1 named cultivar

‘Dara’Dara Flowering Carrot

fruit vegetable

Flowering Carrot

The Story

Plant Bio

Daucus carota, wild carrot or Queen Anne's lace, is a biennial from Europe, western Asia and North Africa, now naturalised across North America. Finely divided ferny leaves form a rosette in the first year, and in the second a bristly hairy stem three to four feet tall carries a broad flat umbel of tiny white flowers, usually with a single dark purple floret at the centre.

The sap causes phytophotodermatitis: get it on your skin in sunlight and you can be left with blistering burns and stains that last months. Wear gloves and long sleeves to cut it. It is also the wild ancestor of the cultivated carrot, and the resemblance is the danger — it looks very like poison hemlock, which is lethal, so never forage it on a hunch.

Uses & Benefits:

Broad lacy white umbels through midsummer, on tall airy stems.

The wild ancestor of the garden carrot, though the wild root is small, tough and woody.

Heavily worked by bees and butterflies, and a larval host for black swallowtail.

Essentials

At a Glance

Plant Type

Fruit Vegetable

Height

42 inches

Width

18 inches

Light

Full Sun

Zones

4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10

Water

Low to moderate

Humidity

Moderate

Lifespan

Biennial

Native To

Europe, western Asia and North Africa

Toxicity

Sap burns skin in sunlight

Planting

How to Grow

Wear gloves and long sleeves whenever you cut it.
Cut in the evening or on an overcast day.
Wash any sap off skin immediately, out of sunlight.
Deadhead before seed sets to limit spread.
Check state noxious weed listings before letting it stand.
Never eat a wild root you have not positively identified.

Pro Tip

The burns need sap plus sunlight, so cutting it in the evening and washing before morning avoids nearly all of the damage.

Keep It Thriving

Care Guide

Do

Wear gloves and cover your arms 🧤
Cut it in the evening or under cloud 🌥️
Wash sap off skin at once 🚿
Deadhead before it seeds ✂️

Don't

Handle it bare-armed in sunshine ❌
Forage the root on a resemblance ❌
Let it seed near pasture or crops ❌

Seasonal Care Calendar

Task	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Cut
Identify

Watch Out For

Pests & Diseases

Common Pests

Common Diseases

In the Garden

Landscape Uses & Companions

Landscape Uses

Naturalised meadow and roadside vergePollinator and butterfly plantingCut flower, handled with care

Companion Plants

Oxeye Daisy Black-Eyed Susan Yarrow Chicory Common Milkweed

Multiply

Propagation Methods

Good to Know

Common Questions

Flowering Carrot questions

What zones can Flowering Carrot grow in?

Flowering Carrot is hardy in USDA Zones 4–10. Inside that range it survives winter in the ground; outside it, grow it as an annual or a container plant you protect.

Is Flowering Carrot deer resistant?

Not reliably. Deer may browse Flowering Carrot, especially tender spring growth — plan on repellents or fencing where pressure is high.

When does Flowering Carrot bloom?

Flowering Carrot typically blooms in summer through late summer. Exact timing shifts a week or two with your zone — Sow's bloom calendar maps it to your garden.

Does Flowering Carrot need full sun?

Flowering Carrot does best in full sun (6+ hours).