Beautiful Parisienne Carrots
I’ve mentioned before that one of the reasons I grow food in is because of all of the interesting varieties of vegetables that you can’t get at the store. When I saw these Parisienne Carrots from Baker Creek I just had to grow them. Carrots don’t do all that well here, our soil is heavy and compacted, lacking a lot of humus. Since these carrots grow fat and wide instead of long and deep, they do well in heavier soils.
I think these carrots weren’t very fond the hot dry weather we’ve been having since this particular variety started to die back. I dug the ones that had died back and left the rest to size up. I’m quite happy with these though, what beautiful little carrots. I haven’t tasted on yet (I should have yesterday), but I have yet to meet a carrot I don’t like. I also planted a few other varieties of carrot this spring: ‘Blance a Collet Vert’, ‘St Valery’, ‘Short n Sweet’, and ‘Oxheart’.
Sure, they’re small, but that’s normal in my gardens. In a few years after adding lots of manure I should be able to grow carrots and onions of reputable size. Until then I’ll be happy with these little rolly polly beauties. These will be wonderful with some tiny potatoes and pearl onions baked up with one of Mr Chiot’s venison roasts. A perfect homegrown meal!
Do you grow carrots in your gardens? Every tried round ones?
Filed under Edible | Comments (21)
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to Tweets that mention Growing Parisienne Carrots | Chiot’s Run — Topsy.com's comment
Last year I didn’t get a single carrot, but this year we’ve a few coming up – small yet, most of them, but growing! I’m pretty excited about them (I, too, haven’t met a carrot I didn’t like). I had terrible germination of the onions I planted – next year I’m thinking potato onions, as well as standard ones.
to Kelly's comment
We are growing the same carrot from Baker creek. Ours are still pretty small so it is nice to see what yours look like, now I have an Idea what to expect. A perfect snacking carrot.:)
to Mike's comment
I never have had luck growing carrots, but these look like the perfect carrots for my garden – I will give them a try next year!
to Susan's comment
Yes, I have about 256 carrots growing now. I am waiting for them to get a little bigger before harvesting. Last year I dried the carrot tops and added them to soup throughout the winter months. Never tried the Parisienne Carrots, they look delicious, enjoy!
to Louise's comment
I like your attitude!
“The most noteworthy thing about gardeners is that they are always optimistic, always enterprising, and never satisfied. They always look forward to doing something better than they have ever done before.” – Vita Sackville-West
to Amy's comment
I always grow carrots. Usually a nantes variety, never tried the round ones… yet. I have 5 raised beds that are dedicated to root veggies. The soil is a nice loam, and I add compost every year. The beds are 4ft by 6ft, so I never have to step in them, and they dont get compacted. I havent pulled any carrots yet.. (notice I said PULLED, I dont have to dig, because the raised beds are nice loose soil).. maybe this weekend, but last year my largest carrot was 12 inches long!
to Teresia's comment
oh these are adorable!! I didn’t know they came in a round variety :D
to melissa's comment
Where we lived when I was a kid, our soil wasn’t good for carrots, so we would grow them in half barrel planters. In grad school, I had a garden rental plot in Champaign, IL and was amazed when my carrots grew fantastically in the soil. Central IL has silty clay loam soil which seems to be just right for root crops. I might try those round carrots in the future- they sound good.
to Lisa's comment
I also planted St. Valery from Baker Creek. I planted the seeds in February and started harvesting at the end of May. They are nice with purplish tops.
to Jackie's comment
I’m growing Atomic Red carrots now. I’ve never tried round carrots. How do you peel and slice them? Oblong carrots seem easier to handle.
to MAYBELLINE's comment
I don’t peel them, just scrub and eat.
to Susy's comment
We’re about to pull up our first-ever carrot harvest – a whopping four fingerlings, but we’re still pretty proud!
to Morgan G's comment
Four is better than none! So far I’ve only been able to harvest 4 zucchini’s from my 6 plants, I know I’m the only person that can’t seem to grow a zucchini.
to Susy's comment
Ooo la la!! NICE!! I still need to look up your onions..
sigh..
to Beegirl's comment
I need to try those, because look at what keeps happening to my carrots!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/59064186@N00/4813667421/
to Renee's comment
I had WONDERFUL carrots last year. This year, none sprouted. I am sad. I have been looking for good seeds the last couple days because I freed up a bed that would be good to try for a late season harvest — my season runs long so I still have time.
I just finished blogging about something else orange in my garden though!
to Marlyn's comment
I grew thes little babies when I lived in an apartment so everything was grown in pots – perfect for an urban gardener.
Then I got an allotment which was also heavy clay and despite many attempts I couldn’t get any carrots to grow…but the peas were fantastic!
Now I live in France and have a veg patch with sandy soil so I have carrots galore…. but not much luck with peas! Every garden has it’s own character, best to adapt and go with the flow (and keep adding manure…)
to Joanne's comment
I grew those as well this year, but we had the same problem; much too hot, and I really didn’t plant anywhere near enough of these. I got only a handful out of the ground, which was a shame. My son was a fan however and next year I’ll make a bigger effort at growing a lot more of them.
to Rose's comment
Last year (my 1st year with a garden) my carrots didn’t do well at all! And it was because of my hard, clay-like soil. This year I built boxes and the carrots are doing great!! We are starting to get some harvest from them. I have Little Finger baby carrots and Scarlet Nantes. They are both a sweet flavored variety and very good.
I, also, enjoy the variability of planting my own garden. All the varieties are fun to experiment with.
to Lisa's comment
[…] fond of the heavy lean soil and thus they don’t get very large. As a result I generally grow the small round variety. In my mom’s garden however, she’s spent years amending the soil and it’s now a […]
to Simple Tips For Growing An Organic Garden | Garden Weekend's comment