I'm waiting on a frost before attempting any parsnips from the small bed in my kitchen garden; I sowed them interspersed with carrots which have been a bit small. Will my parsnips be any bigger? I may find out this week as it's forecast to freeze soon. Although I've had some good parsnips in the past, they've not been very reliable for me; maybe I need to sow them in bulk rather than just a few small rows. I think interplanting/sowing with another crop (like carrots) is probably the best way in my garden, in case the parsnips do fail.
Because of the forecast, I also went and picked the very last (mostly green) cherry tomatoes at the front of my allotment: that's it for fresh toms this year, though I have bags and bags in the freezer. While I was at it, I picked every achocha bigger than a marble. These don't survive a frost either, though they self seed readily every year so obviously the seeds don't mind it. I haven't planted these on purpose for years, and I've never even planted them at the allotment! They must have got there from seeds in the scraps for the compost.
I've read that leeks are better after a frost, which may be true; I usually don't pick them until late winter/early spring. This is the first time I've begun picking in autumn and to be honest, I can't tell a difference. Maybe I'll be able to decide this coming week, if it does frost. I still have around twenty more of the early leeks before I start on the later season ones--I would guess I'll probably get to those in about a month from now.
One more job after a frost: lift my dahlia tubers for winter, something I promised myself I would do this time. Last year I had three plants and one didn't make it over winter; I don't want to lose the other two. I may try to lift my runner bean tubers too, something I've never tried. I'm not committed to runner beans and don't care to take the trouble to grow them from seed next year (they've not been very prolific), but keeping existing plants is a reasonable amount of work I'm prepared to do.
Small note about the Vegetable Challenge: the husband (in charge of shopping) came home with some mushrooms from the store. He defended his decision (they aren't vegetables, they're fungi!), and though perhaps doesn't break the letter of the Challenge I have noted it here. The Challenge is still on: no vegetables have been bought. But I have requested than no fungi are bought from now on either.
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