Problems with carrots
Identify what's wrong by where it appears and what you can see.
Where is the problem?
Start by selecting the part of the plant where you see the problem.
Start with the symptom
Or pick from the symptoms most often seen on carrots.
Common problems with carrots
The problems recorded on carrots, the most common first.
15 problems
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Aster yellows
Yellowed, twisted growth, bunched shoots and hairy, bitter roots; spread by leafhoppers. -
Carrot fly
Rusty-brown tunnels just under the skin of carrots, and reddish, wilting leaves. -
Root damage
Wilting and stalled growth with nothing wrong above ground. Roots have been cut, crushed or disturbed. -
Uneven watering
Dry then soaked: the swing that splits fruit and roots and rots tomatoes at the tip. -
Wireworms
Narrow, round holes bored through potatoes and root crops. -
Overwatering
Yellow, limp leaves in soil that stays wet. Roots short of air rot and stop drinking. -
Slugs and snails
Ragged holes in leaves and seedlings gone overnight, with silvery slime trails. -
Bacterial soft rot and blackleg
Stems black and slimy at the base, or tubers and heads rotting into foul-smelling mush. -
Bolting (running to seed)
A tall flower stalk from the centre of a leafy crop. The leaves turn bitter and tough. -
Fungal leaf spots
Round brown or grey spots with darker rims on leaves, spreading in wet weather. -
Heat stress
Afternoon wilting, dropped flowers and stalled fruit in a hot spell, even in moist soil. -
Leafhoppers
Pale stippling on leaves and small insects that hop sideways when disturbed.
