Page 24 - ALG Issue 4 2017

Expert Guide to...
Growing for Showing
There are two ways to grow for showing; one is to grow your vegetables, fruit and owers as you normally do, giving them the usual maintenance etc. then just before the show you lift or pick your best crops for the exhibits. This can work alright for the small shows where competition is not too tough and, if you have good quality produce, you may win some prizes. But it is unlikely you will consistently win rsts and certainly not at the major shows year in year out. If you enjoy growing and just want to enter shows for the fun of it and maybe win a few prizes, this is ne.
The keener and usually competitive grower will take it more seriously and will grow certain crops for speci c shows. It becomes more about growing for showing and this needs skill, knowledge, attention to detail, tenacity, persistence and occasionally a bit of luck. This is not for everyone but many people enjoy it and it becomes part of their lives.
The keen exhibitor rst plans out which shows they will enter and which crops they will grow but must be careful not to overstretch themselves. They plan the sowing dates, which cultivars/varieties to grow and the growing techniques to use. The cultivars that win most often have been selected over the years and have the right genetic material to produce top quality crops of the right size; Sweet Candle the carrot is an example.
Once you have the dates of the shows, the sowing dates can
be calculated. Find how long it takes to grow the crop to maturity. Often you’ll nd this information in the seed catalogues, and then work back to the sowing date. So if the show is on the last week of August and the crop takes 22 weeks to reach maturity from sowing, the seed will need to be sown in late March. Most growers will sow over a two to three-week period to allow for variations in the weather and other factors that control the speed of growth.
The next point to consider is the soil or growing media and if growing in raised beds or containers like large drums. The top exhibitors grow their potatoes in poly bags or large pots and root crops in large drums or similar containers. Many indoor type crops such as tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers etc. are grown in a media or hydroponically in water.
If growing in the soil, and many crops are, this needs to be very fertile and improved over the years. Regardless of what type of soil, adding organic matter will improve it (unless it is a peat soil!). Apply as much as possible either digging it in or spreading as a mulch over the surface. The types of organic matter include farmyard manure, horse manure, spent hops or mushroom compost, home-made compost, municipal compost or leaf mould. If this is not available, sow green manure and dig this in or compost it and then add it to the soil.
If growing deep rooted crops, it is worthwhile double digging an area each year; this opens up a greater volume of soil for the roots to easily penetrate and improves the drainage of clay soils. It also breaks up any pans in the soil.
Alongside the use of organic matter, to achieve good quality and good sized crops, some additional feeding will often be required. This can be applied when sowing or planting as a base dressing using fertilisers such as Growmore, Osmocote, Vitex Q4 or, if an organic grower, blood, sh and bone, organic Growmore or similar. Alternatively, crops can be fed by liquid feeding using Phostrogen, Miracle Gro, Maxicrop, comfrey or nettle tea.
Crops grown for showing are usually spaced further apart than when grown for eating; this is to allow space for larger plants
but also give them more light and less competition for water and nutrients.
To achieve good quality crops, it is important to have attention
to detail throughout. They must be kept weed-free to reduce competition and avoid weeds acting as a pest or disease host. They should be inspected at least weekly for any pest or disease problems and prompt action taken.
If you are a happy “grow your owner” then the next challenge may be to try exhibiting at shows, so give it a go; once hooked you will not be able to stop!
Kelvin Mason FNVS National Vegetable Society
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