Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Growing => Grow Your Own => Topic started by: rugbymad40 on July 21, 2006, 11:13
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Hi Folks,
On the plot last night I was approached by a young lady who started chatting about my plot and the veg I grew on it. She said she was very impressed with it and asked if I had ever taken part in shows. When I said no she gave me a leaflet on the local horticultural Society, told me to join and get some of my produce ready for the autumn show in September. So...
1) Have any of you got any advice on showing veg - particularly Leeks, Tomatoes, Peas, Runner Bean, Courgette, Carrot and Pumpkins
2) How quickly could I get a crop of new potatoes - it is nine weeks to the show and they have a category for salad potatoes.
3) I have some very special sweet peas - how long do they continue to bloom, is there anything I can do to extend their growing/flower?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
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1) Have any of you got any advice on showing veg - particularly Leeks, Tomatoes, Peas, Runner Bean, Courgette, Carrot and Pumpkins
The main thing about showing (amateur, that is) is to think why you are doing it. Are you growing for the pleasure of growing, and to eat, or to compete. So don't lose sight of the fun. If you win - hooray, if not, so what. It's fun to enter your best stuff. Some times however, you have to dig up a whole row of something to get 3 good things to show. Is it worth it? destroyng your perfectly good, mishapen maybe, crop.
• Is stuff judged accordingly to RHS rules? if so, get a copy of the RHS handbook to see what you need to exhibit. If your stuff is 'not accord to schedule' (NAS), or sometimes, the handbook, it will be disqualified. it is useful to have a copy anyhow.
• The more 'diffficult' stuff gets higher marks (e.g. parships, leeks, celery, cauliflowers)
• Study your society rules, to avoid disappointment later!
(NO)=number in brackets is how many you are required by your society to enter
Tomates: Choose (3) the same size, perfectly ripe with no greenback or other disease. (You should have tasted some and now hope your exhibit tastes fantastic too!) display them on a paper plate, or in a drip saucer filled with clean sand.
Peas: (6) pods of peas (unopened) nicely filled, bright green. Hope they don't have lodgers!!! Of course, if you spray them you probably know they won't, but you won't know how even the peas are. You wll have a shrewd idea. Display as above, or on a piece of plain black paper.
Runner Beans: The night before: Choose (9) beans, cut them off the truss, leaving the little stalk on at the stalk end. Fully developed, all the same length and fatness, as straight as possible. Lay them to on a piece of damp kitchen towel and roll them up nice and straight. Wrap the bundle in a damp tea towel. Display them with the stalks (or the points) all facing the same direction on a piece of black paper, or directly on to the bench.
Courgette: Early morning (or night before) chose (2) courgettes about 5" long (or accordingly to schedule) the same size and fatness all the way along. If the flower is still attached, so much the better! Display as above.
Carrots Choose (3) fully ripe, size according to variety, perfecty straight (not like molars :lol: :lol: ) Complete with FULL root, so dig them up, don't pull. Trim tops accordingly to schedule. Carrots are difficult for an amateur who has not done this before as it is not worth digging up a whole row just to get some carrots worth showing. Show carrots are grown in sand usually. However, have a go, you never know.
Pumpkins depends on the category - heaviest, largest, or accordingly to schedule. Pumpkins should be ripe by end September. Choose your best, cleanest, nicest shape and skin. Right size for the variety.
A card name the variety is always welcome, both to judges and to viewers, but sometimes exhibitors don't like to let other exhibitors know what the variety was in case it wins (sad or what!! :shock: )
Leeks Choose (2) of your best, longest, same size.Exhibit leaves and all. Leave the roots on, but washed. A very fat leek can be 'peeled' a bit (not more than 5 times - don't make it thinner than about 1.5" dia) to get a longer white bit.
There are special show seeds for leeks, carrots, onions, parsnips, celery, etc if you want the giant show stuff, but then you are entering into a diffenent league and inviting a deal of stress and palaver .... the choice is yours!
Basically, if this is your first show choose what you think you can handle and have a go. Don't be too ambitious and don't be disappointed. Just have another go next time! It can abe great fun ...
it also helps to visit other shows to see what gives. Perhaps you would like to come to our show - its not too far away for a day out. Send me a message (PM) and I will give you directions if you like.
Sorry this is such a long post, but you did ask!
Oliver - THEIR supervisor!
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2) How quickly could I get a crop of new potatoes - it is nine weeks to the show and they have a category for salad potatoes..
3) Sweet peas
2) If you have some salad spuds in now, are you prepared to dig up the whole row to get (9) matching ones? If not, have a go next year, but the digging up bit still applies!
3) Her sweet peas are usually on their last legs by beginning of august. A way to keep them going is to remove seed pods well before they form - so pick flowers even if you have millions in the house already!
Sweet peas should usually have 5 flowers on a stalk and be even sized and fully open. No. of blooms (and flowers on a stalk) and variety(s) in a vase depend on whose rules they are being judged by. Find out what you are allowed.
The best show sweet peas are usually grown as a cordon. But this is another ballgame! Our show has a class for sweet peas judged on scent only, so the likes of me can enter! A bunch of two-or-three-blooms-on-a- stalk but smell nice :)
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If you can acquire back issues from Kitchen Garden magazine for about the last 12-15 months or so from somewhere they have been doing a series on showing veg with tips on showing a different veg each month.
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Hi Oliver,
Our family is watched over by two ginger female cat's, who look after us very well. By the sound of things you look after you family equally well.
Thank you for all the imformation. The society covers three local villages and judging is done to RHS show handbook. Only a small proportion of members enter the show - mostly ladies - so I think she wants me for the novelty factor of being male.
I will only be entering for fun, so if I get any prizes it will be a bonus. I only have half a plot and we grow to eat, so the compeition table comes second to the family table.
Thanks again
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I think Oliver has it summed up pretty well. As an ex showman I must emhasise the importance of reading the shedule. Read it with a magnifying glass.
Assuming your items are within the requirements then it is down to uniformity and quality of the produce. Easier said than done. To get 5 potatoes on a plate all exactly the same size, shape and free from any blemishes takes a lot of time, and a lot of potatoes.
If maximum weights are specified, do not use household kitchen scales. Ask a fafour oof your local shopkeeper and get them weighed on a certified scale.
Deptember is still quite some time away and this gives you the opportunity and excuse to visit other shows to get an idea about the presentation.
At horticultural society level there is a lot of cheating and cronyism so be prepared for failure, particularly with the sweetpeas.
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two ginger female cats, who look after us very well. By the sound of things you look after you family equally well.
Thanks for your reply. I keep my two well under control. It's The Otherone who is a bit of a handful! (just because I am a Red Tabby, he calls himself a mackerell tabby). (She interjects - he is orange and white actually but we let him think he is a RT!!).
He (the head gardner and chief digger, water carrier and weeder), says it 'depends on the standard' of entries - 'you could put in any old .... and get a prize, maybe not a first, but ...'
Humph, says She, who has won several prizes - Her stuff was the best she had! Mind you, he is a realistic sort. But it is fun. She may do something again this year, but right now its too hot to think about.
Came across some cronyism last year for the first time. Rather sad that. But our stewards have been advised to watch out for it in future.
Have a go and the best of luck. Do post some pictures and keep us posted!
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Anyone got any idea where I can get an RHS show handbook?
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Anyone got any idea where I can get an RHS show handbook?
Well done Jake! Was looking at the same time as you!
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Its £7.95 direct from RHS.
click (http://www.rhs.org.uk/learning/publications/pubs_library_specialist.asp)
Edit oops got the price wrong
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As an ex showman
She decided to grow some of those HUGE onions. She bought a packet of seed and sowed them In January. They are now as big as golfballs! so she has not done anything right. Can she harvest the golfballs and keep them as 'sets' to plant next year?
Presumarly this is how they make conventional onions sets any way - sow the onion seed, let the little chaps grow a bit then harvest them and dry off for planting the following year?
Your advise would be gratefully accepted! thanks in anticipation! Oliver
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Theyre probably too big to use as sets. Ideally you want an onion about 2cm, these wont have much leaf growth so its less to dry off for next seasons planting.
By this time on the year theyre ready to harvest - if they havent been dug up already.... the tops should have fallen over and began to dry.
How are the leaves?
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... you want an onion about 2cm, ... How are the leaves?
The biggest onions are 2cm. Some of the others are smaller - down to about 1.5 cms. The leaves are still straight up! Nice and green.
We could bend them over? If we leave them I think the onions will continue growing. Maybe we should cover them with fleece and let them over winter!? or Maybe do half and half? Or maybe abandon them and plant some more next January and try again?
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Don't quote me Oliver, but I think the onions they use for sets are picked then put in cold store to stop them growing anymore, but I don't know the whys and wherefors
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I think GrannieAnnie is right, they are definately 'heat treated' somehow, but i dont know how!
If your leaves are straight up they are nowhere near ripe, if you bend them before they start to fall you open them to possible disease, and also stop them growing, and if you pull them too early then youll just get a vegetable thats very tough and only a slight hint of onion!!!
It does seem weird though if they were seeded in January, they should be HUGE and harvested by now!?
My own seed harvest has never been as good as my set harvest, so maybe its one of those things. I would be tempted to do the 50/50 thing or pull them all and dry them out, save the small ones for sets to plant at the end of March, and if you have any bigger ones try them yourself!
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... I would be tempted to do the 50/50 thing !
Thanks everyone for your good advice.
Will eat one row and cover the other row with fleece and see what happens.
Eristic says onions for showing need lots of feeding and lots of water and lots of tlc. Well they got none of that so serves me right! Next year ... (She wants to grow some really big oinions because someone in our village does, and they have a little joke that she will challenge him! He has been doing it for years so faint hope!
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Heres my harvest from the end of July, drying out on a netting rack in my garage... (http://img516.imageshack.us/img516/1479/onions1sa1.jpg)
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Now that's a good supply of onions! Most impressed.
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I think i went overboard when planting!!! I planted them closer, so in fact I will have reduced the size quite a bit...... but i planted loads assuming that i wouold loose some, or some wouldnt even sprout, and they ALL grew!!!!!?
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Were these from seed or sets toto?? Loads you've got there!
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They were sets..... and just 99p ones from Wilko's!!! Setton Turbo and
Stuttgarter onions..... not too keen on the Stuttgarter though.... the bulbs look too squashed!!!
I think i'll string them tonight.
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My onions last year were the stutttgarter from Wilko's too! Not huge onions, but kept well. I only had a couple go soft on me! This year becaseu I was late, I couldn't get any so bought them from Ebay. Don't know what they were, but they were rubbish!
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Heres my harvest from the end of July, drying out on a netting rack in my garage...
They look really nice! well done - they don't look as if they have suffered at all - the size looks right for the type of onion. Hope they store well for you.
P