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While researching different vegetable seeds, I came across this article:
The Wenatchee World Online - Harvesting monster carrots
Carrots that are 6 inches in diameter at the top? Does anyone here know if they are really this big on giant commercial farms? The article doesn't say length, but diameter and they describe it too.
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Harvesting monster carrots
Royal City-area farm conducts latest harvest in years
Harvesting monster carrots
By Dan Wheat
World staff writer
Posted December 08, 2008
ROYAL CITY — Light gray clouds hung thick and low, seemingly beckoning rain or snow.
But tractors, trucks and other machines stayed on the go in one of the latest carrot harvests of Heritage Farms of Royal City.
The dirt was firm but rain could turn it to mud, making it too difficult to work. Fortunately, the ground had thawed by mid-morning. If it hadn’t, digging machines would be harvesting clods of frozen dirt with the carrots — a no go.
“I can only recall digging into December one other time in the 28 years we’ve been doing this, so it’s definitely on the late side,” said Paul Bergeson, 55. He figured he was the last or among the last farmers in the area digging carrots.
Normally, the Bergesons are done by mid-November. But like most crops this year, carrots were late because of the cool spring. The Bergesons would have been done by Thanksgiving but they had planted an extra 40 acres of carrots to cash in on high prices.
These aren’t the carrots you find in grocery stores, but monster carrots that grow up to 6 inches and more in diameter. It’s the Red Core Chantenay variety which was developed to grow big for processing. The carrots are sliced and diced for soups, TV dinners, bags of frozen vegetables and crinkle cut for restaurants.
“Normally, carrots you see in the grocery store are about an inch to an inch-and-a-half at the top. Anything smaller than 2 inches isn’t payable for us,” Paul Bergeson said.
Processors get more product by dicing big carrots than small carrots, he said.
“A lot of people look at them and think they would be woody. They are surprised that they taste good,” he said.
Sometimes people glean carrots that are missed or are too small for the digger to pick up, he said.
The season starts with planting in late March or early April, as soon as irrigation water is available. It can be hectic. The Bergesons plant other crops at the same time.
The carrot planter is 23 feet wide and lays down three beds simultaneously. Each bed is 92 inches wide and consists of four rows of carrots.
During growing season, the right amount of water is critical and so is keeping blight and nematodes under control.
Normally, harvest starts the first week of October, but this year it was Oct. 16.
On Dec. 1, there was a strong sweet aroma of carrots as a truck and digger passed by. And gray clouds hung low.
The Wenatchee World Online - Harvesting monster carrots
Carrots that are 6 inches in diameter at the top? Does anyone here know if they are really this big on giant commercial farms? The article doesn't say length, but diameter and they describe it too.
-------------------------
Harvesting monster carrots
Royal City-area farm conducts latest harvest in years
Harvesting monster carrots
By Dan Wheat
World staff writer
Posted December 08, 2008
ROYAL CITY — Light gray clouds hung thick and low, seemingly beckoning rain or snow.
But tractors, trucks and other machines stayed on the go in one of the latest carrot harvests of Heritage Farms of Royal City.
The dirt was firm but rain could turn it to mud, making it too difficult to work. Fortunately, the ground had thawed by mid-morning. If it hadn’t, digging machines would be harvesting clods of frozen dirt with the carrots — a no go.
“I can only recall digging into December one other time in the 28 years we’ve been doing this, so it’s definitely on the late side,” said Paul Bergeson, 55. He figured he was the last or among the last farmers in the area digging carrots.
Normally, the Bergesons are done by mid-November. But like most crops this year, carrots were late because of the cool spring. The Bergesons would have been done by Thanksgiving but they had planted an extra 40 acres of carrots to cash in on high prices.
These aren’t the carrots you find in grocery stores, but monster carrots that grow up to 6 inches and more in diameter. It’s the Red Core Chantenay variety which was developed to grow big for processing. The carrots are sliced and diced for soups, TV dinners, bags of frozen vegetables and crinkle cut for restaurants.
“Normally, carrots you see in the grocery store are about an inch to an inch-and-a-half at the top. Anything smaller than 2 inches isn’t payable for us,” Paul Bergeson said.
Processors get more product by dicing big carrots than small carrots, he said.
“A lot of people look at them and think they would be woody. They are surprised that they taste good,” he said.
Sometimes people glean carrots that are missed or are too small for the digger to pick up, he said.
The season starts with planting in late March or early April, as soon as irrigation water is available. It can be hectic. The Bergesons plant other crops at the same time.
The carrot planter is 23 feet wide and lays down three beds simultaneously. Each bed is 92 inches wide and consists of four rows of carrots.
During growing season, the right amount of water is critical and so is keeping blight and nematodes under control.
Normally, harvest starts the first week of October, but this year it was Oct. 16.
On Dec. 1, there was a strong sweet aroma of carrots as a truck and digger passed by. And gray clouds hung low.
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