Daucus carota var. sativus, The Carrot

                                                                                                                   Carrots or Daucus carota var. sativus is a domesticated plant that has been grown by human civilizations for over a thousand years. Originating in Central Asia as a scrawny weed, the carrot has been transformed through domestication.  Over great lengths of time the carrot as we know it was created through careful genetic selection.

Today carrots exist in many forms ranging from noxious weeds to important crops.  Wild carrots are prevalent in the United States and are considered in most areas to be a non native invasive weed.  The wild form of the carrot is often called Queen Anne’s lace and displays the compound flat topped gathering of flowers that is characteristic of the Apiaceae family.  The domesticated variation possesses the same flower, but has been bred to produce a greatly enlarged storage root that is harvested for foodstuff.

Farming of carrots has become a large business.  The business has grown recently as carrots have become an important contributor to the word food supply.  In the United States the consumption of carrots has been on the rise.  A wave of health conciseness has helped boost consumption through promoting fresh vegetables and healthy eating.

To explore the classification of carrots click here.

Last updated April 2009