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Cover Crops and Carrots

August 23rd, 2010

Last Thursday I decided it was time to till under the patch of crimson clover I had growing as a cover crop on the new front garden area. I want to plant some winter rye here for an overwintering cover crop. It should help improve the quality of the soil in this area.

The problem was I had a small patch of carrots still left in a small part of this garden area that weren’t quite up to size. I decided I’d rather harvest them small and replant the entire area with a beneficial crop. The carrots were on the smaller size, but I was still impressed with my harvest and with the carrots.

I’ll be planted the winter rye next week most likely, as you’re supposed to allow the previous cover crop to decompose for two weeks before planting something else.

Do you ever harvest things early to get something else planted?

4 Comments to “Cover Crops and Carrots”
  1. Louise on August 23, 2010 at 2:21 pm

    Yes, I harvested carrots about 2 weeks ago to make room for a new planting of carrots as a fall crop. The carrots could have benefited from 2 more weeks in the soil. Like you, I rather have a new crop for the fall and small carrots than larger carrots and no fall crop. So I added kelp and bad guano to the soil and planted the seeds. Most have germinated and they should be the right size before the first frost.

    I did the same with summer squash. I pulled out the plants to make room for a bed of collard green as a fall and over-wintering crop.

    Reply to Louise's comment

  2. Miranda on August 23, 2010 at 2:52 pm

    Wow – it’s time for you to plant winter rye already? it’s 106 degrees here today! I’m lucky if anything eeks out life this time of year.

    Reply to Miranda's comment

  3. Corrie Carswell on August 23, 2010 at 3:49 pm

    Yup. Pulled out a summer squash to make room for broccoli. I still have three squash plants, and anyway, how much squash can one person eat!?

    Reply to Corrie Carswell's comment

  4. Marcia on August 26, 2010 at 1:07 am

    Yes, I pull my radishes to make room for Kale later in the season.

    Reply to Marcia's comment

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This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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