Have you wondered how to thin your carrots? Get the skinny here on thinning!

Do I have to?

Or, you may be asking yourself, do I have to thin carrots?

Yes, if you want big, beautiful carrots!

Some people may argue that they don’t bother with this step. Okay, I am not here to argue, each to their own, but if you do want to get the biggest harvest you can, read on!

Why? Because crowded carrots don’t grow into big carrots.

Here’s the thing. Carrot seeds are small, like really small. So when you plant them, you likely get too many in one place. Then, as they grow, they start to crowd each other out. Eventually, you will find that your carrots will start to wrap around each other and/or become stunted as they compete for the space and resources.

Thin when you plant

You may be thinking, well then don’t plant your carrots so close together! And you would be absolutely correct thinking that! But easier said than done! Like I mentioned, carrot seeds are small! There are different tricks and tips to improve the spacing of the seeds, and some may work for you. GrowFoodWell has a video on YouTube that uses a cornstarch gel. I haven’t tried it, but have read on Facebook groups of varying levels of success trying this method. Let me know in the comment section if you have tried it or found a good method to sow carrot seeds.

I personally like to use seed tape. It isn’t perfect either and it doesn’t mean that you don’t have to thin your carrots. But here you are, your carrots are planted and it’s time to thin.

What a waste!

I’m sure you are with me on this, you hate to thin your carrots because it seems to be a waste. Plant all of those beautiful carrots just to rip them out before they can produce?

I used to thin my carrots when they were small – like a matchstick (at the stage in the above photo), because it’s easy. The seedlings are easy to see and get at at that stage. But then it hit me…

Why not wait and let them grow into some baby carrots?

Thinning carrots is to prevent competition and give the carrots space to grow. But it doesn’t have to be done as soon as they sprout! Now, I wait and thin when they are large enough to provide a delicious taste of new carrots.

The trick is not to wait too long and have them crowd each other.

It’s Time!

Okay, so you have been carefully watching your garden and checked a carrot or two and decided it’s time to thin.

Wait! Don’t make this mistake!

What’s the biggest mistake people make when pulling their carrots?

Jumping in and starting to pull them and then ripping off the tops and leaving the carrot root behind!

Not good. Likely your ground is too hard or too dry.

There is an easy solution though!

Water!

Before you start pulling, you have to make it easy to remove the carrot. I like to wait until it has rained and the soil is nice and loose. Also, it helps to have good garden soil in the first place. A nice deep, loamy, or even sandy soil is great to grow carrots in.

If rain isn’t in the forecast or it doesn’t rain enough to soften the soil, you will need to water. Don’t saturate the ground though! Because muddy ground and carrots aren’t much fun to work with. But you want to add enough water that it will soak down and get to the bottom of the carrots. Wait a bit after watering to allow for the capillary action of the soil to pull the water deeper.

If you have a lot of clay or poor, packed soil, you might find that your carrots are stunted. Check out my post on soil and ways to improve it.

Ground Breaking!

Water wasn’t enough?

If, even after watering and letting it soak in, you find that the soil doesn’t like to soften up, or the tops are still pulling off, you can gently loosen it with a garden fork. Remember, you aren’t pulling up every carrot, so don’t go too gung-ho with your efforts and disturb the roots of the ones you want to keep.

Easy does it…

Just place the garden fork away from the carrots about 2-3″ (or right between the rows if you use the square foot gardening technique and carefully press down then pry gently to loosen the soil. You will see it move slightly.

Gently press the soil back down to prevent too much air getting at the fine roots of the carrots and drying them out if you do loosen the soil too much.

Just one

Try gently pulling one of the carrots you want to thin, and see how hard it is to remove. If it breaks off the top, pry on the soil a little bit more. You can dig that carrot out since it won’t grow anymore, or it will be stunted if some of the top remains.

Try using a hand weeder to pry it out without disturbing the other carrots.

Okay, Let’s Thin Your Carrots!

Once the ground is loose, you can start to thin your carrots. Leave about 1″ between them – imagine the final carrot’s diameter and allow space for it to grow into that. 1/2″ on both sides of the carrot should be good (1 ” total space). Pull any extra tiny, spindly ones that aren’t growing, as well.

Work your way through your patch until all carrots are nicely spaced. That’s it, easy as pie. Mmm, carrot pie… That’s a post for another day.

What to do With Your Thinned Carrots

Remember I said to wait until the carrots could be eaten? There’s no point in wasting such a tasty garden treat!

Cooking Carrots

One of the tastiest ways to cook new carrots is in a cream sauce. Check out my post here on how to make a 5 minute cream reduction recipe. And if you don’t want to use a sauce, just gently steam or boil them until tender crisp. Add some butter and fresh dill. Perfection.

And only one more thing to do: share this post with your friends and family!

Looking for more great recipes? Check out my Harvest Time Recipes here.