Purple carrots are on the way back

Apparently the familiar orange carrot became popular while older multi-coloured varieties declined, including purple, yellow and amber types.

It is only in fairly recent times that the orange carrot has won out, other colours date back to the 16th Century and earlier.

Apparently even Prince Charles has been known to grow purple carrots in his garden at Highgrove.

This return to earlier varieties is no surprise to Ipswich seeds and plants suppliers Thompson & Morgan, of course.

Kris Collins of Thompson & Morgan said: “Coloured carrots are nothing new to Thompson & Morgan customers. Many of our grow-your-own customers have been switched on to purple, yellow, white, peach and red carrots for years.

“Tesco’s new purple carrot looks to be the very same variety as our popular Carrot Purple Haze F1. The F1 vigour makes it an easy-grow variety, so even a novice grower will get a good crop. Why spend £1 on a small bunch of carrots when you can grow 300 roots for just £2.99 for a packet of seeds.

“New for 2015 we’ve also managed to secure a limited supply of Carrot Purple Sun F1 seed, which unlike Purple Haze is vibrant purple through to the core. The roots are intense in colour and sweetness and contain high levels of antioxidants. Great for boiling, roasting, stir fries and juicing. and it’s even better value than Purple Haze at just £2.49 for 300 seeds.”