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[Clansgian AT wmconnect.com]

> I'd like to hear your method for carrots.  I don't have good luck with
> carrots.  I've tried several varieties, several soil mixes, including
> one that was about 90% sand, and all kinds of other stuff.  I don't
> think I've ever grown a decent crop of carrots.  They end up tough and
> tasteless.  

I've had knotty tasteless carrots, but mostly my problem has been nearly no 
carrots.  For example, I'd plant a 4' x 10' bed with carrots either precision 
seeded or else broadcast with the intentions of thinning them to a proper 
stand, and by the date of maturity the carrots were delicious ...... both of 
them!

I haven't found them to be picky about soil condition except that it has to 
be loose and no stones or hard clods (they will fork).  The biggie with them 
is 
that it takes forever for them to germinate and by then every seed in 
Christendom has germinated and overshadows them.

This is my method, although don't put much stock in it, it's probably the 
rantings of the worst carrot grower on a homestead:

All my garden beds are 4' wide (more or less, they have a mind of their own 
about that).  I make little ridges the 4' width of the bed about six inches 
apart and about 4" high.  I lay down the rake handle to lightly indent the 
top of 
each ridge and then put a carrot seed or two ever half inch.  I sprinkle 
compost over the indention until the seed is coverd about half an inch and 
press 
it down once again with the rake handle.

I know exactly where the seedlings are expected, right on top the ridge.  I 
water it with a very small watering can with a very small rose so that the 
ridge top stays moist but the rest of the area dries out (if the weather 
permits). 
 Anything that appears for the first ten days is a weed and is removed.  
Anything that appears anywhere but the top of the ridges is a weed and is 
done in 
with a small heart hoe shaped for this purpose.  When the carrot seedlings 
are 
3" high or so, the valleys between the ridges are filled with compost or 
rotted manure, smothering out any emerging weeds.  Within a few days the 
carrot 
canopy is enough to block out most aspiring weeds.

This has worked in practice for me when just about everything else has failed 
miserably.  Of course the weak point is that it creates a ridge top that will 
dry out spelling the end of the seedlings or an interruption in germinating.  
It has to be watered religiously and in bright hot weather it has to be 
covered.

> 
> Check out this page, James...is this what you are talking about?
> 
> http://www.neseed.com/store/carrot.html
> 


Yes, exactly.  I got mine from Baker's Creek where a "packet" was defined as 
1000 seeds but was actually more like 5000 -  ungraded so they threw in 
extras.  I saved seeds from the white and purple but screwed up with the 
others so 
I've ordered more seed.  The white ones tasted the best IMO and were the 
biggest.

The best orange carrot I've grown has been Touchon, I know Nichols has them 
but I don't know who else.

I thought I had a picture of some of the purple carrots but I can't find 
them.  Looking for them I came across these photos from my attempts to do the 
type 
of greens we've been talking about:

Here is my version of growing kale.  Many people don't like to let it get 
this big (20" tall) but I like the strong taste and the stems, 'ribs' I 
should 
call them I suppose.

www.geocities.com/peaceablekingdomfarm/kale1.jpg


Here is Red Russian kale (I like the other name, Ragged Jack, better) growing 
beside some Mizuna with the stems of some carrots in the left corner.

www.geocities.com/peaceablekingdomfarm/sal2.jpg

Bronze Mingionet lettuce in front of the white carrots with fava beans at the 
side"

www.geocities.com/peaceablekingdomfarm/sal3.jpg

Tsa-tsoi with just transplanted kale to the left"

www.geocities.com/peaceablekingdomfarm/sal4.jpg

Garlic!  Most of this garlic is eaten as green garlic, leaves and all.

www.geocities.com/peaceablekingdomfarm/sal5.jpg