  Abundance analysis of carbon has been performed in a sample of 80 late F and
early G type dwarf stars in the metallicity range -1.06 < [Fe/H] < 0.26 using
the forbidden [C I] line at 8727 A. This line is presumably less sensitive to
temperature, atmospheric structure and departures from LTE than alternative
carbon criteria. We find that [C/Fe] decreases slowly with increasing [Fe/H]
with an overall slope of -0.17 +- 0.03. Our results are consistent with carbon
enrichment by superwinds of metal-rich massive stars but inconsistent with a
main origin of carbon in low-mass stars. This follows in particular from a
comparison between the relation of [C/O] with metallicity for the Galactic
stars and the corresponding relation observed for dwarf irregular galaxies. The
significance of intermediate-mass stars for the production of carbon in the
Galaxy is still somewhat unclear.
