How Doctor Carrot helped prescribe us a healthier diet
CARROTS have been a staple part of our diet since the Second World War. During rationing they were in plentiful supply and the nation was encouraged to eat the root veg by the Government. Propaganda posters claimed they helped people to see in a blackout, and a campaign to get children to eat them featured a cartoon character called Doctor Carrot.
Clearly all that lobbying ying 80 years ago worked a treat, reat, as carrots were elevated ted from close to bottom of the vegetable rack to o second most popular after potatoes. Today, Britons crunch their way through 700,000 tons of them a year – the equivalent of about 100 carrots each. h.
Obviously this popular lar veg is readily available able from shops, but if you u want to taste carrots with real l fl flavour, it’s worth growing your own from seeds. There are scores of different varieties with roots that vary in size, shape and even colour, from ubiquitous orange ones to white, yellow, red and purpleskinned roots.
There are two main groups of carrot – early and maincrop. Both are ideal for sowing at any point from now until July. Early varieties are often ready for harvesting seven weeks after sowing and best eaten immediately. Maincrop types take up to 11 weeks to mature and can be eaten fresh or stored for later use.
Among t he best earlies are ‘ Mokum’, fast- growing ‘ Amsterdam Forcing 3’ and ‘Early Nantes’, a French variety with long, cylindrical roots. Of the maincrops, ‘Norfolk’, ‘Eskimo’ and ‘Rothschild’ are well worth seeking out. For something a little different, ‘Purple Haze’ is a dark purple carrot with an orange core.
Carrots prefer light, stone-free soil in a sunny spot. Prepare the soil by digging, removing weeds and large stones, and then rake backwards and forwards until the texture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Make a shallow trench, about ½in deep, with the corner of the rake, allowing 12in between subsequent rows. Space seeds about 2in apart, cover carefully with the excavated soil and stick a label at both ends of the row to remind you of its position.
Water the area gently with a watering can fitted with a fine sprinkler head – don’t water directly from the spout, as the strong gush is likely to disturb seeds underground. Once they’ve germinated, thin out seedlings to provide the roots with plenty of elbow room. Tugging them straight out of the ground will release a scent that attracts carrot fly, a pest with larvae that burrows into roots. Avoid its attention by nipping their tops off at ground level, leaving the remaining seedlings about 8in apart.
Another tactic to protect crops from carrot fly is to surround them with a 3ft-tall barrier made from i nsect- proof mesh attached to bamboo canes – the structure helps as the pests can’t fly more than 2ft off the ground. Those who really want to play it safe could grow a resistant variety, such as ‘Resistafly’.
Keep plants well watered, especially during dry periods, and remove any weeds that appear. Harvest carrots when the soil or compost is moist, making it easier to lift roots and prevent them breaking. Most carrots will come up easily by hand, but a fork can be useful to prise up some longrooted varieties.