Sowing carrots (or any small seed) using the gloop method

Sowing small seeds like carrots, parsnips, onions or any small herb can be tricky! They land in clumps, which means having to 'thin' them at some point so the others can grow fully, so some seeds are wasted and/or even more work is created.

By using the gloop method, the seeds are suspended in the gloop, so they are much more evenly spaced, meaning we don't need to thin out, the seeds stay moist and the plants grow healthier right from the start.

It's super easy as well! (a must for a busy gardener/mum)

Basic Recipe (I make 4x the amount at a time usually)

• 1 Tbspn of cornflour
• 1 cup of cold water

Mix the cornflour in a little bit of your water until a paste is formed, then add the rest of the water and mix thoroughly.
Add the mix to a pot and heat, stirring constantly, until the mix becomes clearer and thickens. Don't worry if it looks runny at this stage, it will thicken as it cools.
Remove from the heat and leave to cool completely.

When the gloop is cool, give it a whisk, you may want to add a dash of water if it's too thick.
Add your seeds, usually 1/2-1 Tablespoon of seeds, and stir well. Check how close together they look in the gloop, too close together and you'll have to thin them out as they grow, too far apart and you won't get many plants. Add small amounts of seed at a time until you're happy with the density.

These seeds in the jug in the picture are my carrot seeds saved from last season, so they have some stalk mixed in there (not all the brown spots are seeds)

Prepare your bed in the mãra (garden), soft soil is great, so the carrots can grow down into the soil easily.

Carrots (as well as beetroot) often like being planted after a the garden bed has had tomatoes in it, keeping that healthy crop rotation going.
You can create lines or get creative with circles and swirls!

Gently pour the gloop and carrot mix from a jug along the prepared beds evenly. Lightly cover with fine soil or seed raising mix.
Cover the area with netting of some kind, to protect the seeds from cats and birds. (remove netting when seedlings are established)

It's as easy as that! Watch your carrots or other veges/plant take off and enjoy the fresh, organic harvesting!