The Organic
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Vegetables · Root

Growing carrot

Daucus carota subsp. sativus · also called GajarA cool season root crop sown straight into deep, loose soil. Red Asiatic types suit the plains and warm winters; orange European types suit the hills.

Central plateau: Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Vidarbha

Our team has checked this guide against the sources at the end of the page.Includes AI suggestions where no published guide covers a detail
A row of freshly pulled orange carrots with their feathery green tops, laid on dark soil
Photo: woodleywonderworks · CC BY 2.0

At a glance

Carrot in the Central plateau

  • Season

    Winter crop sown from September to November

    No published guide covers this for the Central plateau, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

  • Sowing to last picking

    Asiatic types are ready in about 90 days, European types in about 100 to 110 days.

    No published guide covers this for the Central plateau, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

  • Sow

    Late September to November

    No published guide covers this for the Central plateau, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

  • First harvest

    90 to 110 days after sowing

    No published guide covers this for the Central plateau, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Across India

When to sow it

Twelve growing regions, January to December. Your region comes first.

Sow now

The window here is Late September to November.

Sowing now in:Sub-tropical foothillsNorth-west plainsGangetic plainsNorth-east hills and valleysArid westDeccan plateauSouth interiorEast coast
  • Sow
  • Harvest
  • Today
Central plateauMadhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, VidarbhaArid westRajasthan, Kutch, north GujaratDeccan plateauinterior Maharashtra, Telangana, north Karnataka
Compare all 12 regions
Temperate HimalayaKashmir valley, Shimla, KulluCold desertLadakh, Lahaul and SpitiSub-tropical foothillsJammu, Kangra, DehradunNorth-west plainsPunjab, Haryana, DelhiGangetic plainseastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal plainsNorth-east hills and valleysAssam, Meghalaya, SikkimArid westRajasthan, Kutch, north GujaratDeccan plateauinterior Maharashtra, Telangana, north KarnatakaSouth interiorBengaluru, Mysuru, interior Tamil NaduWest coastKerala, Goa, KonkanEast coastcoastal Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, coastal Andhra
Today
See the dates as a table
RegionSowNurseryTransplantHarvest
Central plateauLate September to NovemberDecember to February
Temperate HimalayaMarch to JulyJuly to SeptemberApril to August
Cold desertLate April to early JuneAugust to early October
Sub-tropical foothillsSeptember to October (Pusa Kesar)November to December (Nantes, Pusa Yamdagini)August to September (Pusa Kesar)October to November (Nantes, Pusa Yamdagini)August to September
North-west plainsAugust to September (desi types)October to November (European types)
Gangetic plainsSeptember to NovemberDecember to February
North-east hills and valleysEarly October to November
Arid westSeptember to early NovemberDecember to February
Deccan plateauOctober to early DecemberJanuary to March
South interiorAll year (with assured water)July to FebruaryAugust
West coastAugust to OctoberNovember to January
East coastAugustOctober to early December

From seed to harvest

One season, day by day

Days from sowing

  1. Before sowing

    Well rotted farmyard manure or compostNo published guide covers this for the Central plateau, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

    20 to 25 t per hectare · Mix it well into a fine seed bed; fresh manure makes roots fork. · Field preparation

  2. Day 0

    Sow

  3. Day 7 to 21

    Seeds come up1,2,3,4,5Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

  4. Day 90 to 110

    First pickingNo published guide covers this for the Central plateau, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

  5. Day 90 to 110

    Last pickingNo published guide covers this for the Central plateau, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Water every 6 to 10 days, more at germination and root development.No published guide covers this for the Central plateau, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

What it needs

Soil, sun and warmth

  • Soil pH1,3,4,5

    6 to 7

    Deep, loose, well drained loam or sandy loam. Heavy soil, clods, stones and trash hold the root back and make it fork.

  • SunlightNo published guide covers this for the Central plateau, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

    At least 6 hours a day

    Full sun in an open bed. Roots stay thin and pale in shade.

  • Temperature1,3,4Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

    Grows best at 18.3 to 23.9 °C

    Takes light frost.

    Monthly temperatures for the Central plateau aren't in the library yet.

Water and feeding

WateringNo published guide covers this for the Central plateau, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Water lightly after sowing and keep the rows moist until the seed comes up. Then water every week or so; never let the bed dry hard and then flood it, which splits roots.

WeedingNo published guide covers this for the Central plateau, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Weed by hand in the first month while the crop is slow. Thin to 5 to 8 cm and earth up about 4 weeks after sowing.

WhenWhatHow muchHow
Field preparationWell rotted farmyard manure or compost20 to 25 t per hectareMix it well into a fine seed bed; fresh manure makes roots fork.

SourcesNo published guide covers this for the Central plateau, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Varieties and yield

Typical rangeNo published guide covers this for the Central plateau, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

200 to 300 quintals a hectare

Yields vary with the plot, the seed and the season.

Good neighboursNo published guide covers this for the Central plateau, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Grows well with

Pests and diseasesNo published guide covers this for the Central plateau, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Organic and cultural controls only.

  • Pest

    Aphids

    Signs

    Colonies of small soft insects on the young leaves and flower heads; leaves curl and turn yellow.

    What to do

    • Spray a strong jet of water or neem seed kernel extract 5% on the colonies.
    • Conserve ladybird beetles and hover flies.

    Prevention

    • Sow at the usual time; late sown crops suffer more.

  • Pest

    Cutworms

    Signs

    Seedlings cut off at soil level overnight.

    What to do

    • Search the soil around cut plants in the morning and destroy the grubs.

    Prevention

    • Plough deep in summer and keep the field free of weeds.

  • Pest

    Root knot nematode

    Signs

    Plants stay stunted and roots are forked, hairy and covered in small galls.

    What to do

    • Dig in neem cake or plenty of well rotted manure before sowing.

    Prevention

    • Rotate with cereals or marigold; avoid fields with a history of galls.

  • Disease

    Alternaria leaf blight

    Signs

    Brown spots on older leaves that later show dark rings; worse in seed crops.

    What to do

    • Collect seed only from a healthy crop.
    • Remove and burn badly spotted leaves.

    Prevention

    • Rotate crops and clear old carrot debris.

  • Disease

    Cercospora leaf spot

    Signs

    Small pale spots with a dark edge on leaves and leaf stalks.

    What to do

    • Remove affected leaves early.

    Prevention

    • Avoid overhead watering late in the day; give rows enough air.

  • Disease

    Powdery mildew

    Signs

    White powdery growth on the leaves in dry weather.

    What to do

    • Remove the worst affected leaves.

    Prevention

    • Keep plants well watered without wetting the leaves in the evening.

Seed and the season's end

Saving seed1,2Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

Asiatic types set seed in the plains and low hills; European types such as Nantes need a cold spell and set seed only in the temperate hills. Lift the roots, keep true to type, healthy roots and replant them at about 60 x 40 to 60 x 60 cm after cutting back two thirds of the tops and half the root. Keep the seed crop 800 to 1,000 m from other carrot varieties and carrot family crops, and pull out early bolters and off types.

When the seed is ready

Seed ripens unevenly, in April and May in Jammu. Cut the heads when the second umbels are fully ripe and the third umbels begin to turn brown, in two or three rounds.

Cleaning the seed

Dry the cut heads, then thresh and clean the seed.

Dry the cleaned seed well in shade and keep it in an airtight container in a cool, dry place.

After the last pickingNo published guide covers this for the Central plateau, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Lift all roots before the weather warms and they turn woody or bolt. Compost the tops and follow with a legume.

Compost the tops and any split or forked roots that are left.

Rotation

Do not follow carrot with carrot or with coriander or other carrot family crops for two to three years. Peas or beans make a good next crop.

Sources

Where this comes from

Our team has checked this guide against the sources at the end of the page.Reviewed by our team on 13 November 2026.

These published guides are the sources. Where none of them covers a detail for this region, the page shows an AI suggestion and labels it.

  1. 1Package of Practices for Vegetable Crops 2020 (Carrot; root crop pests and diseases)Directorate of Extension, SKUAST-JammuRead the source
  2. 2Package of Practices for Vegetable Crops 2016 (Carrot; carrot seed production)Directorate of Extension, SKUAST-JammuRead the source
  3. 4Production Technology of Vegetables and Flowers, VSF-231, Part I: Vegetable production (Carrot)Department of Vegetable Science and Floriculture, CSK Himachal Pradesh Krishi Vishvavidyalaya, PalampurRead the source
  4. 5TNAU Agritech Portal: Horticulture, CarrotTamil Nadu Agricultural UniversityRead the source

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