Oh, and let’s not forget parsnips, rutabegas, radishes and onions if we’re going to discuss root vegetables. I’d add in salsify but I haven’t tried that yet. Potatoes and garlic aren’t started by seed so we’re going to ignore them for this post.
My beef is with seed-started root veggies. It’s usually not recommended to start them indoors and then transplant them. Well, except for onions. I always start them indoors and they transplant well. So we’ll ignore onions as well.
Beets, turnips and carrots in particular, give me a headache. Their germination always seems low assuming they germinate at all. And then, just to tease me, some years are phenomenal (like the year I harvested the carrots on the left).
Parsnips used to give me the same headache. And then I started germinating them before planting them. I put them in a tupperware container with a wet paper towel and seal it and stick it in a cabinet. I check on it once a week and when the majority of them have roots popping out of the seed coat I gently place them in a trench, root tip down and then gently cover them with a bit of soil. In about a week or two they start popping up. I find that this is a much better way to plant them even though it’s more labor intensive. It doesn’t waste as much seed either because you’re not having to thin the seeds. The trick though is to plant them before the root develops too much. The last thing you want is twisted forked roots.
So this year I’m germinating/starting carrots, beets, turnips, rutabegas and of course onions before setting them out.
I always start beets in seed trays, and transplant them once their first pair of leaves pop up. Never had a problem, they do great, and no wasted seed. I do direct sow carrots, but they can be cranky, especially if the soil temp isn't high enough. They'll come up in a week in warm soil, or take more than 3 weeks if it's too cool. Plastic row covers over our beds for a week or so before sowing to raise the soil temp usually helps to speed along germination. Keeping the soil moist is imperative. You will conquer carrots, parsnips and beets, I know you will! 🙂
I have heard that people start them in peat pellets or large soil blocks then transplant before the roots have had a chance to get past the starting medium. That way the root isn't disturbed during transplant.
Do you think that would work? I haven't tried it yet.
I'm trying to start all of those in soil blocks in the greenhouse for the first time this year. The carrots are just germinating right now, and I am planning on putting them out in the mini soil blocks before they grow to the bottom. I'll let you know how it goes.
Ah, the carrot and beet dilemma. I'm starting mine in flats and transplanting. I've heard that soaking beet seeds helps with germination. I'm just making sure that the soil is plenty moist. I've used soil blocks before and found that they restricted root growth. I, too, will conquer the root veggies!