Need to make a payment? Please give us a call at 509-663-5161

Terms of Use  |  Privacy Policy

This photo shows tall, frilly carrot plants going to seed. 

Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.

A receipt was sent to your email.

This photo shows tall, frilly carrot plants going to seed. 

Early last autumn, I planted carrot seeds. The carrots sprouted and overwintered, then popped up in early spring. I let them grow and grow until tall, frilly plants formed. Then they flowered, with beautiful white umbrella-shaped flowers that called all the pollinators to my yard.

Big, medium, small, and tiny little buzzers swarmed to the carrot flowers. You could hear that hum — you know the one — that strikes a little dread in your heart from a deep-seated survival place. A warning of ancestral memories. Memories of stinging bees being disturbed and the urge to run. But I stand curiously looking, too much in awe to run.

I have never seen such a variety of pollinators all in one place, and I don't blame them. I can smell the sweet carrot-cake-like scent wafting through the air. The flowers are edible, as are the ferny leaves. And, of course, the well-known carrot root is utterly delicious candied or buttered, and in soups or stews.

The flowers stay for a long time and end up turning inward, concave and filled with seeds that have “legs” like tiny green bugs. It reminds me of a capacitor found on a circuit board, for some reason. The "legs" are called burrs, and they will cling to animals and people that brush up against them, dispersing them far and wide.

When planting for seed, it is important to make sure the carrot crop is a distance away from wild carrots or Queen Anne's Lace, as they can cross-pollinate each other, leaving less desirable genetics in the seeds.

It is a two-season process, but if one has never experienced growing your own carrot seeds, it is fervently recommended. I’ve found it to be a fragranced, almost surreal gardening adventure.

I still have to wait until late autumn to harvest and dry the seeds out. After processing the seeds, they will look like rye or caraway seeds. They are actually related in the umbellifer family. Celery and parsley are also in that category. Maybe that's why they all taste so good together.

Need to make a payment? Please give us a call at 509-663-5161

Please disable your ad blocker, whitelist our site, or purchase a subscription

Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.

Check your email for details.

Invalid password or account does not exist

Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.

An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the e-mail address listed on your account.

Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.

A receipt was sent to your email.