How About Carrots

[me&thegals]

Maybe I can jump in and answer those Corn-based products like Preen--actually, I think it is just pure corn gluten and organic--prevent other weeds from germinating. So, they need to be applied once the desirable plant is up out of the ground but before all the rest are, too.

The bleach/water solution kills any bacteria or other junk. I used this one year on my squash and had perfectly stored squash until spring--it's amazing! I guess I personally would then want to peel the carrots since the bleach water is allowed to dry on the surface. How cool to be eating carrots all winter!

 

[homesteadmom]

I was wondering if a vinegar solution would work as well as a bleach one. We do not use any bleach in our house just vinegar. In fact we buy no chemicals for cleaning at all.

I need sandy soil to grow carrots here as we have hard clay like soil here, so I grow mine in a raised bed. Haven't had a great crop of them yet but I keep trying.

 

[momofdrew]

Trymixing leaves in the fall to the soil..CArrots are supposed to love them...

 

[Tallman]

Maybe I can jump in and answer those Corn-based products like Preen--actually, I think it is just pure corn gluten and organic--prevent other weeds from germinating. So, they need to be applied once the desirable plant is up out of the ground but before all the rest are, too.

The bleach/water solution kills any bacteria or other junk. I used this one year on my squash and had perfectly stored squash until spring--it's amazing! I guess I personally would then want to peel the carrots since the bleach water is allowed to dry on the surface. How cool to be eating carrots all winter!

Do you get this corn-base (Preen) at the garden store?

 

[me&thegals]

Probably. I actually got it as a gift from my in-laws a couple years ago. Probably they got it at a farm-garden store or Wal-Mart. I haven't actually used it yet--just not the way I garden and so I keep forgetting , but I've heard it works great. I can see it being especially nice for something like carrots that easily dislodge in nice soft soil while weeding.

 

[VT Chicklit]

:tools I got my Preen at a local discount store but it can be purchased at Home Depot, Wal Mart and other chain stores. When you use the Preen you can use it as soon as you plant the veggie seeds in many caases because it blocks mostly weed varieties. My box has a list on the back. I plant the seeds and then sprinkle the Preen. As long as you do not disterb the soil, the weeds do not grow. This effect lasts for about 3 months. I use it with my root veggies where there is always alot of compition between the weeds and the plants as they emerge from the soil. I do this because I have a bad back and I HATE WEEDING!

 

[me&thegals]

:tools I got my Preen at a local discount store but it can be purchased at Home Depot, Wal Mart and other chain stores. When you use the Preen you can use it as soon as you plant the veggie seeds in many caases because it blocks mostly weed varieties. My box has a list on the back. I plant the seeds and then sprinkle the Preen. As long as you do not disterb the soil, the weeds do not grow. This effect lasts for about 3 months. I use it with my root veggies where there is always alot of compition between the weeds and the plants as they emerge from the soil. I do this because I have a bad back and I HATE WEEDING!

I'm sorry. It looks like I mispoke. I thought that Preen would block ALL germination... Could you tell me more, VT Chicklit, about how it blocks some, but not the desired plants?

 

[Tallman]

:tools I got my Preen at a local discount store but it can be purchased at Home Depot, Wal Mart and other chain stores. When you use the Preen you can use it as soon as you plant the veggie seeds in many caases because it blocks mostly weed varieties. My box has a list on the back. I plant the seeds and then sprinkle the Preen. As long as you do not disterb the soil, the weeds do not grow. This effect lasts for about 3 months. I use it with my root veggies where there is always alot of compition between the weeds and the plants as they emerge from the soil. I do this because I have a bad back and I HATE WEEDING!

I'm sorry. It looks like I mispoke. I thought that Preen would block ALL germination... Could you tell me more, VT Chicklit, about how it blocks some, but not the desired plants?

Is Preen considered organic? It doesn't sound like it. :/

 

[Reinbeau]

Maybe I can jump in and answer those Corn-based products like Preen--actually, I think it is just pure corn gluten and organic--prevent other weeds from germinating. So, they need to be applied once the desirable plant is up out of the ground but before all the rest are, too.

The bleach/water solution kills any bacteria or other junk. I used this one year on my squash and had perfectly stored squash until spring--it's amazing! I guess I personally would then want to peel the carrots since the bleach water is allowed to dry on the surface. How cool to be eating carrots all winter!

Preen traditionally did not contain corn gluten, its active ingredient is treflan [ trifluralin], not nice stuff in the garden, especially because the runoff into the local aquifer kills amphibians and other wetland creatures. They have come out with a 100% corn gluten product, but you have to be careful, you need to make sure it says 'vegetable' on the label! From another forum:

Preen is not always Corn Gluten

I got a 5# container of Preen Vegetable Garden Weed Preventer and it was 100% Corn Gluten Meal. The only precautionary statement was: "Possible allergic reaction to inhalation of dust in affected individuals" [Exempt from registration under federal pesticide act.]

Then today, I wanted to get a larger size bag to refill the container. I bought a bag of Preen which looked identical to the original container, but when I got home I found I had Preen Garden Weed Preventer and it was not Corn Gluten, but was 1.47% Trifluralin. The extensive precautionary statement included: Do not let product contact persons or pets. Causes moderate eye irritation. Avoid contact with eyes, skin or clothing. Keep away from food, feedstuffs, and domestic water supplies. This product is extremely toxic to fish and aquatic invertebrates. Do not expose dust to canals, lakes, streams, ponds, marshes, or estuaries.

Wow. What a difference. And the only difference in the name is one word, Vegetable.

You can support companies that don't pollute with chemicals, corn gluten is available from many other sources, including Espoma (my particular favorite). The list below is from the same source as the quote above:

For large quantities, you can get corn gluten meal for about $0.60 to $1 per pound from:

Espoma Corn Gluten Organic Weed Preventer - 25LB ($25)

Woodstream Concern Weed Prevention Plus - 25LB ($16)

SAFE N SIMPLE WEED CONTROL - 50LB ($32)

I'd support one of those suppliers.

Keep in mind corn gluten will prevent the emergence of your vegetable seeds, too! I'm not a big fan of weed prevention, if it isn't in the form of mulch. Then again, weeding is therapeutic for me. That's right, I like to weed. :watering

 

[momofdrew]

I like to weed too :tools It is my mental health therapy...