Timing of harvesting carrots in Siberia: when is the best time to harvest

In Russia, carrots are the second most popular vegetable after potatoes. And this is not surprising: bright orange roots are not only healthy, but also tasty. In addition, the vegetable is perfectly stored in winter and replenishes our diet with vitamins and minerals during the long winter months.

In order for the harvest of vitamin root crops to be stored for a long time and without losses, the carrots must be removed from the garden in time and stored. In the article we will tell you about when to harvest carrots in Siberia.

Optimal timing of harvesting in Siberia

Carrots are cold-resistant plants. Moreover, it is during a cold snap that an intensive outflow of nutrients from the tops to the fruits begins.

Need to know... In late August and early September, carrots are still actively growing. The increase in yield for this period is on average 40-45%.

Therefore, digging up carrots earlier than the due date leads to a shortage of crops and the production of small root crops. These vegetables wither quickly and do not store well.

The most favorable time for harvesting in Siberia is the middle and end of September. It is during this period that you can get the maximum yield, which will lie well in winter.

It also makes no sense to delay cleaning. When the temperature drops to + 4 ... + 5 ° C, the outflow of nutrients from the tops to the root crops stops and the vegetable stops growing.

Depending on the variety

In the matter of harvesting, it should be borne in mind that early, mid-season and late varieties keep pace at different times.

Early and mid-early varieties

The first to ripen is early carrots and planted before winter. This crop is eaten immediately, as for a long storage it won't do.

Early carrots ripen in 60-80 days. Harvesting starts in late June and early July. These are medium-sized vegetables, juicy and sweet - a valuable source of vitamins in early summer.

Attention! If you do not remove early carrots in time, then they will lose their taste and crack.

Podwinter carrots are also dug up no later than mid-July. The vacated beds are sown with green manure or other vegetables - for example, bush beans, cabbage lettuce, cauliflower, kohlrabi or broccoli.

Mid-season and late varieties

These varieties of culture ripen in 80-125 days. Medium ripening carrots are dug up in early September, late - in the second half of September and even in early October, if the weather permits.

These varieties it is distinguished by good keeping quality. If the storage conditions are observed, the root crops will lie until the new harvest is harvested without loss of taste.

Also, when determining the harvest time, the time of planting seeds is taken into account. After all, the weather in Siberian spring is different every year, and the sowing time can vary greatly.

Council. Save the seed bags and write the sowing date on them. This will make it easy for you to calculate the estimated harvest date.

Depending on the weather

A sunny day is chosen for harvesting. It is advisable that there was no rain a few days before. Then the carrots will dry out quickly and will be stored for a long time.

Lunar calendar

When determining the timing of cleaning, you can focus on the lunar calendar... But you should not blindly follow these recommendations - take into account your experience, weather conditions.

The moon affects the movement of fluid in plants. Therefore, it is better to harvest from the garden in a decreasing phase.At this time, the circulation of the juice is reduced, the growth is stopped, and the taste is maximally expressed.

The waxing moon awakens the movement of fluids and the growth processes resume. If you harvest at this point, the risk of spoilage increases.

Important! Garden work is not planned for the full moon, new moon and eclipse days.

Auspicious days for picking carrots in 2019 are: 8, 9, 16-21, 25, 26 September and 3-6, 15-19, 22-25 October.

Signs of ripeness

In addition to the ripening times indicated on the seed bags, the following signs of ripeness of carrots will help determine the harvest time:

1. The yellowing of the lower leaves of the tops is one of the obvious signs that it is time to dig up the roots.
2. The formation of thin filamentous roots on the roots themselves. If in doubt, it's time to harvest the carrots or not, pull out 2-3 copies and inspect. If you notice thin, threadlike roots, it's time.
3. Cracking of the fruits indicates not so much their ripeness, but rather that the harvest dates have already been missed. In this case, the crop must be harvested as soon as possible.

Digging carrots right

In areas with loose sandy soil, carrots are simply pulled out of the ground with their hands, pulling the tops. This is done carefully so as not to cut off the greens and break off the root crop.

On dense and heavy soils, root crops are first undermined with a pitchfork or a shovel, and then pulled by the tops. Do the same with large carrots on light soils.

If you are planning to harvest and it has not rained for 2-3 weeks, then water the beds a couple of days before digging. It is difficult to extract root crops from overdried soil without damaging them.

Carrots taken out of the ground are carefully cleaned from the ground, avoiding bumps, scratches and other mechanical damage. Microorganisms - causative agents of fungal diseases and rot - enter the root vegetables through the wounds.

Methods for removing tops

After the carrots are dug up, they immediately begin to remove the tops.

Attention! You cannot leave the tops uncut for a long time. The leaves evaporate moisture, which leads to the wilting of the roots.

There are several known ways to remove carrot greens:

• twisting the tops by hand - some gardeners believe that this method helps longer storage;
• topping with a sharp knife or scissors - the disadvantage of this method is that new tops will begin to grow from the left petioles in the spring, which will worsen the taste of the fruit;
• cutting the tops together with the top of the root crop - in this case, the tops are cut off with a sharp thin knife, capturing 2-3 mm from the top of the fruit.

Storage preparation

Immediately after digging up and removing the tops, the carrots are harvested under the canopy to dry. Root crops are not dried for long, 2-3 hours are enough.

After that, the roots are carefully examined and sorted before being stored. Copies with signs of damage and disease are placed in a separate box. They are eaten immediately or used for conservation.

Only perfectly healthy, strong carrots are selected for winter storage. Selected specimens are kept for a week in a dark, cool room with good ventilation, and then stored in cellar or basement.

Conclusion

In order for carrots to be stored for a long time and delight with taste, you need to remove them from the garden in time. Unripe root crops wither quickly and lie poorly in winter. It is also impossible to overexpose the carrots in the ground - the roots will crack and quickly deteriorate during storage.

Excavated specimens are not left in the beds for a long time. The tops are immediately cut off from them and removed to a cool place for cooling. After that, the carrots can be placed in storage.