What has happened to my carrots!!

[DrRuthGalloway]

Growing some veg for the first time. Bought a raised canvas trug with two compartments. Used multipurpose compost. Put tomato seedlings grown from seed in one compartment and some carrot seedlings from the garden centre in the other.

The side with my carrots in has got covered in a tiny waxy scaly stuff...some sort of fungus? Weirdly it is barely affecting the tomatoes side. Both are in partial sun/shade through the day in a South facing garden and have both been watered the same (not much recently, given the wet weather).

Are my carrots doomed? Anyone know what this stuff is? Pictures attached, showing the carrots and then the difference between the carrots and the tomato seedlings.

no idea! some sort of fungus?

Taken an extreme close up and I think it might be a fungus called "cowpat gem"! Each little curled disc is only 2-3 mm across.

Anyone know if it will ruin the veg and how I deal with it?

Is it cheilymenia fimicola?

The difference in the plants could be driving different soil moisture levels even though the same amount of water is going in? E.g. the tomatoes being thirstier?

I think fungus is almost always about too much water, so let the soil top dry out between waterings.

That compost does look VERY wet. I suspect it's too wet.

I don't think it's that @TooMuchBoozeTooManyBoos as I don't see the little hairs round the discs.

Should I remove the top layer of soil with this fungus on?
The compost isn't wet to touch, but I take your point. I have barely watered as it rained all last week.

Maybe someone more knowledgeable might comment but I would not bother trying to remove it, in case I just spread the spores.

I'd let the soil dry out on top and stay dry. The fungus is likely to just die off. I'd let it do that.

If you need to water the soil, try to just trickle the water in where needed, wetting as little surfance area as possible. At least until the fungus is gone. The sun will help - if it ever comes back!

I can't find any references to Cheilymenia granulata (cow pat gem) or Cheilymenia fimicola being toxic.