Phillip’s giant veg needs to be ‘carried out on stretchers’
GIANT “armchair-sized” vegetables grown by a keen amateur gardener are in the running for accolades at an agricultural show.
The huge vegetables weighing hundreds of pounds are grown by 68-year-old Phillip Vowles who is hoping to pick up some prizes at The Vale of Glamorgan Show.
One pumpkin has reached a whopping 250lb and a cabbage has grown to around 170lb.
A keen gardener for more than 40 years, Mr Vowles said the secret of his vast vegetables is all in the seed.
Mr Vowles, of Llanharry, said: “The secret to them is all in the seed. You have got to have the right seed or else it won’t happen.
“I select them every year from the biggest and best veg.
“It’s all organic too. I do uses molasses too to help them grow bigger. But it’s mainly in the seed.”
Due to enormous size of the produce, Mr Vowles needs a helping hand in the run up to show which was set to attract 20,000 people on Wednesday.
Mr Vowles said: “I do it all by myself but in the days before a show the family will all help.
“We are carrying them out on stretchers because they are so heavy. They’re too heavy for one man to lift.
“One of the pumpkins is well over 250lb. I’d say it’s the size of an armchair and a cabbage is a similar size too.”
He added: “I’m looking forward to the show. We have got lots of entries and I think it’s going to be a good competition.
“I have got some really good ones this year, I’ve got two or three that are over 100lbs.”
Mr Vowles said he tends to his allotment by himself, but when show’s approach some extra help is needed.
Mr Vowles said: “I have some of the grandchildren involved as well to try and get them engaged with it.
“That’s how I started with it really. I came from a big family of 15 living in a three bedroom house, and my father made us go out in the garden to help with all of the food.”
Always held on a Wednesday in August, the Vale of Glamorgan show attracts more than 200 stalls and various livestock competitions.