Carrot (Gajar)
Daucus carota
A cool-season root crop sown straight into the field, where almost the entire result is decided in the seedbed — a deep, loose, stone-free soil with no fresh manure gives straight, smooth roots, while clods, compaction, stones, root-knot nematodes or raw dung cause forking and hairiness — and where the sowing date has to land the roots in cool weather so they colour up and do not bolt.
Quick Summary
The key points from this page in about two minutes — read it or have it read aloud.
Quick Summary
Carrot (gajar) is a cool-season root vegetable grown mainly in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh, West Bengal and Bihar. Most of the plains crop is the Asiatic red type — Pusa Kesar, Pusa Rudhira and local red carrots — which tolerates warmth better and colours well without hard frost. The temperate orange Nantes types are grown mainly in the hills.
The single thing that decides a carrot crop is the seedbed. Carrot is direct-sown and its taproot must grow straight down through loose, fine, stone-free soil. Clods, a plough pan, buried stones, root-knot nematodes, or fresh (undecomposed) farmyard manure all make the root fork, twist and grow hairy — and a forked carrot is unsellable however good the yield figure looks. Fresh manure must go to the previous crop, never to the carrot itself.
The second key decision is the sowing date. Sow so the roots bulk and colour in cool weather: August–September to November in the northern plains, spring in the hills. Too early, and heat spoils colour and can trigger bolting (premature flowering); too late, and the roots do not size before it warms up again.
After that, carrot is fairly easy — keep the soil evenly moist so roots do not split, earth up the crown so the shoulders do not turn green, and watch for Alternaria leaf blight, which is the main disease. The roots are pulled at 90–110 days for Asiatic types.
- Crop type
- Cool-season annual root vegetable
- Season
- Plains: Aug–Nov sowing; hills: spring
- Suitable states
- Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh, West Bengal
- Growing duration
- 90–110 days (Asiatic red); 100–120 days (temperate)
- Water requirement
- Moderate and even — irregular moisture splits the roots
- Temperature
- Cool, 15–25°C for growth; roots colour best at 15–21°C
- Soil type
- Deep, loose, stone-free sandy loam to loam, pH 6.0–7.0
- Difficulty level
- Easy (root forking from poor seedbed, Alternaria leaf blight)
- Expected yield
- 25–35 t/ha (Asiatic red); 10–15 t/ha (temperate Nantes)
- Key risk
- Forked, hairy roots from clods, stones, compaction or fresh manure
Overview
Carrot, or gajar (Daucus carota), is a cool-season root vegetable. India grows two broad kinds: the Asiatic (tropical) red type — Pusa Kesar, Pusa Rudhira, Pusa Asita and many local red carrots — which is self-seeding, tolerates warmth, and colours without needing hard cold; and the temperate European orange type (Nantes and its kin), which needs cool weather to colour and is grown mainly in the hills. Most of the plains crop, and almost all of the winter market carrot, is the Asiatic red type.
Main growing states are Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Bihar, West Bengal, Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh. In the northern plains the crop is sown from August–September through October–November; in the hills it is a spring-to-summer crop.
Carrot is direct-sown and never transplanted, so the whole quality of the crop is built into the seedbed. A deep, loose, fine, stone-free soil with only well-rotted organic matter produces straight, smooth, well-coloured roots. Clods, compaction, stones, fresh manure and root-knot nematodes all cause forking, twisting and hairy roots that cannot be sold. Getting the sowing date right — so the roots bulk in cool weather and the plant does not bolt — is the other decision that matters most.
Crop timeline, sowing to harvest
A quick visual map of the season — jump to any section below for the detail behind each stage.
- Day 0
Sowing
Rubbed, cleaned seed sown thinly 1–1.5 cm deep in rows on a fine, deep, stone-free bed; northern plains August–November, hills spring.
- Day 8–15
Germination
Carrot germinates slowly and unevenly; the bed must be kept continuously moist, often with a light mulch, until seedlings are up.
- Day 20–30
Thinning & first weeding
Seedlings thinned to 5–8 cm apart and the first careful weeding done; crowded plants give thin, twisted roots.
- Day 40–60
Root growth
The taproot thickens and begins to store sugar and colour; steady soil moisture now prevents splitting, and earthing up keeps the crown covered.
- Day 70–90
Root filling & colouring
Roots reach full size and develop their deep red or orange colour in the cool weather; this is when a well-timed crop pays off.
- Day 90–120
Harvest
Asiatic red types are pulled at 90–110 days, temperate types at 100–120; the soil is watered a little before lifting so roots come out whole.
Suitable states
States where this crop is grown at scale, highlighted below. Your local Krishi Vigyan Kendra is still the final word for your specific block.
- Jammu and Kashmir
- Himachal Pradesh
- Punjab
- Uttarakhand
- Haryana
- Delhi
- Uttar Pradesh
- Rajasthan
- Bihar
- Jharkhand
- West Bengal
- Sikkim
- Assam
- Arunachal Pradesh
- Meghalaya
- Nagaland
- Manipur
- Mizoram
- Tripura
- Gujarat
- Madhya Pradesh
- Chhattisgarh
- Maharashtra
- Odisha
- Goa
- Telangana
- Andhra Pradesh
- Karnataka
- Kerala
- Tamil Nadu
- Puducherry
- Ladakh
- Chandigarh
- Lakshadweep
Grown here
Climate requirements
The whole crop calendar is built around landing the root-filling weeks in the cool part of the season — sow too early and heat spoils the colour and triggers bolting; sow too late and the roots never size up before it warms again.
Ideal temperature
A cool-season crop. Growth is best at 15–25°C, and the roots develop their deepest colour and sweetness at 15–21°C. The Asiatic red types tolerate warmer weather and still colour; temperate orange (Nantes) types need genuine cool weather and grow and colour poorly in the warm plains.
Rainfall
Grown on stored soil moisture and irrigation in the dry winter season. It does not want rain during root growth — a wet spell late in the crop causes root cracking, soft rot and a muddy, unmarketable lift.
Humidity
Moderate. Prolonged leaf wetness and high humidity favour Alternaria and Cercospora leaf blight, which can strip the tops and make machine or hand pulling difficult.
Sunlight
Full sun for good top growth and root sugar; carrot in the shade of a taller crop makes leaf and little root.
Soil requirements
Time spent deep-ploughing and breaking every clod and stone out of the top 30 cm before sowing does more for carrot quality and price than anything done to the growing crop later.
Suitable soil
Deep, loose, well-drained sandy loam to loam is essential. The soil must be worked deep and fine and be genuinely free of stones, clods and a plough pan, because the taproot has to push straight down through it. Heavy clay and shallow or stony soils give short, forked, misshapen roots.
pH range
Best at pH 6.0–7.0 (around 6.5). Strongly acid soil reduces yield; alkaline and saline soils give pale, poor-flavoured roots.
Drainage
Free-draining but moisture-retentive. Waterlogging causes root rot and splitting; a soil that dries out hard between irrigations causes cracking and toughness.
Organic matter
Wants soil rich in well-rotted organic matter, but the manure must be fully decomposed and applied to the previous crop or well before sowing. Fresh farmyard manure worked in just before carrot is the classic cause of forked, hairy, branched roots.
Land preparation
Same four steps whichever region you are in — only the timing shifts with the sowing window.
- 1
Deep, repeated tillage
Plough deep two or three times, then harrow and plank to a fine, even tilth; break the plough pan so the soil is loose to at least 30 cm. Pick out stones and unrotted clods by hand on smaller plots.
- 2
Only well-rotted manure, applied early
Incorporate 15–20 t/ha of fully decomposed farmyard manure or compost during an earlier ploughing, not just before sowing — fresh manure causes root forking.
- 3
Form beds or ridges
Make raised beds or ridges 15–20 cm high so the roots grow in loose, well-aerated soil and any excess irrigation or rain drains away from the crown.
Seed information
How the main varieties compare, so you can pick by duration, yield, disease pressure or what you are growing for.
| Variety | Duration | Yield | Disease resistance | Best state | Suitable for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
A widely grown IARI Asiatic red variety with long, self-red (skin and core) roots, a small green top, and reliable colour without hard cold — the standard commercial red carrot of the northern plains. | 90–110 days | 25–30 t/ha | No special resistance; standard leaf-blight watch | Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi | Fresh winter market, juice, halwa |
An improved IARI red Asiatic variety with long, smooth, self-red roots rich in lycopene, higher yield than Pusa Kesar and good uniformity; among the most planted plains carrots today. | ~90 days | 25–30 t/ha | No special resistance claimed | North Indian plains | Fresh market, juice, processing |
An IARI variety with deep purple-black roots high in anthocyanin, grown for kanji, juice and the natural-colour market rather than the table; roots are long and self-coloured. | 100–110 days | 20–25 t/ha | No special resistance claimed | North Indian plains | Kanji, juice, natural food colour |
A newer IARI heat-tolerant tropical carrot bred for early sowing — it can go in from July in the northern plains, extending the season ahead of the normal window, with red self-coloured roots. | ~85–90 days | 20–28 t/ha | Bred with better tolerance of warm, wet early-season conditions | North and central Indian plains | Early (July–August) sown crop for an early market |
An IARI red Asiatic variety with high carotene and good root length and uniformity, suited to the main plains winter crop. | 90–100 days | 25–30 t/ha | No special resistance claimed | North Indian plains | Fresh winter market, nutrition-focused sales |
Nantes / Early Nantes The classic temperate European type — cylindrical, blunt-tipped, bright orange, sweet, near-coreless roots. Needs cool weather to colour and does not bolt easily, but yields poorly in the warm plains and is grown mainly in the hills. | 100–120 days | 10–15 t/ha | No special resistance claimed | Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Nilgiris | Hill cultivation, premium orange table and salad market |
A CCS HAU (Hisar) red Asiatic variety selected for the hot, dry north-west, with good root colour and yield under the region's conditions. | 90–100 days | 25–28 t/ha | No special resistance claimed | Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan | North-west plains winter crop |
Local Desi Red Farm-saved red Asiatic landrace carrots grown across the plains — long, deep red, strongly flavoured roots that seed easily, valued for halwa and juice though less uniform than the released varieties. | 90–110 days | 20–28 t/ha | Variable | Grown across the northern plains | Halwa, juice, local markets, home seed-saving |
The classic temperate European type — cylindrical, blunt-tipped, bright orange, sweet, near-coreless roots. It needs cool weather to colour and does not bolt easily, but yields poorly in the warm plains and is grown mainly in the hills. | 100–120 days | 10–15 t/ha | No special resistance claimed | Himachal Pradesh | — |
- Seed rate
- 4–6 kg/ha. The rate is high because carrot germination is naturally slow and only about 60–70%, and because the seed spines are rubbed off before sowing, which loses some seed. On an acre, roughly 1.6–2.5 kg.
- Certified seed
- Buy fresh certified seed of a named variety each year from a state seed corporation, an ICAR institute or a reputed company. Carrot seed loses viability quickly — seed more than a year or two old germinates badly. Choose an Asiatic red type for the plains and a Nantes-type only for the hills.
- Spacing
- Rows 30–45 cm apart; after thinning, plants 5–8 cm apart in the row. Sow on the flat, on ridges, or on raised beds depending on drainage.
- Seed treatment
- Rub the seed between the hands or with fine sand to break off the spines so it flows and sows evenly. Treat with a fungicide such as thiram or captan against damping-off. Soaking overnight and then surface-drying speeds up the slow germination.
Sowing guide
Never let the seedbed dry out and crust between sowing and emergence — that single lapse is the most common reason for a thin, gappy carrot stand.
- Best time
- Northern plains: late August through October–November, so the roots fill in the cool weeks of November–January. Hills: March–June. Early heat-tolerant varieties like Pusa Vrishti can be sown from July.
- Row spacing
- 30–45 cm
- Plant spacing
- 5–8 cm after thinning
- Sowing depth
- 1–1.5 cm — carrot seed is small and must not be buried deep
- Method
- Sow thinly in shallow rows by hand or seed drill, cover lightly, firm the surface, and keep it continuously moist (a thin straw or leaf mulch helps) until the slow, uneven germination is complete. Thin to a stand at 20–30 days.
Fertilizer schedule
A split dose beats one large dose applied at sowing — nitrogen especially is lost to the air and to leaching if it all goes in on day one.
- 1
Basal (at sowing)
Day 0
Well-rotted FYM incorporated earlier, plus a basal dose of roughly 20–30 kg N, 40–50 kg P₂O₅ and 50–60 kg K₂O per hectare; potassium is important for root colour, sweetness and storage quality.
- 2
First top-dressing
30–35 days after sowing
About half the remaining nitrogen (roughly 25–30 kg N/ha) after thinning, worked in beside the rows as the roots start to thicken.
- 3
Second top-dressing
55–60 days after sowing
The last of the nitrogen during rapid root growth. Keep total N moderate — excess nitrogen grows leafy tops and forked, hairy roots rather than a clean single root.
Irrigation schedule
1. Sowing to germination
Day 0–15
Light, frequent irrigation to keep the surface continuously moist through the slow germination; never let it crust.
2. Vegetative growth
Day 15–50
Water every 7–10 days to keep the soil evenly moist as the tops and taproot develop.
3. Root bulking
Day 50–90
Keep moisture steady and even — this is when alternating dry and wet swings cause the roots to split and crack. Reduce water in the last week before harvest so the roots lift cleanly and store better.
Critical stages
- Germination and stand establishment
- Root bulking
Water-saving tips
- Even, moderate moisture matters far more than total water — a mulch of straw or crop residue steadies soil moisture, prevents crusting at germination, and cuts irrigation frequency.
- Drip or well-levelled furrow irrigation avoids the wet–dry swings that split roots; a heavy irrigation after a dry spell is the classic cause of a cracked crop.
- Stop watering about a week before harvest — a soil that is not saturated at lifting gives cleaner, firmer, longer-keeping roots.
Weed management
Common weeds
Organic control
- Two careful hand-weedings, at thinning (20–25 days) and again at about 45 days, get the crop through its weak early period; after that the canopy closes and shades most weeds.
- A false-seedbed — irrigating 10–12 days before sowing to flush a weed germination, then shallow-hoeing it off — greatly reduces the weed load in the actual crop.
- Straw mulch between the rows suppresses weeds and keeps the soil moist for the slow-germinating seed.
Chemical control
- Carrot is a slow starter and very weak against early weeds; a pre-emergence herbicide cleared for carrot (such as pendimethalin) applied right after sowing, followed by one hand-weeding, is the usual practice on larger areas.
- Confirm the product and dose with your local KVK — carrot is a short-duration root eaten whole, so residue and pre-harvest interval matter.
Nutrient deficiency identification
What a shortage of each nutrient actually looks like on the plant, so you can tell a deficiency apart from a disease before you spray the wrong thing.
Potassium
Visible symptom
Scorched leaf margins, and pale, poorly coloured, low-sugar roots that store badly — worst on light, sandy soils.
Boron
Visible symptom
Corky brown patches or splits on and inside the root ("cavity spot"-like lesions), a cracked core, and dieback of the growing point on alkaline or leached sandy soils.
Nitrogen
Visible symptom
Pale, stunted tops and thin roots — though the more common problem in carrot is too much nitrogen, which grows big leafy tops and forked, hairy roots.
Diseases to watch for
Symptoms, likely cause and what actually treats it — not just a spray name.
Alternaria leaf blight
- Symptoms
- Dark brown to black spots with yellow halos on the leaflets, starting on the older outer leaves; spots merge, the leaf margins scorch, and in a bad attack the whole top dies down, making the roots hard to pull.
- Cause
- The fungus Alternaria dauci, seed-borne and residue-borne, favoured by warm temperatures with dew or light rain and dense canopies.
- Treatment
- A protective mancozeb, chlorothalonil or copper spray from the first spots, repeated at 10–12 day intervals in favourable weather, observing the pre-harvest interval.
- Prevention
- Sow treated, disease-free seed; rotate away from carrot and other umbellifers for 2–3 years; avoid overhead irrigation late in the day; and choose a tolerant variety where available.
Cercospora leaf spot
- Symptoms
- Small, round, grey-brown spots with a dark border on younger leaves and leaf stalks, causing a similar blighting and top die-back to Alternaria, often alongside it.
- Cause
- Cercospora carotae, seed- and residue-borne, favoured by warm, humid weather early in the crop.
- Treatment
- The same protective fungicide programme used for Alternaria controls both; start early, as young leaves are attacked first.
- Prevention
- Clean seed, crop rotation, residue destruction, and adequate spacing for airflow.
Sclerotinia rot (white mould)
- Symptoms
- A soft, watery rot of the crown and root with a fluffy white mould and later hard black bodies (sclerotia); shows up in the field in cool, wet weather and continues in storage and transit.
- Cause
- Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, a soil fungus that survives for years as sclerotia and attacks a wide range of vegetables.
- Treatment
- Remove and destroy rotted plants; a soil or foliar fungicide at the recommended stage helps where the disease has a history.
- Prevention
- Long rotation away from susceptible crops (beans, brassicas, sunflower), good drainage, wider spacing, and cool, dry, well-ventilated storage.
Bacterial soft rot
- Symptoms
- A wet, slimy, foul-smelling breakdown of the root, usually starting from a bruise, crack, insect hole or the cut top; spreads rapidly in warm, moist stacks after harvest.
- Cause
- Pectobacterium (Erwinia) bacteria entering through wounds, worst on roots lifted wet or damaged during pulling and washing.
- Treatment
- No cure once a root is rotting; sort out and discard all soft roots immediately so the rot does not spread through the lot.
- Prevention
- Lift into drier soil, handle gently to avoid bruising, do not over-wash, cool the roots quickly and keep them dry and ventilated in storage.
Pests to watch for
What to look for before the damage is visible, and organic options before you reach for a chemical.
Root-knot nematode
- Identification
- Small galls and knots along the root, forked and stubby roots, and hairy side-roots; tops look pale and stunted in patches across the field.
- Damage
- The most damaging soil pest of carrot — galled, forked, knobbly roots are unsellable, and even a moderate infestation drops the marketable yield sharply.
- Organic control
- Long rotation with non-host cereals and marigold, deep summer ploughing to expose eggs, adding well-rotted organic matter and Paecilomyces or Trichoderma bio-agents, and never following a known nematode-infested vegetable crop with carrot.
- Chemical control
- A recommended soil nematicide or a fumigant before sowing where nematode counts are high and rotation alone is not enough; follow the label strictly.
Aphids
- Identification
- Colonies of small green or grey soft-bodied insects on the youngest leaves and in the crown, with sticky honeydew.
- Damage
- Sap loss curls and stunts the tops and slows root growth; in some regions aphids also carry carrot virus diseases.
- Organic control
- Neem sprays, strong water jets, and conserving ladybird beetles and lacewings by not spraying broad-spectrum insecticides routinely.
- Chemical control
- A recommended systemic or contact insecticide only when colonies are heavy and spreading, observing the pre-harvest interval.
Cutworms
- Identification
- Fat, greyish caterpillars that hide in the soil by day and cut through young seedlings at the base at night, leaving felled plants and gaps in the row.
- Damage
- Thins the stand at the seedling stage, sometimes badly enough to need re-sowing patches.
- Organic control
- Flood irrigation to bring larvae to the surface for birds, hand-collecting at night, and poison-bait bran where they are numerous; keep the field free of weeds and residue before sowing.
- Chemical control
- A soil-directed recommended insecticide or bait at the base of the rows if seedling losses cross a damaging level.
Field rats and rodents
- Identification
- Roots gnawed in the ground, especially near field bunds and channels, with burrow holes and runways along the edges of the plot.
- Damage
- Direct loss of roots close to harvest, when they are large and sweet; damage concentrates along field margins.
- Organic control
- Keep bunds and channels clear of cover, encourage owls and other predators, and use community rodent-control drives before the roots mature.
- Chemical control
- Approved rodenticide baiting in burrows along the field edges, following safe-use rules.
Common mistakes to avoid
The mistakes that cost growers the most, ranked by how often they show up in the field — not in the order you might expect.
- 1
Working fresh farmyard manure into the field just before sowing.
Why it hurts
Undecomposed manure is the classic cause of forked, branched, hairy roots — carrot manure must be fully rotted and applied to the previous crop or well ahead of sowing.
- 2
Sowing into a cloddy, stony or compacted seedbed.
Why it hurts
The taproot deflects around every clod, stone and hard layer, coming out forked and misshapen; a forked carrot is unsellable no matter how heavy the crop weighs.
- 3
Sowing too early or too late.
Why it hurts
Too early, and heat spoils the colour and can trigger bolting (the plant flowers instead of forming a root); too late, and the roots do not size up before the weather warms again. The sowing date must land root-filling in the cool weeks.
- 4
Letting the soil swing between wet and dry during root bulking.
Why it hurts
A heavy irrigation after a dry spell makes the roots take up water fast and split lengthwise; steady, even moisture is what keeps roots whole and smooth.
- 5
Not earthing up the crown.
Why it hurts
The top of an exposed root turns green and bitter in the sun ("green shoulder") and is downgraded; a light earthing-up during weeding keeps the shoulders covered.
- 6
Growing a temperate Nantes variety in the warm plains.
Why it hurts
European orange types need real cool weather to colour and grow; in the plains they stay pale, small and low-yielding. The plains need an Asiatic red type like Pusa Rudhira or Pusa Kesar.
Harvesting
Pull Asiatic red types at 90–110 days and temperate types at 100–120, when the roots have reached full size and colour but before they turn woody or start to crack. Lift a few test roots first. Water the bed lightly a day before so the roots come out whole rather than snapping.
Signs it is ready
- Root shoulders at full expected diameter for the variety
- Deep, even root colour when a test root is cut
- Lower leaves beginning to yellow
- Roots still crisp and sweet, not fibrous or cracking
Tools
- A spading fork or country plough to loosen the row before pulling
- Hand-pulling by the tops on light soil after a light watering
- Knives for topping (cutting the leaves off close to the crown)
- Baskets or crates and shade for holding lifted roots
Expected yield
Roughly 25–35 t/ha for Asiatic red types (Pusa Rudhira and Pusa Kesar around 25–30 t/ha) and 10–15 t/ha for temperate Nantes types in the hills. On an acre this is about 100–140 quintals for a good plains crop.
Post-harvest & storage
Storage
Top the roots close to the crown, sort out forked, cracked, green-shouldered and damaged ones, and do not wash roots that will be held more than a day. Carrots keep best near 0–4°C at very high humidity; in the plains without cold storage, a cool, shaded, sand-covered pit or a ventilated shed holds them for 1–2 weeks.
Packaging
Pack topped, graded roots in ventilated crates or mesh sacks; avoid tight bags that trap heat and moisture and start soft rot.
Transportation
Move in the cool of the day, protected from sun. Roots bruised or crushed in transit rot quickly, so pack firmly but not over-full and keep loads ventilated.
Shelf life
1–2 weeks at ambient in the plains; 2–4 months at 0–4°C and 95% humidity. Washed carrots spoil much faster than field-run roots kept dry.
Market prices
Today's mandi price near you, pulled live from the government's own Agmarknet data.
Live daily mandi prices from the government Agmarknet dataset.
Synced from data.gov.in (Agmarknet). Rates are ₹ per quintal.
Weather
Current conditions and a 5-day outlook for your selected location, with one line of stage-aware advice.
Pick your state for current conditions and a 5-day outlook.
Live data from Open-Meteo
Profit calculator
Your own cost sheet, expected yield and selling price — not ours.
Where the money goes
Share of the total cost per acre, using the calculator’s own default cost sheet below — adjust the numbers there to match your field and this picture will no longer apply to you exactly, but the ranking rarely changes.
- Labour34% (₹14,000)
- Land rent22% (₹9,000)
- Fertiliser10% (₹4,000)
- Irrigation9% (₹3,500)
- Seed7% (₹3,000)
- Machinery7% (₹3,000)
- Pesticide & weedicide6% (₹2,500)
- Interest4% (₹1,800)
Official downloads
Government and ICAR documents only — everything below is hosted on an official server.
Frequently asked questions
Why do my carrots come out forked and hairy?
Almost always the seedbed. Clods, buried stones, a compacted plough pan, root-knot nematodes, or fresh (undecomposed) farmyard manure all make the taproot split and grow side-roots. Deep-plough and break the soil fine and stone-free, use only well-rotted manure applied to the previous crop, and keep nitrogen moderate.
Which carrot type should I grow?
In the plains, an Asiatic red type — Pusa Rudhira, Pusa Kesar, Pusa Nayanjyoti, Hisar Gairic — which tolerates warmth and colours without hard frost. Grow the temperate orange Nantes types only in the hills, where the cool weather they need is available. Pusa Asita (black carrot) is a special crop for kanji and juice.
When should carrot be sown?
In the northern plains, from late August through October–November, so the roots fill in the cool weeks of November–January. In the hills, spring (March–June). Heat-tolerant Pusa Vrishti can be sown as early as July for an early market. Sowing outside these windows risks poor colour, bolting or undersized roots.
Why did my carrots split lengthwise?
Uneven soil moisture during root bulking — a heavy irrigation or rain after a dry spell makes the root take up water quickly and crack. Keep the soil evenly moist during the last month, use a mulch to steady moisture, and cut irrigation about a week before harvest.
Does carrot have an MSP or a mandi price?
There is no MSP for carrot. It is widely traded on Agmarknet as "Carrot", with daily records from APMC markets across the northern plains, Karnataka and elsewhere. Price is strongly seasonal — best for the early and late crop, lowest at the mid-winter peak.
Can I save my own carrot seed?
Yes, for the Asiatic red and local desi types, which flower and set seed readily in the plains if a few good roots are left to overwinter and bolt. Temperate Nantes types need a cold period to flower and rarely seed in the plains. Saved seed loses viability fast, so use it within a year.
Still have questions?
The FAQs above cover the common ones. For anything specific to your field and soil, your nearest Krishi Vigyan Kendra is the authoritative answer.