I have been browsing the posts for the last month and have come up with the following recommendations from yourselves. Can you fill in the missing boxes or do you think some of them should be changed?
Final list below
MikeB
been very happy with polestar runner beans this year - butler's last year were excellent too!
Marion swede has done me very well this year, Courgettes defender and, my parador were good, sweetcorn was fantastic, used Sweet nugget.
Lollo Rosso lettuce was our favorite, for tomatoes ferline produced a good crop and lasted the longest due to it's blight resistance.
Beetroot love golden and white blankoma, also enjoy the chioggia. For regular type I used Boltardy. Turnip liked golden ball, though the germination was not too good, the market express has done well. Hope this helps! DP
How long is a piece of string? There are a dozen options for each plant. Any of the varieties wil do fine, given a chance, so all one can do is comment.
1. Much prefer white sprouting to purple.
2. If you have protection, why Redskin ('container') pepper? Vida Verde's Sunnybrook (red) is neat, early & prolific - & Antoi Romanov (the other) is also prolific, but a bit bigger plant. Neither are large fruit. Both could also cope outside. See photo.
3. Â Lettuce - I find Cos/Romaine types less likely to get rot. Like Little Gem, Sherwood or Claremont.
4.Leeks? We've been lifting our 'mini leeks' - Bleu - for a month or so - nearly finished.
5. Runners? We usually go for 'stringless', but this year grew Enorma - like the 'growers'. Not 'stringless', but it was! Just had the last yesterday. Some of the longest, straightest beans we've had. BUT - so much depends upon the soil etc.
6. Oh, Golden Beet every time!
7. Courgettes? Genovese for a neat, hugely productive type. We've had 60 from one plant. White Volunteer for a Lebanese type - more rambling. Dense flesh & keeps well.
PS Do agree with DP on loose leafed lettuce as well. Fristina works well - crisp!
Redskins? because thats what I grew this year and didn't find any posts saying different. Believe me Tim I'm more than happy to be guided by the members of this forum. Next year sunnybrook.
Thanks for your help and input.
List Updated
Regards
MikeB
As Tim says-it`s a matter of choice in many respects,so many to chose from.
One I have gone back to after trying a few is Pea,Hurst green shaft.
Potato-Pink Fir Apple is a must for me-but grow another variety as well.
Aubergine-Bonica is good as a standard purple, and Rosa Bianca is now appearing more often-I have grown them for years after getting some seeds in Italy.
Stephan
Beetroot - Couldn't get on with Bolthardy - it bolted so recommend Detroi and Crimson King
I agree with Detroit beetroot. Cabbage Hispi, Fennel - Selma, Turnip Purple Top Milan, Lettuce Little Gem (fab), Courgette Sunburst, My fave spud is Arran pilot, Main Crop Desiree, Carrot = Chantenay, Celeriac - Prinz
Outdoor cue - Burpless Tasty Green
That's me done :)
The new pea winner for me this year was the old variety 'Alderman'. Grew 5 foot tall and was smothered from ground to tip with lovely peas!
Carrots, early nantes. They were slow to get going, but once they started, we have been rewarded with lovely sweet straight carrots for months now. We have sowed several times since, different varieties, and autumn king have been quick and are producing thicker roots. Hoping they will hold okay in the ground until Chrimble!
Celery, I have tried a self blancher, can't remember the name, okay for cooking, but it has never grown to a great size - I don't think it was in the best of positions. Might try buying plug plants next year to get a head start!
Spuds, Charlotte were wonderful, and pink fur apple produced masses of monster ugly spuds! Both already ordered for next year!
Toms, I have grown masses! I would choose a plum for cooking, a cherry for salads, a beefsteak for sangers and stuffing, and a regular for 'other' things....my favourity 'round' tom is a yellow one called Golden Queen. Sweet as sugar, juicy but firm, and looks so darn sexy on the plate!
Courgettes, I love the yellows, 'Golden Zucchini' this year - had trouble keeping up with the production. Also as Tim says, the white volunteer is an interesting courgette - different shape, but a winner for stuffing and baking!
@tim
QuoteMuch prefer white sprouting to purple.
don´t know these. not easily available round here. what is the difference to the purple variety, the one I grow?
and - the main thing for me - are they as frosthardy as the purple ones?
and while you´re at it- as I´m a new convert to runner beans- which is the strongest, meanest tasting of the lot? strings welcome?
thanks
veg I can recommend for light, free-draining soil.
cabbage summer minicole - they're only 4-5" across, you can plant them a foot apart and they stand forever (up to January!) even if they do look like coconuts on stalks by then! (Peel off outer layers and you've a perfectly usable cabbage).
onions overwinter I grew Swift last year and they were better than my summers! Only a couple bolted (unusual for autumn onions) and better still they were only 99p from Focus!
carrot early nantes. Best for cloches. Agree on the autumn kings.
potato Kestrel. It's a second early and we just ate the last of them tonight with a roast chicken. Sir parboiled then roasted some and I mashed some with my new toy (spud ricer) and they were fluffy as can be. They held in the boiling, miracle this year... Large tubers too.
marrow long green striped - a trailer but grows real marrows not overgrown courgettes. Juat ate half one of these.
parsnips agree
runners - Enorma - agree. They're still flowering... (just ate some)
courgette - agree with Defender. Don't turn your back... never had such a prolific little so and so. (oddly I have some defender marrows too ;D ;D).
Garlic - I will put in a word for Marco. They are mid-sized bulbs of serpentine garlic, which means they grow a flower scape. You cut off the scapes before they straighten out and either use them in stir fries or, as we did, make garlic scape pesto with pine nuts, parsley and scapes. YUM! Then the bulbs are ready early July. And they only grow a few very fat, easy to peel cloves per bulb in usually one layer. Perfect if you hate the fiddly little things in most white garlic.
French dwarf yellow Berggold. They're still going too... had more beans than we could bear to prepare a few weeks back. Easy to spot as they aren't green...
moonbells
Updated list below, Tim couldn't you recommend some indoor tomatoes? Still some blank spots nobody grow broccoli this year? and Lottie couldn't you suggest a melon?
MikeB
Parsnip Gladiator
Dwarf French Beans Sonesta (yellow waxy, prolific and gorgeous)
tomatoes I would recommend sungold f1. they are a cherry sized orange tomato and they taste wonderful. They are quite sweet, someone next to me grew them this year and I plan to grow quite a few next year.
my burpless tasty green cucumbers tasted reat, though they did get powdery mildew evn though the packet said they were immune, mind you they were next to my grapevine which i think spread it to them.
Mike - what a great plan!
White sprouting? Most suppliers have it. Not as f/f as purple but, in Norfolk, you should be laughing. Or use 9 Star Perennial - 'cut & come again'- or some such. See below.
Cus - yes, Burpless outside but, indoors, why not all-females such as Passandra, Carmen, Danimas & so many others. We had 405 cus from 8 Passandra this year.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v164/photo04/cca0904.jpg)
Mike, that looks a wonderful chart and will be very useful to lots of people, thank you. You have saved me reading back through lots of threads which I had planned to do. OH will be pleased!
Filling in some gaps.
Cabbage - Winter: Cant be January King. Large crisp heads
Calabrese - Trixie: Tried for the first time and resisted club root. Nice tight heads.
Chillie Pepper - Hot Stuff and Pinnochio's Nose
Cauliflower - White Excel: Very pleased with large and tight curds
Cucumber - Telegraph: Long and straight
French Bead Dwarf - Opera: Large crop and straight stringless beans
Melon - Ogden: OK once I sorted out pollination
Parsnip - Gladiator: Sweet and no canker
Early Spuds - Mimi: Lovely delicate flavour
Late Main Crop Spuds - Arran Victory: The best roasting spud you can get and heavy yield
Swede - Devon Champion: If you can find the seed and are on light soil this is the best swede you can grow. Used to attract a premium price at Covent Garden
Tomato Main - Supermarmande: Large heavy fruit with plenty of flesh
Tomato Early - Sungold: Good flavour
Tomato Plum - San Marzona: Heavy yield of fleshy fruit ideal for cooking
Butternut Squash - Avalon: Large fruit good flavour
HTH
Jerry
Oh, Mike - do try at least half a dozen Hunter type climbing beans - early, sweet & good pollinators.
(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v164/photo04/hunter2.jpg)
Which seed merchant would I get them from Tim?
MikeB
Final List, glad it has been of some help
(http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a149/mike_brennan/Vegchoice1.jpg)
(http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a149/mike_brennan/Vegchoice2.jpg)
Regards
MikeB
Fothergills is one.
If you've got space for a few small toms in a sheltered spot outdoors, give 'santa' variety a try - they're yummy!
I notice you have a gap for spring cabbage, I'm growing 'Advantage' but won't get anything off it till next spring, so can tell you how that goes then ;D I read a lot about them though, and 'Hispi' and 'Excel' are supposed to be great too. In fact, you're supposed to be able to sow 'advantage' almost all the year round.
M
For my ha'peth worth. I thought the climbing gold bean Goldfield was very good this year, my first go with it.
Most encouraging - this well presented plan. Most helpful.
BUT - without in any way wishing to dampen spirits - we're back to that piece of string.
Almost everything we grow - especially for the first time - is wonderful. But results differ year by year, plant by plant, day by day & fruit by fruit. And how things are used - raw, cooked, dressed, dried, preserved. And what with. Who has the time to do controlled experiments? When you bring in a pick of your tomatoes, can you honestly tell by taste which is which?
SO? Do make up your mind exactly what you want to achieve - & where. And then read up all the evidence. The net is full of helpul advice. Even then you will get heavily weighted opinions. And when you think that there are, for example, over 2000 tomatoes, & that each country has its own standard of taste & expectation ............??
We buy something new every year because 'new, better' varieties are offeredi n every catalogue, & it would be boorish to pull up the drawbridge?
For instance - super-sweet corn - why stick in the 'maize' days?
A good point Tim, but take my example. I joined this forum in august and I have been growing veg for the last 10 years, having been introduced to this activity by a neighbour. My neighbour brought his seeds from Dolbies and likewise I did the same. If you look at the previous post higher up on why did I include redskin? thats all Dolbies do. BUT you have shown me that there is more variety out there. Now I have the problem which one do I grow. This list will help me get started using your experience and knowledge, I don't have to re-invent the wheel. I will modify it over time as my own tastes and preferences kick in.
Thank you all from me and the other newbies in this area
Regards
MikeB
I like to try new varieties too. you can do that but still grow your tried and trusted faves. The sweetcorn seed for example I got was cheapo Early King from Wilko. It tastes absolutely fantastic and was cheap as chips :) I picked a beef tomato variety just because I liked the name. Mortgage Lifter from Fothergills and I was glad I did as the fruits were big and juicy and great for cooking and eating on cheese sarnis. I like to hear other peeps recommendations too and I'm more likely to buy a particular variety if someone on here says it's good and worked for them. I was disappointed with my peas but read that EJ was recommending one, so I'll probably go for that. So I think your chart has been very helpful and thanks for helping us to help you compile it. Fun too :)
You have a problem, Mike? Join the club!!
And wardy, nothing wrong with Early King - just that the newer ones don't go starchy.
And I grow heritage varieties, too. And Mortgage Lifter will always be there.
Tim Do you grow Mortgage Lifter? I thought I was on my own ;D
No - but it is so famous?
http://www.southernexposure.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=49128&Category_Code=PTOM
Well, Mike, while I know you long to come up to my high standard in Melon cultivation, please realize it takes years of complete incompetence to reach my status....... ;D ;D ;D But I think it was Galia, must you rub it in.... ::) ::) ::) Rest of my list is pretty much the same as EJs. Best indoor tom I had was Ferline, but think it can be grown outdoors as well. If you require to tap any more into my untapped knowledge, just yell...... ;) Lottie
I have come to this post late and cannot work out what a mortgage lifter is. Please enlighten.
Nearly typed mortgage lifer by mistake - and they say that Freud talks what a dog has between its legs.
A Mortgage Lifter is a beef tomato which I grew this year. I chose it as I liked the name and it turned out a good choice. Huge fruits, few seeds, but loads of juice and flavour.
Here is a pic of my Mortgage Lifters :)
Blimey, Wardy!! Have tried Beef steak toms most years, though they taste great, are tiny! Like Melon! Perhaps I should investigate market in miniature veg........Lottie ;)
Thank you Mike. This is terrific. ;D
I have my list pined up in front of the computer, just in case there should be any more edits! ;)
And, redclanger, if you want more on the Lifter, see my link above. Simpson's do both seeds AND plants.
wardy - does it need any special treatment?
VEGETABLE QUICK REFERENCE
As a follow up to what to grow (Next year's crop), I came across this chart of when to grow, I hope it helps
(http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a149/mike_brennan/When.jpg)
(http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a149/mike_brennan/When1.jpg)
(http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a149/mike_brennan/When2.jpg)
Regards
MikeB
PS Lottie how was I to know?, You could have really, really big hands! Hence large melon
No...sniff...have small hands....makes it even worse... ;D ;) Great list by the way!! Lottie ;D ;)
Tim Only special treatment M Lifters require are stout stakes as the fruit is heavy. My supports were far too flimsy and keeled over at the slightest draught. They were fed with Miracle Gro which I wouldn't have used but my husband bought me a great big box full which was kind of him. I only fed them about once a week though and at normal dilution. I grew some in tubs by the shed and the others were in growbags two deep (eg one on top of the other). they are still fruiting now and I've got a nice big one ripening nicely
Thanks!
Wardy, I am presuming you have no blight in your area? All my toms succumbed yet again, but the Ferlines hung on the longest! ;D
I don't think there's any blight. Not heard anyone mention it and I've had masses of toms. Good point about Ferlines though :)
Quote from: MikeB on October 14, 2005, 08:40:50
VEGETABLE QUICK REFERENCE
As a follow up to what to grow (Next year's crop), I came across this chart of when to grow, I hope it helps
Regards
MikeB
PS Lottie how was I to know?, You could have really, really big hands! Hence large melon
Mike B, have you set your frost dates on Garden Action. It is one of the first sites I discovered when I took up veg gardening in my postage stamp of a back garden - long before I got a lottie. Have had a print out of that page pinned to the wall above my PC ever since.
Hi Redclanger
Yes I have set my frost dates, we were discussing it in sowing under glass/re unheated greenhouse.
MikeB