Nantes carrots are considered classic, its taste has become the standard for comparison of other varieties. You can get a rich and juicy crop, if you adhere to complex agricultural practices when cultivating crops. More on this later.
Nantes carrot seeds
Nantes Carrot
Nantes carrot contains a large amount of carotene
Grade description
The Nantes variety of carrots was bred in 1943 for planting throughout Russia, Ukraine and Belarus. Until now, he enjoys well-deserved popularity. There are several varieties of this variety, which are combined under the name Nantes:
Specifications | Nantes 4 | Nantes red | Nantes Enhanced | Nantes Semko |
Fetal length (cm) | 12-16 | 14-16 | 15-17 | 16-17 |
The mass of the fetus (g) | 70-160 | 80-200 | 90-160 | 90-150 |
Colour | red orange | Orange | bright orange | Orange |
Ripening period (days) | 80-120 | 100-110 | 90-110 | 90-100 |
Productivity (t / ha) | 230-260 | 260-305 | up to 600 | 280-530 |
Advantages and disadvantages
Carrots of this variety have many advantages that allow it to be grown not only in personal household plots, but also on an industrial scale:
- high carotene content, which causes a bright orange color of carrots;
- a large amount of sugar makes this variety not only desirable for children, but also allows you to get high-quality carrot juice from it;
- the content of volatile, killing pathogens, this carrot is almost not inferior to garlic and onion;
- It has a high shelf life and, with proper storage, retains its presentation until spring;
The disadvantages of this variety include rather high demands on the soil. Large yields can only be obtained on loose, fertile, not heavy soils.
Varieties of Nantes Carrot
All varieties of this variety have excellent taste characteristics.
Nantes 4
Most summer residents are familiar with this particular variety, which is the ancestor of Nantes carrots. This is a mid-ripening variety, full ripening occurs in about 110-120 days, however, these carrots get their marketable appearance already 70 days after it comes up. This variety is one of the best for winter sowing.
Nantes Enhanced
The variety is named so because of improvements in the evenness and marketability of root crops. A feature of the variety is its early germination. Allows you to get a stable high yield, suitable for long-term storage.
Carrots are used for the production of carrot juice, due to their taste and high sugar content.
Nantes red
Like other varieties of Nantes carrot, it forms orange fruits of a cylindrical shape with a small tail. This variety resists well the main diseases that affect carrots. It can be stored for a long time without changing its taste.
Nantes Semko
A hybrid obtained at the end of the last century. Designed specifically for growing in large volumes, it has a high yield, which can reach 810 kg / ha. Suitable for mechanized cleaning. The value of the hybrid is its resistance to flowering, high shelf life and good taste.
Soil preparation
Soil that does not form a crust, such as sandy and loamy, peaty soils, is most suitable for growing carrots. The root crop cannot be planted under fresh manure. It is better if carrots will be the second or third crop, after depleting the soil.
The best predecessors are zucchini and early cabbage and potatoes, but carrots also grow well after tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, mid-ripe cabbage.
In the autumn, the plot on which they plan to sow carrots is dug up with the addition of humus or compost (4-6 kg / sq. M). In spring, the soil is cultivated and harrowed using a rake. Before sowing in poor, non-fertile soils, it is advisable to add 50 g / sq. m nitroammofoski. Fertile soils do not need to be additionally fertilized.
Seed preparation
Carrots are hard-to-like crops, so it is advisable to process the seeds before sowing. There are several effective techniques for increasing the germination of carrots:
- Soaking in water. Soak the seeds for 24 hours and then dry to flow. This will accelerate the emergence of seedlings for several days.
- Hydrothermal treatment. Submerge the seeds in a gauze bag for 20 minutes in water heated to 50-52 degrees. Cool with cold water and dry. This treatment helps in the fight against infections.
- Soaking in boric acid. Use a 0.1% solution of boric acid for seed treatment during the day, this will increase yield.
- Bubbling. Pass air or oxygen through water (at a temperature of 20 degrees) with soaked seeds. Use an aerator for aquariums. Processing time 18-20 hours. In sparged seeds, seedlings appear on the 5-7th day.
Sowing
Carrot seeds emerge for a long time. At a soil temperature of 2-3 degrees, germination is delayed for 25-30 days. The optimal condition for seed germination is a temperature of 20-25 degrees, then the seeds will hatch in 4-5 days.
Seedlings of carrots are frost-resistant and can withstand temperature drops of up to - 4 degrees.
According to the timing, winter, spring and summer sowing of carrots are distinguished. The row spacing when sowing is from 25 to 45 centimeters, the distance between root crops is 5 centimeters.
Subwinter
Winter sowing is usually carried out before the onset of completely freezing ground frosts, so that the carrots do not have time to germinate. Seeding at this seeding is the smallest, to a depth of not more than 1 centimeter with powder on top of loose earth. Such sowing allows you to get carrots 10-15 days earlier than early ripe carrots.
Spring
Early spring sowing is used to produce carrots in the early stages for consumption and sale. Usually, sowing is carried out depending on climatic conditions in late April and early May.
Carrots are not transplantable, because then it forms a branched root. Therefore, this root crop cannot be grown with seedlings.
Summer
For autumn and winter use, carrots are sown in the first half of May and until the end of the month. If you sow carrots in June, it is quite difficult to get friendly seedlings, but the results will be good.
Depth of seeding varies from 0.5 to 2.5 centimeters, depending on soil properties. If groundwater passes near the surface, then carrots are sown on ridges. In arid areas, sowing is carried out on a flat surface.
Carrot care
Carrots do not require special care, it will be enough to weed, thin out, water and protect it from diseases and pests on time. Adhering to some simple tips, you will get a good crop of carrots in your area:
- before emergence, conduct regular watering so that the soil never dries out;
- when seedlings appear, carefully weed the weeds that jam the young plants;
- stop watering for 7-10 days so that the roots go as deep as possible into the soil;
- make the next weeding after watering;
- when thinning for the first time, remove weak plants, and leave stronger ones at a distance of 3-4 centimeters from each other;
- aisle regularly loosen, especially after watering or rain;
- during the second thinning, the strongest plants are left with an interval of 5-6 centimeters;
- when 5-6 leaves appear, perform foliar top dressing ¼ doses of mineral fertilizers;
- in July-August, irrigate every 7-10 days.
Nitrogen fertilizers should not be much carried away, as their overabundance worsens the carrot's keeping time. You can get more information about the rules for fertilizing from the article: "How, when and how to feed carrots?".
Water the carrots abundantly and evenly, but not so often. Watering should be regular in order to exclude the possibility of cracking of the root crop. You can find out about carrots watering norms here.
Harvesting and storage
To sell carrots with bundled goods, they are collected as soon as the root diameter reaches 15 mm. But the largest increase in harvest occurs in September, so carrots are harvested late for storage.
Harvesting is carried out in dry weather, the tops are cut off, and carrots are left to dry for several hours in the open air. Then the root crops are sorted, removing small, deformed and diseased.
The temperature for storing carrots should not exceed 2 degrees, otherwise it will begin to germinate. For longer storage, root crops are interbedded with sand, using boxes and filling them to a height of 70-110 centimeters. Read about other ways to store carrots in this article.
Pests and diseases
There are many types of diseases of carrots, and it is sick during cultivation and storage. These are mainly fungal diseases in the form of rot, in which diseased plants are destroyed, and the remaining crops are treated with fungicides. As the prevention of many diseases, pre-sowing seed treatment is used.
Disease name | Symptoms of lesion | Treatment | Prevention |
Fomoz | Gray-brown spots on the leaves and petioles, then the root crop is affected. | It is impossible to cure the emerging disease, the affected plants are removed. | The introduction of phosphorus-potassium fertilizers before planting. |
White rot | The appearance of a white coating on carrots, then crusts with black dots. | Intensive application of potash fertilizers, spraying with drugs with copper. | Harvesting weeds and waste. |
Gray rot | Wet rot on the fruit, darkening and soaking of the surface of carrots. | Affected fruits are removed. | Spraying with Bordeaux liquid, feeding with nitrogen fertilizers. |
Rhizoctonia | Dark gray spots inside the root crop. | Spraying plants with copper chloride. | Presowing seed treatment. |
Black rot | Blackening of the stem and curl of the leaves. | Treatment of plantings with iprodion-containing fungicides. | Presowing seed treatment. |
Bacteriosis | Brown spots on leaves and stems, soft spots on root crops, unpleasant odor. | It is not cured, crops are destroyed. | Seed treatment, spraying seedlings with copper chloride. |
Most carrot pests affect its terrestrial part, as a result of which the root crop does not develop well, remains small and the carrot yield decreases.
Pest | Signs of defeat | Control measures | Prevention |
Carrot fly | Red-violet shade of leaves. | Pesticide treatment. | Sprinkle the earth with a mixture of naphthalene and sand (1:10), waste collection. |
Carrot leaf | Twisting the leaves. | Collecting insect eggs, spraying with tobacco solution. | Loosening the soil, weeding and fertilizing plants. |
Slug | Leaf eating. | Adding superphosphates to the topsoil. | Spraying plants with infusion of garlic, hot pepper and mustard. |
Wireworm | Point moves in the root crop. | Feeding with ammonia, treatment with insecticides. | Maintaining sanitary cleanliness of plants, loosening and lowering the acidity of the soil. |
Carrot aphid | Accumulation of insects, twisting and drying of leaves. | Spraying with a solution of ash and tobacco. | Weed control. |
Reviews of summer residents
Anna, 47 years old, housewife, Moscow region. I bought the cheapest bag of carrot Nantes 4. I did not water or feed the carrots, I just loosened the ground. Surprisingly, the carrots were quite large, several copies cracked and bifurcated. But in general, I am satisfied with the harvest.
Olga, 35 years old, Nizhny Novgorod. Planted carrots variety Nantes. Unpretentious plants, watered them once a week. The rich harvest even envied the neighbors. Next year I will plant only her.
Igor, 44 years old, summer resident, Tula. Previously, I didn’t plant carrots, but then I came across information that along with onions, I need to plant carrots, as they protect each other from pests. When the carrot grew up, I decided to try it - it tastes just wonderful. This we certainly will not lie for a long time!
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Subject to agricultural technology, Nantes carrots are absolutely not difficult to grow. Currently, there are many varieties of carrots, but choosing an old, time-tested variety, you can enjoy it already in late July, leaving the main crop until the fall.