Relaxed Farming - our farm in your classroom

We sowed the carrot seeds back on the 14th March and three days ago on 28th (just two weeks later) we saw the first shoots. We are pleased with how quickly these have germinated especially as we have not really had that many warm days recently. The photos below were taken today and we are also pleased to see very few gaps in the row. It is hard to spread carrot seeds out evenly as they are so small and you have to be prepared for some not to germinate at all, but this row is looking quite evenly spaced at the moment. We shall be thinning out (see posting 14th March) as these grow in order to make the most of ALL the plants.
These carrots are growing in the polytunnel in a raised bed and are fine with the overnight temperatures (around 8-10°C). However if the temperatures are forecast to plummet, we will need to protect these seedlings from frost by putting a thin 'fleece' over the top of them.
Shoots (or haulms) from our new potatoes are now several centimetres above the ground (second photo) and will need 'earthing up' soon, both to encourage more tubers (potatoes) to grow, and also to keep the light away from the tubers to prevent them going green. 'Earthing up' means either moving the soil from the side and putting it on top of the row of potato haulms or adding extra soil/compost to cover them. As we have an awful lot of compost we will be adding that to the bed. Photos to follow...