indicate low moisture levels in the soil.

But when to harvest carrots and beets by month? If we talk about the middle zone, then this is the period from the end of September to the beginning of October. The beets are always dug up first, and then, after a week, you can take on the carrots. If the first frosts come suddenly, the carrot tops are crushed to the ground, and the top of the bed is covered with burlap.

Photo of carrot and beet harvest

When to harvest beets and carrots in the Moscow region?

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The Moscow region belongs to central Russia, so, as mentioned above, they dig carrots and beets there from about the end of September to the beginning of October. In order for the harvest to please you with keeping quality and taste, it is recommended to take into account some points.

1. In September, sugars accumulate in carrots, so there is no rush to harvest - harvesting before mid-September can lead to the harvest being bitter, bland, or simply not sweet.
2. In the Moscow region there can be a lot of rain in the fall, and it is not recommended to collect root vegetables during or after rain. So usually gardeners wait for a dry period and at the end of it they dig up beets and carrots.

When there is a very warm, long summer, you cannot delay harvesting for a long time, because in such conditions (warmth and moderate humidity) root crops can begin to germinate - these are biennial plants.

1. Before finally digging up root vegetables, it is worth digging up one or two and checking them for ripeness.

When to harvest carrots and beets in the Urals?

Depending on when the crop was planted in the Urals, harvesting may occur at different times. Of course, the variety is also taken into account. For growing in the Urals, early and mid-season carrots and beets are chosen, because they usually have time to fully ripen before the first frost, unlike late varieties.

As for the harvest time, if the beets were planted in mid-May, from the end of August you can begin to check the harvest for readiness. The same principle applies to carrots. But, if spring and summer were cold, rainy, cloudy, the crop will take more time to ripen and harvesting will be postponed until September.

Harvesting carrots and beets in Siberia

Siberia is the most difficult region of Russia for growing vegetables, so they use certain agricultural technology, sowing methods, and plant only those varieties that are suitable for the given climate. It is recommended to sow vegetables in Siberia with a growing season of up to 100 days.

Carrots, unlike beets, tolerate light frosts, so the beets are always dug up first, and then the carrots.

It is 100 days after germination that these varieties need to be dug up - this is approximately the end of August or the beginning of September. To begin with, of course, they are checked for readiness - 1-2 pieces are taken out and only then can the harvest be fully harvested.

Photo of how to dig carrots using a pitchfork

How to properly harvest carrots and beets?

Knowing when to remove carrots and beets from the garden in a particular region is of course important. But collection technology also plays an important role! To begin with, it is worth noting that harvesting is carried out in dry weather. There should be no rain a couple of days before so that the ground is more or less dry and not waterlogged!

Carrots and beets are never simply pulled out of the ground! You can, of course, use this method, but most of the tails will break off and the roots may be damaged. This method is convenient only for young crops, and not for those that are already large and mature - this requires a special tool!

In order to carefully dig up the crop, it is better to use a pitchfork rather than a shovel. The ground is carefully lifted with a fork, and the root crops fall out of the ground by themselves. But it is advisable to place the forks not directly in the row where the vegetables grow, but in the spaces between the rows, pointing towards the garden bed. After harvesting, the beets are collected in piles and dried for about 2 days. But carrots, in principle, don’t need to be dried.

Do not dry root vegetables in the sun! This will lead to their withering and reduced preservation.

When the harvest is harvested, you can cut off the tops, but with a knife or scissors, and not tear the greens, because in the latter case there is a high risk of damage to the root crop. For beets, all the leaves are cut off, but so as not to touch the root crop, and for carrots you need to leave a stump of up to 2 cm. It is recommended to peel or wash carrots and beets only if they are going for sale - vegetables for storing winter storage never wash off the ground!

How to store carrots and beets in a cellar or basement?

The issue of storing carrots and beets worries many summer residents, because it’s a shame when a good harvest rots before our eyes due to poor conditions in literally a matter of months or even weeks!

Interesting!

If during harvest it is noticed that the central leaves of the crop have wilted, then this is most likely some kind of disease or pest. Such root vegetables are dug up and stored separately to be used first or thrown away altogether, depending on the extent of the problem.

Root vegetables are stored in a basement or cellar, separate from fruit. In an apartment, you can use an insulated balcony or storage room. The room should be clean and dark. The temperature inside is maintained within +1…+3 degrees. There are a lot of storage methods: in clay, in bags, nets, sand, and so on. You can use any convenient option, the main thing is just to sort through all the root vegetables and sort them before storing them.

The question, or rather two questions, that torment many summer residents is when to start digging up red beets and when to start harvesting carrots from the garden? No one wants to rush through this, but no one wants to be late either.

Beet and carrot harvest. © Mark Willism

The thing is that a lot depends on the correct and most appropriate timing of harvesting these, essentially the simplest root vegetables: the taste of the root vegetables, their quality during processing and fresh consumption, and their vitamin content. If you dig it up early, they (vitamins) will not have time to accumulate in them, and of course, the shelf life of root crops will be reduced. After all, if you dig up too early or too late, you can end up with rotting root crops in the middle of winter, which means simply losing the harvest.

A lot depends on the simple inscription on the package of seeds. It states in black and white how many days should pass from the appearance of the first shoots to the digging up of root crops. Of course, nature itself intervenes here: after all, summer can be hot and with plenty of moisture, and then the dates on the packaging can coincide quite accurately. Or it may be cool and deprived of additional moisture in the form of rain, and then the root crops will ripen later and, accordingly, they will need to be dug up later.

Let’s take our time to figure it all out, and then, I’m just sure of this, by the end of the material you will already know exactly when to dig up both carrots and beets.

When to dig up carrots and beets?

Cultivation of carrots and beets is approximately the same and you can’t draw any special conclusions here. But at the very end, the overwhelming majority of gardeners still converge on a common opinion - you need to dig up carrots after the very first frost, and beets - be sure to exclude even the smallest ones, otherwise they definitely won’t lie.

In general, there is, of course, a grain of truth in this. As for carrots, they can withstand frost, you can dig them up even after the first autumn snow, they will not freeze. However, to ensure that carrots do not freeze, you need to go to a little trick: You should walk around the garden and thoroughly press the carrot tops into the soil. This method cannot exactly be called new, but it allows carrots to go through all the stages of preparing them for storage. It has long been noticed, and this has been verified more than once or twice, that if you dig up carrots before frost, they will be stored 30% less than when dug up after.

As for table beets, as we have already mentioned, everyone is unanimously convinced that by the first frost the beets should at least be pulled out of the soil. Although, on the other hand, if the autumn is normal and the weather is dry without rain, then table beets feel quite fine in the soil: they will be preserved in the soil much better than those dug up in advance in a cellar or basement. And the shelf life of beets continues to increase by at least 50%.

It's a completely different matter when autumn is rainy. There is an extremely high probability that the root vegetables will pick up so much unnecessary moisture that they will begin to deteriorate during storage. It is clear that if you delay digging up table beets during the wet season, they will be completely unsuitable for storage. This is where gardeners are partly right, who do not take unnecessary risks and do not wait for an increase of a couple of grams, but dig up beets as soon as the threat of the first frost arrives, or when the cold autumn rains begin to fall.

The time it takes to dig up carrots and beets may entirely depend on the growing region. So, if you are a resident of the southern region, then the excavation will be carried out later, in the central region - in the middle, and in the northern - at the earliest. You also need to focus on the forecasts of the beet growing region: so, if meteorologists predict severe frosts, then what to expect? And you also need to think about the timing of the variety’s ripening (as we have already written about).

Carrot

A signal to dig up carrots may be yellowing of the lower and middle leaves. There is no need to waste time; you can simply remove the root crop from the ground and examine it more closely. If it has the thinnest snow-white threads-roots, then the root crop is completely ready for harvesting. If cracks are noticed on the root crop, then you need to dig up the entire batch as quickly as possible - the carrots are already starting to outgrow. As for the timing of harvesting, the optimal time is the second half of September, closer to October.

Having decided on the timing, you can start digging up carrots. To do this, it is better to choose a fine sunny day; of course, do not water it for a couple of days; on the day of digging, the soil should also be dry. It's easy to dig up carrots with a pitchfork: it's not only easier, but carrots can also be damaged minimal amount injuries You can dig with two people: one uses a pitchfork and slightly pulls the carrots to the surface, and the other finally pulls them out of the ground by the ends. Next, with your hands, and not with a knife or anything else, you can try to clean the dirt from the carrots and place root crops of equal length on the soil or put aside those that will be used for seed production next year for storage for consumption. After digging, carefully inspect the root crops: those that show signs of damage should be immediately processed or eaten fresh, and intact and fully developed ones should be sent for storage or in a separate box for planting (as seeds).

As for the advice to leave the carrots in the garden to dry right with the tops, I would argue. In my opinion, you need to immediately cut off most of the tops, leaving growths a couple of centimeters long at most, or it is better to remove them completely, leaving the root crops to dry for a couple of hours (otherwise the tops will draw moisture from the root crop). Next, we send the carrots to a dark place for five or six hours, there they will cool and finally prepare for storage.

After digging, we proceed to describe the procedure for storing carrots. There are actually a lot of options here. Naturally, the most optimal room for storing carrots is a cellar or basement, where the temperature is about +4 degrees and the humidity is 80%. Carrots cannot be stored on the balcony, say, in bags, for a long period; they will simply begin to rot there. And if the balcony is not glazed and not heated, then it will simply freeze and die.

An excellent option is a cellar, shelves are built in it, processed with 2% copper sulfate, boxes are installed on them and carrots are laid, sprinkled with dry and clean sawdust. Instead of sawdust, you can use dry and also clean river sand, quite suitable option(only the gaps in the drawers should then be minimal so that the sand does not spill out).

In some cases, carrot roots are still stored on glazed balconies, but without heating. First, they are dipped in a clay mixture, allowed to dry, and such carrots can easily lie there all winter if it is not critically cold.

In rooms with little humidity, in other words, dry rooms, carrots can be stored in ordinary bags, but ventilated, with holes made in advance, sprinkled with sawdust.

Carrots are stored in basements in an area allocated for them, usually fenced with fresh, clean boards. You also need to lay dry and fresh boards on the floor, and place, for example, wormwood on them in a layer of 3-4 cm. Wormwood is a great repellent for mice, and they do not touch it all winter.

If there is no bin, then carrots can also be stored in the basement, but in fresh wooden boxes, sprinkled with sawdust and covered plastic film, so that it does not evaporate excess moisture, because the basement is usually warmer.

Beet

It is advisable to dig it before the temperature drops to negative values and before the season of heavy rainfall. Concerning calendar period, it usually falls in mid-September and lasts until mid-October. You need to dig up table beets on a fine sunny day, when the soil is dry and devoid of excess moisture.

Under no circumstances dig up beets before the specified time. The thing is that from approximately the end of August to the beginning of September, the maximum amount of sugar and other essential beneficial elements accumulates in the beet pulp.

The signal to dig up beets is usually small tubercles; if you look closely, they are clearly visible. The tubercles are located on the very surface of the root crops (this is a sign that it’s time to dig).

In addition, of course, you need to monitor the weather forecast, pay attention to the leaf blades: on them, like on root crops, growths also appear - this is a clear sign that the beets are ripe. You should also dig up one vegetable and examine it from all sides, so it’s also easy to understand whether the beets are ripe or not.

The optimal period (we briefly mentioned this above) is an autumn day with above-zero temperatures and dry soil - this is the weather intended specifically for digging up beets.

In my opinion, it is more convenient to dig up table beets with a pitchfork: this way there is less damage to the root crops. Immediately after digging, remove the tops from the root crop so that it does not dry out, leaving only a centimeter-long stump (do not tear off the tops with your hands, as you can damage the root crop itself), then spread the root crops in the sun to dry for several hours.

Digging up beets. © fionagrowsfood

Important! Beetroots that are to be stored should never be washed. Instead, inspect each one carefully, as you did with carrots, and store only those root vegetables that are not damaged and at least look completely healthy.

So, place the table beets, which you have sorted and cleaned from the soil carefully, with a glove and not a scraper, in any dry room where there is good ventilation and there is no direct sunlight that would fall on the beets. In such a room, the beets should lie for 6-7 days, so the root vegetables will completely dry out and be ready for storage. After this, the root crops can be safely transferred to any storage facility for the winter.

You can store beets, just like carrots, in a basement or cellar; ideally, the temperature there should be from 0 to +2 degrees Celsius and the humidity at 90%. If it is warmer, the root crops may begin to fade quite quickly, rot and other diseases will develop, in general, the harvest may be lost. Beetroot is especially sensitive to high temperature at the very beginning of storage, then even at +4 degrees of heat it will begin to grow tops and for about a month it should be kept at a temperature of about one degree above zero and no more.

Be sure to pay attention to air circulation in the storage, this applies to both carrot storage and beet storage. Ideally, ventilation should be natural, and the bins where beets are stored should be raised above the floor by at least 5-10 cm so that air can pass there too. This simple technique will allow you to constantly cool root crops, prevent them from sweating and will not contribute to the formation of rot and other troubles.