Root tips

 

At last, after years of trying, successful carrots. Usually they get attacked by carrot root fly that can supposedly smell a carrot from half a mile away and burrow beneath the soil into the carrot to lay their eggs. They don't fly very high above ground level, so having raised beds can help, as can horticultural fleece. Another remedy is to confuse the little blighters by putting mint and lavender between the rows - especially after you've pulled a few carrots up and disturbed the soil - and it's best to harvest or thin them on a windy or wet day, when they'll probably not be flying. Even if the fly doesn't get them, the badgers might.

Frogwatch

Saw two frogs today, but only managed to photograph this tiny one by the pond. The other was in the garage at home, of all places, looking a frightening grey/black colour and startling me as I picked up a bin bag on which he was sitting. I'm guessing that he was the healthy green one I'd seen in the garden last week and he could have crept in there when the door was left open recently (though it's a bit early to hibernate) and changed his appearance to suit his surroundings. I put him outside in the undergrowth and hope he might get his colour back and pop up again soon, bored felines permitting.

A pity my carrots haven't done as well as the beetroot, even though they're just thinnings, they all seem to have some degree of carrot root fly damage. Loads more beans, chard, kale and spinach and the first ripened tomatoes too.