How to weed carrots

It would seem that what is unusual and new can be told about weeding? It's simple - we pull out weeds so that cultivated plants can grow comfortably. But still, there are some subtleties and tricks, knowing which you can somewhat simplify the process. And in the case of carrots, this is especially important, especially at the initial stages, since carrot seeds germinate for a long time and weeds appear on the surface of the garden much earlier and grow faster than root crops. Accordingly, most of the nutrients are absorbed by weeds, which can affect the size and taste of the carrots. Therefore, later in the article we will talk about: how to weed carrots.

How to weed carrots: preparing the garden, as an element of weeding

A lot depends on how well you prepare the soil for your carrots. And we are talking not only about the application of fertilizers and the nutrient composition of the soil, but also about removing all the roots of weeds as much as possible when digging up the earth. And the weed seeds in this case, on the contrary, turn out to be quite deep. They either do not have enough strength to germinate to the surface, or they will be very weak and it will not be difficult to cope with them. So the autumn preparatory work in the garden is also part of the weeding.

In the spring, just before planting, dig up the soil again, removing any shoots and roots that you come across. Carrot seeds germinate for about three weeks, it is very important that during this time the garden is not filled with weeds, since the seedlings are very thin at first and you need to give them time to grow stronger.

How to weed carrots? Weeding and thinning in summer

Each time weeding the beds, it is imperative to loosen the soil, this prevents the formation of a crust on the surface and helps air and moisture to penetrate the soil better. After the carrots have sprouted, it will soon be time for another weeding. Be very careful not to damage the delicate and fragile carrot sprouts. After removing the weeds around the rows of carrots, gently and slowly pull out any weeds that grow in the same row with the crop. You may have to use tweezers, as strange as it sounds. Simultaneously with this weeding, you can thin out the carrots for the first time if they have risen too thickly. Carry out the next weeding after about 3 weeks, also combining it with thinning. Proceed in the same way - first treat the entire bed, and then walk through the rows of carrots, removing weeds and pulling out excess shoots (the distance between plants should be 4-5 cm). Do not forget to loosen the soil afterwards. With further weeding, it will be a little easier, since the roots grow and you do not have to worry that you will severely injure them by pulling out the weed in the neighborhood. And with regular weeding, the amount of weeds should be significantly reduced. From about the middle of summer, it is necessary not only to weed, but also to spud the carrots a little, this is necessary so that the roots do not turn green at the base. After weeding, sprinkle the aisles with wood ash, this will not only enrich the soil with nutrients, but also help protect the crop from one of the main pests - the carrot fly, which can spoil all the roots. As the tops of the carrots grow and completely shade the ground in the garden, the issue of weeding ceases to be so urgent - weeds practically do not grow without the sun.Now you just need to water, protect from harmful insects and wait for the time when it will be possible to harvest.

Weed control with kerosene

This method may seem dubious to someone, but it has been known for a long time and has proven itself to be very effective. After sowing carrots, but before the emergence of its shoots, at the moment when weeds appear in the garden, it is necessary to cultivate the soil. That is, by spraying, spray kerosene on the weeds, 100 ml of kerosene can be used per square meter. All weeds will wither and dry up, at the same time kerosene will scare off ants, which means that the risk of aphids, as well as a bear and some other harmful insects, will decrease.

Using herbicides for weeding

This method is quite controversial, although effective. Initially, we all do garden work, as we want to grow environmentally friendly products to our table, so we try not to use any chemicals. But since we are talking about weeding methods and there is such a method, then we cannot but mention it. The drugs that act on weeds are called herbicides. When using them, many factors must be taken into account: in what phase of development is the weed, the phase of development of carrots, the dosage of the drug and weather conditions. The preparation "Graminion" can be used to treat cereal weeds at the age of the second or third leaves. It is believed that this drug is completely safe for carrots. The drug "Command" will help to cope with dicotyledonous and cereal weeds, but it, like kerosene, can be used only before the appearance of carrot sprouts in the garden.

Which of the presented methods to choose is up to you, each of them has its own advantages and disadvantages. In any case, remove the weeds in a timely manner, because as our grandmothers used to say, “every weeding replaces five waterings”!