Posted: 02/05/2010 07:49:40 PM PST


Q: How can I grow carrots that are longand cylindrical like those shown in the seed catalog? My soil is sandy,with a six-inch crust of clay on top.

A: Carrots, Daucus carota, need full sun for at leastfive hours a day. Dig a trench 1 foot wide and 1 foot deep and as longas you wish (you can grow other vegetables such as turnips, parsnipsand beets in this area also). Remove and set aside in a pile the top 6inches of your clay soil to use later. Add equal parts of compost andpeat moss, and a handful of bone meal into your new trench, mixing theexisting soil well to form a loose soil. Rake the site level andinstall a soaker hose in the center of the row. Water the trenchthoroughly. (The top six inches of clay soil that you set aside can beused in a new bed, mixing your compost that you make this summer).

Plant the seeds as directed in two staggered rows on eachside of the soaker hose, about three or four seeds per inch. When theseedlings are about two inches high, thin them down to two inchesapart. To keep the carrot tops from getting green, add mulch to keepthe ground evenly moist. This will cut down on weeds sprouting. Youshould be able to grow a great variety of long and cylindrical carrots.Try some of the new varieties.

You can plant carrots from about the 15th of March, whenthe soil reaches 40 degrees, through August. Plant some seeds now and afew more every two to three weeks. Check your soil if the carrots havenotgerminated in 17 days to make certain your existing clay soil has notformed a crust again. I mix radish seeds with my carrot seeds beforeplanting as the radish seed will forge through most crusted soils. Inthree weeks you should be ready to harvest the radishes that arecrowding the carrot seeds.

Because carrots are cool-loving crops, carrots planted in thesummer for a fall harvest will do poorly if exposed to too much lightand heat. Carrots like one inch of water a week. When the carrots reachthree-quarters of their total diameter, reduce watering, which willlessen the chance of splitting.

Apply compost to the sides of the carrots as a supplementalfertilizer. Hairy, tough carrots are caused by not enough water. Waterthoroughly when the top four inches of soil become dry. Fall plantedcarrots taste best if not harvested until after a good frost.

Q: I planted some lisianthus in my flower gardenlast year. They were outstanding, but the stems were weak and I had tostake the plant to keep it from flopping over. How can I have sturdierplants?

A: Lisianthus (Eustoma grandiflorum or Lisianthusrussellianus) is a native of the high plains of the west; thesecultivars have been improved by the Japanese. Newly planted seedlingsshould be pinched back as soon as they are transplanted and again after2 inches to 4 inches of growth have developed to keep the plantscompact and the stems strong. This is a great plant for warm summers.They like a light feeding every three weeks during the growing season(you can use a foliar spray for this task). Check your nurseries forthe new double-flowered series and the new multi-colored flowers.

Q: My strawberries are sending out>>>