Page 10 - Simply Veg 4 2022

at least it can help to encourage people to grow their own and educate them in the growing. It also fulfils one of the purposes of the NVS and some may become members in the future. Whilst mentioning new members may I welcome any new members / readers and hope you enjoy the magazine. If there are any articles or information you would like to read, please let me know, my contact details are at the bottom right corner of page three. Even better if you would like to write a letter or article, I would be very pleased to receive them.
I have rambled on long enough now so what is in this magazine, if you were hoping for a break from me the bad news is there is an article on Japanese onion growing which was requested by members in the survey carried out by Raymond Higgins for the trustees a couple of years ago. There
is also an article on the productive plot giving methods for making maximum use of your allotment / vegetable plot which will become more important in the future especially if the current economic situation continues. The era of cheap food could be over and the amount we spend on food is likely to increase back to the percentage of our income that it used to be in the 1950’s and earlier periods.
To give you a change from me I am very pleased to say that Adrian Baggaley has penned a couple of articles on fruit growing, the first on his attempts to beat the frost to avoid any damage to the fruit flowers resulting in reduced fruit yield this
Marshalls Chelsea exhibit
shows the dedication good growers need to go to for top quality crops. The second on the brix levels of various cultivars of pears which is a very interesting read and may guide you in which cultivars to buy if buying some pears this autumn / winter. On a similar theme Graeme Le Marquand has sent an article on tasting tomatoes which to some extent is linked to the brix level. Tomato tasting is a very personal thing as some people prefer sweeter tasting fruit others prefer a more acid flavour, me I just want a good crop!
Ron Nuttall has also sent in two articles one on blackberries a much-under-utilised fruit and if the modern cultivars are chosen can be heavy yielders. If you are into foraging, then there is little need to grow them but if not, blackberries do not take up a lot of space if grown against a fence or wall and are not too fussy on either soil or aspect. Ron has also briefly covered the social experience of allotment gardening in a second article.
Emily Plumb updates us on their growing of cucumber, peppers, and courgettes and in the Essex Branch news the Plumb family
nearly wiped the board clean winning many cards. In the future Sherie will not be the only one for top exhibitors to beat there is a clan of them!
Derek Brooks continues his series on seasonal work to carry out in the garden or on the allotment and although the October to December period many think is a quiet time Derek will keep you busy and ensure you are doing the right things at the right time.
Alison Clarke has compiled a comprehensive report on the Southern Branch Championships and also persuaded a guest editor to do a short profile of three of our members who attended.
I should not finish my comments without thanking Fiona Shenfield for all the work she puts into Simply Vegetables including this magazine with articles on Gardeners World Live, seed trialists reports and What’s On.
As I am now running out of space, I will end here despite the fact I was dying to have another rant! I hope you have had a good harvest.
10 Simply Vegetables
Article in July
2022 issue
of Simply
Vegetables
Branded Peat and Peat-Free Substrates – Comparison of Yields”
The article as published did not match the PDF and Word documents provided by the authors and contained errors and omissions, for which I apologise. These included leaving out the names of the authors Anthony Boyd and Stephen Morton.
Kelvin Mason - Editor