Can I fix my carrots?

[1984isnow]

Never grown veg before in my life.
I planted carrot seeds in a large pot a few weeks ago and they have started growing. But I obviously did it wrong as they are growing almost on top of each other. 😫

The other thing is I didn't fill the pot fully with soil, as I thought I would just replant them into the ground when they were big enough. I am starting most things off in pots and trays, as I am still preparing some planting areas, and I have cats so it's easy to protect it to begin with.

I didn't realise you shouldn't transplant carrots. I could try to lift the whole thing out of the pot and just fill the bottom of the pot if that makes sense, but I still don't know how to separate them out.

Should I just bin the lot and start again?

You can either, thin and eat the little ones as you go along, or you can transplant them when they're larger enough to handle.
The trouble with transplanting though is that it encourages carrot fly, which can destroy your crop.
It's possible to defeat the carrot fly by either, transplanting and erecting a screening around the carrots that's about 50-60 cm high- the fly only reaches heights of about 2ft. Or seeing as you've got them in pots anyway, just transplant them to other pots whilst they're high up on a table top, keep them at a good height and you shouldn't have any issues.
I grow carrots successfully every year but never in the ground, always in pots that are about hip height. Fingers crossed never had any problems.
I also use 60/40 mix of soil and sand too as they like a bit of sandy well draining soil.

but I still don't know how to separate them out. General separating out seedlings advice ... wait till they have proper leaves, not just the two initial "seed leaves". you then need to remove the container so you have a mass of soil and seedlings. If they're in a tray, insert a thin blade down the edges and lever out the soil. In a "plug plants" tray, try simultaneously holding on to the mass of vegetation and squeezing the base of the cell so the soil moves upwards. If in a pot, hold it upside down in one hand, then squeeze and tap the pot with the other till the soil slides out.

Now to separate the seedlings - start by holding the root mass, and gently shake and pull until it separates. Keep on going until you have a piece with only a few seedlings and not much soil. Then hold the individual seedlings by their proper leaves (not by the fragile stem) and continue to shake and gently pull until you've separated them. You've probably lost nearly all the soil round the roots by then, so pot them up straight away before you tackle the rest.

Once you've finished, even if the compost is moist, give the pots some water.

I'd read the replies but completely forgot to reply to this thread earlier!

angus ah, I thought it was something to do with them being too delicate for transplanting rather than pests. I can keep the pots on the table outside, would fleece help too? I am thinking of picking some up.

Would I need to keep them at that height until they are ready for harvesting?

I googled carrot fly, and it says that carrots planted in May can 'miss the first generation'. Luckily I have some more seeds left, so atleast a back up crop should be available!

Thanks for the advice mere. I have done the same with lettuce seeds too, and the seedlings are just on top of each other already. I haven't made the same mistake with the rest of the veg so hopefully only the carrots and veg will give me a headache and not the rest😊

Hi, fleece can be used as a barrier yes, and generally once you have have finished 'fiddling ' with them, leave them to settle for a couple of days then you can put them anywhere until you harvest them. Remember to pull with a firm grip from the bottom of the green stems.
Hope you get a nice crop