Saving carrot seeds is a two year process. Like many other root crops including onions and beets, carrots are biennials. This means the first year they are planted, they do not seed. They will produce seed in their second year. In all but the coldest climates, carrots can be overwintered in the ground. If you live where it regularly freezes through the winter, cover the carrots with a thick layer of mulch or straw bales to protect them from freezing. Alternately, the carrots can be harvested in the fall and stored in a root cellar or other cool, humid location to be replanted the following spring. Some suggest storing carrots in bins layered with moist sand or sawdust through the winter. I kept mine in the ground.
The second spring, the carrots grow green tops again, but this time they have flowers. One carrot will produce 5-10 flower heads, and each flower produces hundreds of tiny carrot seeds. Here are some pictures of how the flowers develop:
Early spring when the garden is still young
In full bloom
They get tall and pretty when they’re blooming–This is about early July
Then the flowers die off and leave these little seed buds developing
Leave the seed heads on the plant until the seeds are dry. It took until mid-August for the first mature seeds to be ready. The seeds are burred, so they stick to clothes, pets, and anything else that passes by. I’m sure I’ll have carrots growing everywhere next spring, including the path between the garden and the house!
Seed dispersal in action!
Clip the seed heads from the plants and let them finish drying in a paper sack to contain the seeds.
The burrs on the seeds don’t affect their growing ability, but you can rub them off if you want prettier seeds.
Store them in a cool place to plant next spring! As a side note, if this is a “survival garden” and you start with a limited number of seeds, plant half the first year and save half to plant the second year so you can have carrots growing while the first year’s carrots are making seeds.
If you have carrots in your garden, try overwintering some and grow your own seed next year. Happy seed saving!
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