[Sca-cooks] The Purple Carrot Returns and then Some

[Rikke D. Giles]

William de Grandfort wrote:
> 
> After my original inquiry, I did a little bit of research on the
> history of the carrot...
<snip>
>  A few botanical references indicate that what we know as the modern  
> carrot today is a cultivated form of the
> common weed known as Queen Anne's Lace.

Yes, they are the same species as Queen Anne's Lace, Daucus carrota, I  
think it is.  I've grown some of the new white, purple, yellow and red  
varieties.  White is bitter, pithy and not sweet.  Purple is not very  
easy to grow to any large size and not very tasty.  Yellow wasn't too  
bad, but not as sweet as orange.  Red was pretty good, very carrot  
flavor, best for juicing.  I'm not sure if every variety I've grown  
corresponds to those in the picture, so I can't tell if they've made  
advances or not.  The above is only my experience; perhaps in other  
regions the colorful carrots taste better.

Queen Anne's Lace roots, btw, are white and purple around here.  They  
are generally spindly, tough and not very flavorful.

YS,

Aelianora de Wintringham