|
Post by daylilydude on May 13, 2017 19:14:38 GMT -5
What causes the splits?
|
|
|
Post by paquebot on May 13, 2017 21:12:15 GMT -5
Irregular watering. Especially if it's after a long dry period.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
|
|
aqua
Pro Member
Posts: 295
Zone:: 8b9a
Favorite Vegetable:: all of them
Joined: March 2012
|
Post by aqua on Dec 27, 2017 17:45:17 GMT -5
ok, not a lot going on in the carrot portion of this board.
If you have an excess of carrots, what are some ways to save them? Root cellar is not an option; neither is basement. Can they be blanched and frozen? frozen raw? How long might they keep in the fridge? should I leave the tops on them to store them in the fridge? I've made too many pickled carrots so I have no desire to pickle any more.
Well...they are really good pickled...maybe I'll make just ONE jar...
|
|
|
Post by brownrexx on Dec 27, 2017 18:22:50 GMT -5
Leave the tops on and you can keep them in the refrigerator for months. I have also cut my carrots into slices and blanched them for the freezer. They seemed to work out pretty well that way too
|
|
|
Post by paquebot on Dec 28, 2017 0:05:29 GMT -5
For saving carrots with no root cellar option, get a 30-gallon Rubbermaid storage bin. Dig a 30-gallon hole in the garden so that the rim is just an inch above ground level. Dry sawdust is then used to pack the carrots in. (Straw or dry leaves are next best option.) Bag of leaves is laid over the cover to insulate that. They keep until May or June here. Also works for beets, celeriac, and rutabaga.
I specify Rubbermaid as that is not subject to the weather and other conditions and will last seemingly forever.
Martin
The truth is more important than the facts.
|
|
aqua
Pro Member
Posts: 295
Zone:: 8b9a
Favorite Vegetable:: all of them
Joined: March 2012
|
Post by aqua on Dec 28, 2017 10:32:51 GMT -5
brownrexx, how long do you boil them (before icing them) for blanching? paquebot, we often see upper nineties by Mid-May here, sometimes as early as April even. Do you think it would remain cool enough outside with that kind of weather? I left a carrot in the ground once to see how big it would get- it was over 2 lbs. I made six dozen carrot-cake muffins with it.
|
|
|
Post by september on Dec 28, 2017 10:51:04 GMT -5
!!!!!!! !!!!! Love it !! When my mom was around to help, we blanched and froze carrots as well. I assume we did the normal 2 minutes upon return to boiling thing. I have left carrots in the ground over the winter by covering the rows with bales of hay and then a tarp. Wait for a warm spell to lift a bale and dig up what I need for a few weeks and recover promptly. Of course down in the south, you wouldn't need to do that if your ground does not freeze. I wash and remove the tops before storing batches in large ziplock bags in my son's little old dorm size fridge in our basement. I slice a few slits in the bags so they breathe a little, and let the carrots surface dry on newspaper for a few hours before packing them to avoid too much wetness inside the bags. After 3 or 4 months some may start growing little roots all over, but they taste fine and you just scrape off the rootlets.
|
|
|
Post by brownrexx on Dec 28, 2017 15:01:42 GMT -5
aqua, I don't remember exactly but 2 minutes sounds about right.
|
|
|
Post by Laura_in_FL on Dec 28, 2017 16:27:41 GMT -5
aqua, since the ground never freezes here, if I don't need the garden space for something else right away, I find that it's easiest to leave the carrots in the ground over winter and just pull them as needed. Nematodes aren't active in the cool months, and I rarely have trouble with nematodes/pests/disease bothering the carrots while the soil is cool, either. Plus the flavor of carrots is better if harvested after frosts and while it's still cool. Once the ground gets warm and the carrot tops start putting on strong new growth, the carrots aren't as sweet. Also, pest and disease activity picks up. So it's better to go ahead and harvest the rest of the carrots in late February or March. That's about the time you need the garden space for spring crops anyway, right? At that point I would refrigerate the carrots, or blanch and freeze them as described above.
|
|
aqua
Pro Member
Posts: 295
Zone:: 8b9a
Favorite Vegetable:: all of them
Joined: March 2012
|
Post by aqua on Dec 28, 2017 16:43:08 GMT -5
Thank you all so much for all of the replies! Ok, two minutes after they return to boiling- thank you. I tried freezing cooked carrots a couple years ago, but they turned to mush after thawing. Got so upset, that's why I didn't grow carrots last year. But then I really missed carrots so here we are. september, those are good instructions for keeping them in the fridge. Do you think they need to be perfectly clean before bagging- or just a good hard rinsing off? either way, I will let them dry before bagging them. Laura_in_FL, yeah it's amazing how tall a carrot can get when the weather starts getting warm! But it's so much fun to pull carrots.
|
|
|
Post by Laura_in_FL on Dec 28, 2017 16:46:15 GMT -5
It *is* fun pulling carrots. My kids aren't into gardening anymore but they still like to pull carrots.
|
|
|
Post by paquebot on Dec 28, 2017 17:26:58 GMT -5
aqua, prior to refrigeration, underground storage was the only way for the South. That applied particularly to their main crop, sweet potatoes. Search for "clamp" and you'll find out how it's done. Also, if you haven't eaten your carrots by May you aren't eating enough of them. They do last until May here due to our climate. Location, location, location. Martin The truth is more important than the facts.
|
|
aqua
Pro Member
Posts: 295
Zone:: 8b9a
Favorite Vegetable:: all of them
Joined: March 2012
|
Post by aqua on Dec 28, 2017 17:49:23 GMT -5
paquebot, ooohhh... I can put a hurtin' on some carrots. One way or another, they WILL get eaten. I will look up clamp, and learn something new.
|
|
|
Post by september on Dec 29, 2017 0:55:18 GMT -5
aqua, Well, I do try to get them as clean as possible without being obsessive about it, since they will develop moisture in the bags even if you let them dry. And you'll want to check them periodically and remove any that might start developing mildew.
|
|