With the onset of spring, gardeners and summer residents again face a choice: what types and varieties of vegetables to plant on their site. One of the main vegetables growing in all gardens is carrots. This article will introduce you to a new but already popular variety called Romos.
Breeding History and Main Growing Regions
Holland leads in the development of new vegetable hybrids and their production. Dutch carrot varieties are of excellent quality, high yield and strong immunity. Romos F1 is no exception.
The new variety turned out to be very juicy, sweet, with excellent commercial characteristics. It has stable, high yields when grown in open ground.
Did you know? In Russian zoos pink flamingos are fed carrots. It turns out that the vegetable helps preserve the feather color of these birds.
The variety is registered in the Russian State Register of Vegetable Crops and is recommended for cultivation in the Central and Far Eastern regions. In addition to Russia, Romos is actively grown in Ukraine, Moldova and other countries.
Description and characteristic
The Romos carrot growing in the garden is not very different from other varieties. Her leaves are green, of medium degree of dissection. The plus is that the foliage is very strong, not sprawling, but upright, which makes it easier to harvest ripe root crops.
Description of root crops
Ripe root crops have an attractive appearance - they can be distinguished from other varieties in appearance and taste. Romos belongs to the Nantes variety, therefore, these varieties have much in common.
Size and color
The fruit of Romos looks like this:
- the shape is cylindrical, but the tip is slightly pointed;
- the surface is smooth and even;
- length - up to 25 cm;
- diameter - up to 3 cm
- weight - 100-200 g;
- the color of the peel and core is bright orange;
- Does not crack or break.
Taste qualities
Carrot pulp is very juicy and sweet. Taste qualities of Romos are characterized as good and excellent. Root crops are suitable for use in fresh and processed form.
They make delicious juices and mashed potatoes. Carrots are ideal for cooking first and second courses, vegetable stews and salads.
Chemical composition
100 g of raw carrots contain only 35 kcal. And this is not surprising, since 88 g of 100 g is water. Nevertheless, the vegetable is very healthy, due to its chemical composition.
It includes:
- vitamins: beta-carotene (vitamin A), E, C, PP, H, K and group B;
- Minerals: potassium, chlorine, phosphorus, calcium, magnesium, sodium sulfur and others.
The set of chemical elements in Romos is the same. But in quantitative terms, the variety has advantages over other varieties.
Did you know? If there is no toothbrush at hand, you can eat 1 carrot instead of brushing your teeth. She brushes her teeth well, massages the gums and prevents the development of periodontal disease and caries.
For example, in 100 g of root crop of Romos contains:
- beta-carotene - up to 18.5 mg (on average about 12 mg in carrots);
- sugar - 5.8-8.1% (gives root crops a special sweetness);
- dry matter - 9.7–11.3%.
Ripening time
Romos carrots are mid-late varieties. The time for sowing seeds falls in April-May (depending on the region). From the appearance of seedlings to the complete ripening of root crops, 120–127 days pass. Therefore, the time for harvesting begins in August-September.
Productivity
One of the advantages of Romos is its productivity. Root crops ripen large, of the same size. From 1 m² you can collect 4-6.5 kg. Productivity of a grade on industrial fields is 385–475 kg / ha. The largest crop of Romos was harvested in the Vladimir region - 595 c / ha. Commodity yield - up to 97%.
Disease resistance
Romos carrots have strong immunity. The plant may not get sick with fungal diseases at all. But for this you need to provide him with proper care.
Advantages and disadvantages of other varieties
According to gardeners, Romos carrots have practically no flaws. And there are a lot of advantages.
- These include:
- unpretentiousness to growing conditions;
- resistance to cracking and damage;
- juicy pulp;
- excellent taste;
- beautiful appearance;
- high productivity;
- fast and high-quality harvesting (thanks to the strong tops, the vegetable is easily removed from the soil);
- excellent keeping quality without loss of taste and presentation.
Agriculture planting carrots in the open ground
When sowing seeds, it is very important to observe the rules of agricultural technology, which will facilitate, in the future, caring for crops and guarantee a plentiful harvest. Violation of planting technology, on the contrary, can weaken crops and make them vulnerable to diseases and pests.
Site selection and soil preparation
For planting Romos carrots, a plot that meets the following requirements is suitable:
- well lit by the sun, not shaded;
- the soil is loose and fertile - sandy loam or light loamy;
- soil acidity is low;
- without stagnation of melt or rain water.
The land needs to be prepared in advance, preferably in the fall.
Preparation includes:
- cleaning the site of weeds;
- fertilizer containing nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium (urea + superphosphate + potassium chloride);
- deep digging.
Important! The seed material of this variety does not need soaking and germination. In addition, branded seeds are already treated with fungicides, so they should not be disinfected either.
Crop rotation features
Crop rotation is essential for the normal growth and development of healthy plants. If you plant crops from the same family in one place, they will attract the same pests and suffer from identical diseases.
Crop rotation rules for carrots:
- best predecessors - cabbage, early potatoes, pumpkin (cucumbers, zucchini, squash, squash), greens (except parsley and dill), green manure;
- worst predecessors - carrots, turnips, beets, dill and parsley;
- permissible - all other cultures.
Scheme and depth of landing
It is time for planting carrot seeds in late April or early May, when the earth heats up to + 5 ° C. Winter sowing is carried out at the end of October or later, when the soil temperature drops to + 5 ° C.
Landing pattern:
- the distance between the rows is 20 cm;
- the distance between the seeds in a row is 5-7 cm (planted densely sprouts will need to be broken);
- landing depth - 2 cm.
Sowing process:
- Make furrows of the desired length, depth, at a sufficient distance from each other.
- Sprinkle indentations with sand (if the soil is not sandy).
- Water the furrows.
- When water is absorbed, sow the seeds or spread them at a distance from each other.
- Cover with earth and lightly compact.
- Cover with mulch (dry peat, clear film or lutrasil).
Spring planting is covered with a thin layer of peat (1 cm). For autumn - you need a layer of mulch thicker (2-3 cm), since it will be a heater.
Carrot care
Caring measures include not complex, but important actions: thinning, watering and fertilizing.
Thinning is necessary if the seeds are sown very densely. In order for the sprouts to receive proper nutrition, they need enough space. You need to break through them in 2-3 doses.
When the seedlings have 2 leaves, it is necessary to thin out the crops, tearing out weak sprouts and leaving a distance of 2-3 cm between them. At the last thinning, a distance of 5-7 cm should be left between the plants. Depressions from torn root crops should be covered with soil so that it empties into voids were not nurseries of harmful insects.
Watering
Water Romos carrots need infrequently, but regularly. The frequency of watering depends on weather conditions: in dry times, you will need to moisten the bed more often, and in rainy times less often or not at all. On average, young sprouts are watered once a week - 5 liters of water per 1 m², and adult root crops - once every 2 weeks, 6-8 liters.
The last watering is carried out 2 weeks before harvesting root crops: 2 buckets per 1 m². Water should be warm, settled. The appropriate time for watering is the evening after sunset. After each watering and rain, the soil should be loosened, allowing air to reach the roots. At the same time, weeds can be weeded, immediately removing them from the beds.
Fertilizer application
Fertilizers are applied only 2 times per season:
- 3-4 weeks after emergence - top dressing with nitrogen (urea);
- after another 2-3 weeks - top dressing with phosphorus (superphosphate) and potassium (potassium salt).
It is important not to overdo it with nitrogen fertilizer. It can slow down the growth and development of crops. To ripen strong and juicy root crops, potassium rather than nitrogen is needed.
Important! Carrots do not like organic matter, so you should not feed it with humus, compost or liquid manure - root crops will lose their marketability and taste and will not be able to be stored for long.
Disease and Pest Prevention
Compliance with all the rules of planting and carrot care makes it strong, healthy and able to resist infections and pests.
Disease prevention are:
- crop rotation compliance;
- planting in slightly acidic soils;
- thinning crops;
- timely weeding and loosening;
- fertilizing with phosphorus-potassium fertilizer (increases resistance to diseases);
- compliance with storage conditions.
Important! As a preventive measure, carrots can be sprayed with fungicidal agents. But you can’t do this later than a month before harvesting.
Harvesting and storage
Selectively ripened root crops can be harvested in July. But the main cleaning is carried out in late August and September. Harvesting is carried out in dry weather - so root crops will be easier to extract from the ground.
Removing carrots from Romos is easy. Just pull on a strong tops, and the fruits freely come out of the ground. You can use the pitchfork, slightly prying root crops. Harvested crops need to be spread out under a canopy or in an open space (in dry, sunny weather) in order to dry for several hours.
Then you should cut the leaves, leaving a tail of 1-2 cm. At the same time, you need to sort the vegetables into large, small and damaged specimens. The same large root crops are selected for storage. Damaged and small ones will need to be used first.
Selected vegetables will be stored for 8 months, if you create suitable conditions for them. They need to be folded in wooden boxes with sand. The temperature in the cellar should not rise above 0 ... + 2 ° C, with an air humidity of 85-95%. Carrots are well and long stored frozen.
Romos carrots are an excellent choice for a summer cottage. Adhering to the basic rules of planting and care, you can collect a decent crop of vegetables of high commercial characteristics with a wonderful taste of juicy sweet pulp.
