Carrot

Earthing up leeks: the trick for white shafts in your raised bed

Frau Schneider has let her leeks grow untouched since May. By August they're waist-high but green almost all the way down to the soil — like giant spring onions. It's not the wrong variety. She just skipped a step almost nobody tells you about: earthing up.

Sow carrots in August: your second chance for an autumn harvest

Most people think of carrots as a spring crop. August is your second window — with a real upside: autumn carrots taste sweeter than summer ones. But only if you start right now.

Beetroot in the raised bed: when it's actually ready — and why you shouldn't wait for it to get big

Mrs Schneider let her beetroot grow until the roots were the size of tennis balls. Now they're woody and difficult to cook. The thing most people get wrong: with beetroot, smaller is usually better — and the right moment is written right above the soil.

What goes into the bed in June — and what's already too late

June isn't the final sprint, it's a second start. What you can still plant, what you sow directly, and which crop to skip because that ship has sailed.

Companion planting table for raised beds — the pairings that matter

A companion-planting table to print: good neighbours, bad neighbours, three all-rounders. Plus the five pairs that get you 80 % of the effect — if you only want to remember five.

Planting a raised bed — the 3-step beginner guide (compact)

The short version: location, bed size, plant choice. One page, three steps, one rule of thumb per step. To print and pin to the shed.