Fuerte Hybrid Carrot Seeds

Days to Maturity: 65 from direct sow

Fuerte Hybrid is out to make this season's carrot crop your best ever. A Nantes type with blunt-tipped, straight orange roots, it's ideal for canning or freezing because the fruit is so uniformly sized. But most of all, it's delicious fresh from the warm earth, with a crisp bite and satisfying sweet flavor.

Renowned for its strong top growth, Fuerte reaches up to 2 feet above ground, and 6 to 9 inches below. Harvest these carrots when the shoulders, poking out of the soil, are anywhere from 1½ to 2½ inches in diameter. They will be straight as soldiers, easy to cut into rounds because they don't taper, and simply delicious.

Higher in vitamins A and B than their store-bought counterparts, homegrown carrots are also rich in calcium and phosphorus. Nature's perfect snack, they hold well after harvest, and can remain in the ground a few extra weeks in cool weather.

Carrot seeds are best sown directly into the soil as soon as it is workable in spring. Continue to sow seeds every 2 weeks or so until mid-spring in warm climates, or right into midsummer in cooler areas. In warm climates, resume sowing in late summer and early fall for crops that can go into winter.

Heavy soils are a problem for root development, so prepare the soil thoroughly before planting or, if you are in a clay soil area, consider growing in raised beds or even containers. Carrots also need moisture to keep from splitting. With these needs met, they are virtually trouble free

Sow the seeds thickly in straight rows and when the seedlings reach a few inches high, thin them to 3 inches apart. (The thinning's are excellent in soups, by the way) Plan on big yields every time from Fuerte.