they do little real damage to the carrots, which mature pretty much as per normal. how can you spot them?..they congregate around the base of the leaf stalks in large numbers. sometimes ants attending the aphids will cover them with soil to further protect them. your carrot leaf bases will have soil up against them. how to control? usual measures, or a shot gun.

I have raved on about water and carrots here before.. allow me to tell you that my baby carrots disappeared under some flanders poppies due to the lack of water and the fact that the poppies can handle that better.

I decided that patch was a waste of time and started using the mattock to create a place for corn seed.. lo., Santa gave me a present.. the baby carrots were all there.. under the soil with no tops to show they existed.