Carrot Trials

Forum Archives

 

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growsherown

Location: Olympic Peninsula

Posted: Sep-14-2004 at 7:48am

OK....I have done 2 test plots this year. Scarlett Nantes and the Bolero..both TSC varieties. After harvesting, I noticed the Nantes sustained hardly any damage from rust fly, while the Boleros were hit hard! Note: I did not use any rowcovers, or any other sort of protective/preventive methods, just let them to their own defenses, for the sake of the test.

Also, the Nantes are much sweeter, and have better color too! A smaller carrot, but worth growing in this climate for sure!

 

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trav

Location: Washington, Western

Posted: Sep-14-2004 at 8:23am

Cool! It's interesting how different carrot varieties vary in terms of their appeal to the rust fly mama.

I don't usually have any significant problems with this pest until wintertime - guess I'm blessed in that regard. But in mild winters (such as this upcoming one may be, statistically, thanks to El Nino) they have done quite a bit of damage to my crops.

When I've done similar trials, I found that Territorial's Mokum was unfortunately quite prone to rust damage. My fave carrot Artist seems to get hit less hard. I grew Fly-Away one year - the rust flies didn't touch them, but after tasting one I couldn't blame them! I didn't want to touch them either...

Travis

 

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growsherown

Location: Olympic Peninsula

Posted: Sep-14-2004 at 9:53am

LOL..I was wondering about that Fly away...lol...guess Ill stop wondering now! Do Mokum and Artist can well? Thats my particular reason for growing them...the Nantes variety canned up beautifully!

 

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John

Location: Puget Sound corridor

Posted: Dec-09-2004 at 12:16pm

I have had excellent success with TSC’s Mokum when planted in the spring.(mid April). Those planted in mid July have not yet been bugged. Their size is a little suspect but not their flavor. I would like to tell you how some of the spring planted carrots are doing but I was out of town late August through September and my wife harvested all of them.

Has anyone tried TSC’s Nelson?

 

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gary

Location: Washington, Puget Sound Corridor

Posted: Dec-11-2004 at 9:31am

I'll have to do some online research to update what I learned some years ago from some books but for now think about:

- Like cabbage root maggot, rust fly has 2+ generations per year.

- If you avoid the first generation by skipping spring sowings, you will not be plagued as much since you didn't have a host for the early hatch. - Each generation is smaller than the preceding so maybe if you just do a fall/winter sowing (Trav recommends July 1-15) you may avoid almost all damage. Frost sweetens many varieties. Eliot Coleman brags about children leading their parents to his grocery store displays of his boxes, "Mom, please buy some Candy Carrots."

- Sooner or later, you may want to skip the crop for a year or two to 'clear' your soil.

The first year I waited until a June, I was amazed at the difference from the year before. I now skip spring coles to also avoid the first brood of maggot flies.

I am sure that both hatch in the spring based upon soil/aver. air temps and their life cycle can be predicted by growing days just as I do with market corn harvests.

I have seen IPM research from CA/OR on cabbage maggot online which even has a calculator to tell you when to protect. I do some 'digging' to update my knowledge on the rust fly and the third pest that causes me more trouble than either above, the leaf minor and report back later.

Gary

 

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John

Location: Puget Sound corridor

Posted: Jan-16-2005 at 6:35pm

Harvested another bunch of carrots (Mokum) this afternoon. Size, so so, taste outstanding. A couple had some evidence of worm damage but was it easily cut out without destroying the visual effect of a whole carrot. The most interesting thing was an insect I brought in from the cold. About 3/8 inch at the head, bright green with the appearance of a Clovis spear point. The point being at the south end. Blended right in with the carrot tops. Haven’t a clue what its called. A quick trip using goolgle, I came up with Shield bug (England)and Stinkbug (Florida).

Unfortunately it washed into the drain, so if its harmless or beneficial, Opps

 

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gary

Location: Washington, Puget Sound Corridor

Posted: Jan-20-2005 at 12:15pm

I promised above to do some more research on carrots butI began having cooling fan troubles on my laptop so I had to keep shuting down. It got to only 20 minute sessions, was going to cost $200+ in labor to fix, so I moved on to a new desktop. Here is some of the stuff I found in those short sessions:

From the Johnny’s Seed Catalog:

Napoli: Maine winter harvest expert Eliot Coleman's ""candy carrots.""

A specialized variety with a sweet taste when sown in fall for winter harvest. In cold regions sow in the greenhouse. In mild regions sow outdoors in the open or protected with fabric row cover. Up to 7"" cylindrical, smooth, blunt roots with strong tops.

From Canadian source:

Carrot Rust Fly: LIFE HISTORY

There are two generations of the pest each year in most areas, but a third occurs in southwestern British Columbia and sometimes in southwestern Ontario. The pupae, which are about 5 mm long, overwinter at a depth of 5-1 5 cm in the soil of old carrot, parsnip and celery beds. Adults emerge about the end of April in British Columbia and about a month later in Ontario.

Their emergence usually coincides with the blooming of lilacs. Soon after they appear, the green, yellow-headed flies deposit eggs in cracks in the soil around the plants or on the stems just below the soil surface. A female may lay 100 eggs in 3 days. On hatching from the eggs 6-12 days later, the larvae enter the fine rootlets before tunneling into the main root and down to the tap root. In British Columbia, the second generation of flies appears in late July and in August, and the third generation in October and early November. In Ontario, the second generation appears from mid-August onward.

There has been a lot of recent research in WA (Rochester & Woodland) into using cover crop and other techniques to mask the rust fly attraction. There are definitely 3 cycles per year here. I report on many of these later. The fly is also attracted the rest of the family; celery, parsley, and others. May have to put them all under cover.

Gary

 

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bakingbarb

Location: Washington, Western

Posted: Jan-22-2005 at 10:58pm

I grew mokum in Mi and it was a very good carrot. I also grew one other for being able to stand the cold winters but forget it since we liked mokum so much. So if I use covers it would protect them from the bugs but I do not remember is there lighter cover for summer use?

~BakingBarb