Unexpected success

Clearing space for the garlic today, I discovered that I'd actually managed to grow some carrots to maturity.  Scarcely a harvest with about six carrots and not all of those terribly large, but compared to last year this is a bonanza.  I'd noticed the carrot tops but assumed that they'd have been pre-enjoyed when I came to lift them.

I've sown Garlic "Messidrome" this year, a French, softneck variety.  It has gone into Bed 1, the Bed of Doom - nothing much has flourished there this spring and summer apart from self-seeded dill.  I pulled out lots of weeds and added most of a bag of compost, so hopefully the garlic will be happy there.  Last year it did fairly well in an ill-prepared bed full of stones, so I'm not excessively worried.

The broccoli made it through the first ground frost last week, as did a couple of the winter purslane and rocket plants, but the nasturtiums - which were still covered in lovely flowers last weekend - looked like washed-up seaweed today, and had to come out.  I pruned the summer-fruiting raspberries and finished staking them, before having a general tidy-up and filling my new incinerator basket ready for a fire soon.  Next week I plan to prune the elder tree as part of the preparations for the shed, and start sowing the broad beans.

Unseasonal

As well as the apple blossom, I have flowers on the strawberry plants and quite a few raspberries are ripening.  The raspberries have been odd - the autumn-fruiting varieties manifested in July, and the Malling Jewel, which should be summer-fruiting, are having a last hurrah now.  Perhaps this is something that happens in the first year of planting.  I weeded the raspberry bed today and put in stakes and wires to help hold them up.  My plans to prune them went awry, as I'd forgotten the different requirements of autumn and summer fruiting varieties.  I'll take the book with me next time.

During the week I put in - perhaps optimistically - some more baby plants: rocket and winter purslane, so that winter salads will not consist entirely of endive.  They are looking rather sad at the moment, but there has been no rain for days.  The broccoli plants look much better, thankfully.  The white fly is diminishing but not vanquished, despite many applications of the garlic and chilli spray.  Everything got a good drink today to help it through the cold weather forecast for next week.

I've harvested my squash - I got one squash per plant, possibly not great value for money, although they are very pretty to look at.  The plants  have successfully kept the weeds off that bit of bed.  The last of the beetroot and various odd things must come up soon so I can plant garlic and broad beans.

The endive, radicchio and chard are all thriving, and the mizuna is also doing well.  The nasturtium plants are still sprawling everywhere and covered with flowers - today they were also covered with bees.  I'm starting to think I need to turn the compost - not a job to anticipate with relish - but it looks very little like the lovely friable compost they churn out on Gardener's World.