GROWING FOR SHOWING
Size isn’t everything! Fresh vegetables in good condition should be your target for the show bench
The condition of any vegetable on the show bench is of utmost importance. At the end of the day, vegetables are for eating and the fresher they are the nicer they taste. The importance of condition becomes clear when you thumb through the NVS Judge's and Exhibitor's Guide and see it's awarded two or three more points than size.
Condition not only covers freshness, but also the presence or lack of pest and disease as well as cultural factors. You’ll lose points for things such as greening of the shoulders of carrots, or cracks around the shoulder and petioles of celery, to name a few. I do feel that some exhibitors have become a little too accustomed to size being everything. This, of course, is the name of the game in the giant vegetable world but not on the show bench.
On the show bench we’re trying to grow top quality vegetables, harvested at their optimum, in great condition with good size. We very often go by the old adage “a good big one will always beat a good little one”. The other saying is: “size is only meritorious if accompanied by quality.”
I have to confess that I love growing the long roots, there seems to be a challenge in growing something that you can’t see the result until it’s harvested. Take parsnips, for instance. The breeders have done great work on these over the years as they grow to a good size with great colour. However, if you look at the points in the NVS book they have six points from a maximum of 20 for condition and only three for size. The RHS has taken a different view by allowing five points for condition and four for size. It’s gratifying to see that the NVS does place condition as the primary consideration.
■ Why not follow me on Twitter throughout the season as I grow vegetables for my display at Malvern – @medwynsofangles.