The Ultimate Guide To Growing Carrots Indoors

If you’ve recently been thinking about giving indoor gardening a try, carrots are a perfect candidate. They’re low-maintenance and fast-growing, and your efforts will get rewarded with a delicious carrot harvest in as little as two months. Keep reading to learn all you need to know about growing carrots indoors.

Growing carrots indoors in containers can be even easier than growing them in an outdoor vegetable garden. By planting them in a more controlled environment, you’re able to reduce the risk of pest and disease problems and give your plants the proper amounts of water and nutrients. Also, you won’t have to worry about weather conditions changing rapidly and negatively affecting your homegrown carrots.

Homegrown produce is better for your health as well as the environment. You can’t get much more local than your kitchen windowsill, so why not try growing your groceries right at home? All you’ll need to grow carrots indoors is a large container with drainage holes, nutrient-rich potting soil that drains well, and a sunny location.

Can You Grow Carrots Indoors?

Many gardeners have asked, “Can you grow carrots indoors?” The answer is yes. Carrots are wonderfully versatile plants and grow well in many different conditions.
Carrots grow best in full sun where they’ll get six to eight hours of bright light throughout the day. However, they can also tolerate low-light conditions but will grow slower. However, excessive light often causes the plants to produce oversized leafy tops and undersized roots.
If you don’t happen to have a sunny windowsill available, consider investing in grow lights for your indoor garden. Bright LED shop lights also work well for growing plants. Low-wattage grow lights should sit about 6-12 inches above the plants, and high-wattage lights at 12-24 inches.
Since carrots are cool-season vegetables, their optimal growing temperature is 60-70℉. It’s easy to grow carrots in containers year-round. Calculate your planting times to have a continuous supply. Depending on the variety, carrots are usually ready to harvest in 60-80 days.

Choosing the Right Container

Carrot plants will only grow as large as their environment allows. Choose which carrot varieties to grow based on your available growing space and the size of your container. Check the carrots’ expected length on the seed packet.

Use a pot that’s a minimum of 12 inches deep and four inches wide. Plan for approximately two square inches per carrot. The larger your container, the more carrots you’ll be able to grow.

Long, deep window boxes work perfectly for growing carrots indoors. Any container will do as long as it’s deep enough and has drain holes at the bottom.

How to Grow Carrots Indoors from Seeds

Like most other root crops, carrot seedlings don’t transplant well. As such, it’s best to direct-sow the seeds in your container. Since carrot seeds are so tiny, don’t worry much about the spacing at first. Use the carrot seedlings you thin out as microgreens or compost them.
Fill your container with nutrient-rich potting soil to a half-inch below the rim. It’s helpful to pre-saturate the soil so you don’t disturb the seeds after planting. Scatter your carrot seeds over the soil surface, then lightly top them with a quarter-inch of soil. Germination usually takes 14-21 days.
In outdoor gardens, growers frequently plant fast-growing radishes alongside carrot seeds to mark their place. Radishes are also excellent companion plants for carrots in container gardens.
After the seedlings sprout, move them to a south-facing window that gets at least six hours of direct light throughout the day. Or, set them under a grow light. When the carrot seedlings are four inches tall, thin out the smaller ones so the spacing between plants is two to three inches.

Best Varieties of Carrots to Grow Indoors

One of the best aspects of growing your own veggies is trying unusual varieties that aren’t available at the supermarket. Although orange carrots might be more common, they also grow yellow, red, purple, and white.
All carrots are highly nutritious. However, the different colors of carrots offer distinctive health benefits. Orange carrots are highest in the essential antioxidant beta-carotene, which promotes skin, eye, and immune health. Purple carrots have anthocyanins, which are antioxidants that enhance heart health, reduce inflammation, and facilitate weight loss. Yellow carrots contain lutein, an antioxidant that’s particularly beneficial for eye health. White carrots offer the most plant-based protein.

Here are a few of the best kinds of carrots for growing in containers.

Top Carrot Varieties

• Chantenay Red Cored (heirloom, 5-6” long, sweet flavor, orange with a red core, 70 days to harvest)
• Danvers (heirloom, 7-8” long, resistant to splitting, orange, 75 days to harvest)
• Deep Purple (hybrid, 7-8” long, sweet flavor, purple, 75-80 days to harvest)
• Lunar White (heirloom, 6-8” long, mild flavor, white, 75 days to harvest)
• Little Finger (heirloom, 3-4” long, great for eating fresh or pickling/canning, orange, 65 days to harvest)
• Purple Dragon (heirloom, 4-8” long, mildly spicy flavor, purple with a yellow core, 65-70 days to harvest)
• Scarlet Nantes (heirloom, 6-8” long, stores well, reddish-orange, 65-75 days to harvest)
• Solar Yellow (heirloom, 6-7” long, sweet flavor, yellow, 65-75 days to maturity)

Best Soil and Fertilizer for Growing Carrots Indoors

One of the greatest advantages of growing carrots indoors is that they won’t grow stunted or misshapen by obstructions like rocks or tree roots. Use a high-quality soil blend that drains well and is rich in organic matter.
Along with providing nutrient-rich soil, it’s also beneficial to fertilize regularly. There are three primary macronutrients present in plant fertilizer: nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K). Nitrogen stimulates leafy growth, phosphorus encourages healthy root systems, and potassium promotes fruiting and flowering.
If carrot plants get too much nitrogen, they produce stunted roots and oversized leafy carrot tops. All-purpose or houseplant fertilizers generally have equal amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, which isn’t ideal for root veggies. Instead, mix organic compost or low-nitrogen fertilizer into the soil when you plant carrots. Since carrots aren’t particularly heavy feeders, that’s usually sufficient.
Keep your carrots well-watered, but don’t allow the soil to stay waterlogged. To check the soil moisture, insert a fingertip up to your first knuckle. If some soil sticks, let the soil dry out for another day or two. If the top few inches are completely dry, it’s time to water again.

Harvesting Container-Grown Carrots

Carrots are ready for harvesting when their shoulders start protruding above the soil. Mature carrots typically measure a half-inch to an inch in diameter. If you’d prefer baby carrots, pick them about seven to ten days before the harvest time listed on the seed packet.

Another benefit of growing carrots indoors in containers is that harvesting them is easier. Grip the carrot tops just above the root and gently tug until the carrot comes up. If necessary, loosen the soil with a small trowel, taking care not to slice the roots.

Leafy carrot tops are also edible, although they often get overlooked. They’re rich sources of vitamin C, calcium, and potassium. If you’d like to learn more about the health benefits of eating carrot greens, check out this article from Organic Facts.

The flavor of carrot greens is similar to parsley. Use them to make pesto, eat them in fresh salads, or add them to soups, stews, and other recipes for an additional savory essence. Pick carrot greens as needed while your carrots grow by snipping a few of the outermost leaves with clean, sharp scissors. 

Have you ever asked, “Can you grow carrots indoors?” The answer is, absolutely! Growing carrots indoors in containers allows you to enjoy fresh carrots any time of the year. Carrots are perfect for your indoor garden because they’re fast-growing and low-maintenance. All you’ll need is a deep container, rich potting soil, and a bit of water and sunshine.

Do you have any questions or suggestions about growing carrots indoors? Please share them in the comments! If you found these indoor gardening tips useful, please share this article about how to grow carrots indoors with your green-thumbed friends and family.