Many years ago when I were but a young lad with hair on by head instead of my back, sack and crack, Medwyn ran a series of articles in Garden News on the sowing dates of top showmen in different parts of the country. It was a great help at the time to novices like me (I still consider myself very much a novice by the way!) as I was finding that I was way too keen to get things started in the Spring and my produce was running out of steam by mid-September. A lot of my exhibits were way past their best on the benches because they hadn't been exhibited at their optimum of condition. I'm thinking in particular of things like tomatoes, cabbages, cucumbers, beans and caulis which I can't grow anyway. The idea of making more than one sowing to time them for a particular show wasn't something I'd yet hit on to.
So in response to a question i've been asked here are the answers supplied by John Branham of Aylesbury in Bucks. He was asked for two dates, one for a show on 26th August and the other on 29th September. Some of the varieties he grew have long gone but quite a few still hold firm.
Globe beet (Red Ace) May 13th & June 1st
Long beet (Regar) May 1st and May 15th
Broad bean (Bunyard's Exhibition) April 15th (1 sowing only)
Green cabbage (Hamilton) March 1st & March 16th
Red cabbage (Autoro) Feb 1st (1 sowing only)
Runner bean (Lovejoy) May 31st & June 20th
Long carrots (New red Intermediate) April 8th & April 28th
Stump carrots (Barbados & Gringo) April 20th & May 10th
Caulis (Virgin) June 1st/16th/25th
Celery (Evening Star) Feb 25th & Mar 14th
Cucumber (Carmen) May 15th & June 10th
Marrow (Table Dainty) June 20th & July 1st
Large onions (Kelsae) Jan 1st (1 sowing)
250g onions (Toughball) Jan 1st & Feb 15th
Parsnips (Gladiator) March 8th & March 28th
Peas (Show Perfection) June 1st/15th...impossible to get peas on bench late Sept!!
Potatoes (Winston/Amour/Kestrel/Maxine/Harmony) May 1st (1 sowing only)
Radish (Summer crunch) July 28th & Sept 1st
Tomatoes (Solution & Shirley) Feb 15th & March 15th
If anyone wants the same info supplied by Charles Maisey (South Wales), Jim Williams (Scotland), Bob Herbert (South Yorkshire) or John Soulsby (North east) let me know and i'll reproduce those too.
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12 comments:
Cheers Smithy, yes very interesting
I assume if show dates are early it's as simple as sowing that much earlier?
I would also be interested in Charles Macey's dates as you have said
Thanks
Thanks, Smiffy.
As Darren says, the Charles Masey dates would be very useful for the 'South of Watford' brigade.
I can do Charles' dates if you want guys but John Branham is closest to you both by a long chalk. You both thinking of setting up a Welsh valley love nest together then?
You'll be the only gay root veg growers in the viiiillaaaage!
John Branham's would be good.
Smiffy the northern dates would be good if you don't mind cheers Paul
Dick.....it IS John Branham's ya southern dipshit
You read my mind; I was planning to trawl Medwyn's archives tonight. Scottish dates would be appreciated.
I used John Branham's dates off Medwyns archives last year and i must say they were pretty spot on. It also helps that i'm only 5 miles from Aylesbury :-)
To add to the last post there were a couple of things that i changed the sowing dates on. The caulis were sowed at the beginning of May with staggered planting out and both long and stump carrots were sowed earlier too for the August show date.
Dick.....it IS John Branham's ya southern dipshit
F**k me, so it is! What a dipshit!
not many of those varieties being grown now, how long ago was that list drawn up simon?
Ray/Denise.....i'm guessing about 10 years ago.
Paul/Kevin.....i'll post the Scottish and Northern dates out over the weekend.
Darren....if showing earlier then yes adjust your dates to suit.
Bear in mind that different varieties may need different timings. A diary is an absolute must I reckon so you can refer back to them over the winter months and plan your year ahead.
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