"Franz Heymann" pushed briefly to
the front of the queue on Wed, 3 Sep 2003 08:24:37 +0000 (UTC), and
nailed this to the shed door:

^ "Phil & Diane Martin" wrote in message
^ ...

^ Help,,,,,,,,,,,,to many tomatoes,,,,,,,,,freezer full of tomato
^ soup,,,,,,,neighbours sick of tomatoes,,,,,,,,,,,,no more
^ chutney!!!!!!!!!!
^ any suggestions
^
^ Start a compost bin.
^ Amateur vegetable growers frequently suffer from overproduction

Ah. Any /professional/ tips on how I might avoid this error in future?

Andy
--

"No, you claim the magpie is to blame for all the
worlds ills, based on your ignorance of magpies."
(4a7391c12e538ef306d33d71c9482221@TeraNews)

In article ,
(Andy Spragg) wrote:

^ Amateur vegetable growers frequently suffer from overproduction

Ah. Any /professional/ tips on how I might avoid this error in future?

With many crops, not planting all at the same time can mean production
is spread over a longer period and is therefore more useful.

Also, consider sowing several different varieties of a crop especially
where some are described as "early".

On tomatoes, I planted 6 Gardeners Delight over a 6 week period and also
a Red Alert and Ailsa Craig from bought in plants. My first tom was in
mid-July and it looks like production will continue until frosts.

Another thing about Gardeners Delight - they are really NICE. That means
that 15 a day isn't "over production" :-) I eat them all.

Steve Harris - Cheltenham - Real address steve AT netservs DOT com

"Andy Spragg" wrote in message
...
"Franz Heymann" pushed briefly to
the front of the queue on Wed, 3 Sep 2003 08:24:37 +0000 (UTC), and
nailed this to the shed door:

^ "Phil & Diane Martin" wrote in message
^ ...

^ Help,,,,,,,,,,,,to many tomatoes,,,,,,,,,freezer full of tomato
^ soup,,,,,,,neighbours sick of tomatoes,,,,,,,,,,,,no more
^ chutney!!!!!!!!!!
^ any suggestions
^
^ Start a compost bin.
^ Amateur vegetable growers frequently suffer from overproduction

Ah. Any /professional/ tips on how I might avoid this error in future?
(1) Invest in a neighbour who overproduces chronically, thas saving you
from following suit
(2) Buy your vegetables. It is much cheaper that way, if you do a full
cost-benefit analysis.

Franz

On Thu, 4 Sep 2003 17:52:17 +0000 (UTC), "Franz Heymann"
wrote:

~
~"Andy Spragg" wrote in message
...
~ "Franz Heymann" pushed briefly to
~ the front of the queue on Wed, 3 Sep 2003 08:24:37 +0000 (UTC), and
~ nailed this to the shed door:
~
~ ^ "Phil & Diane Martin" wrote in message
~ ^ ...
~
~ ^ Help,,,,,,,,,,,,to many tomatoes,,,,,,,,,freezer full of tomato
~ ^ soup,,,,,,,neighbours sick of tomatoes,,,,,,,,,,,,no more
~ ^ chutney!!!!!!!!!!
~ ^ any suggestions
~ ^
~ ^ Start a compost bin.
~ ^ Amateur vegetable growers frequently suffer from overproduction
~
~ Ah. Any /professional/ tips on how I might avoid this error in future?
~(1) Invest in a neighbour who overproduces chronically, thas saving you
~from following suit
~(2) Buy your vegetables. It is much cheaper that way, if you do a full
~cost-benefit analysis.
~
'tis maybe so, *but* if you add in the cost of a gym membership to get
all the exercise you would otherwise get digging and maintaining a veg
plot, it's a heck of a lot cheaper to grow your own!!!

Plus you always know what's gone into homegrown veg... and they really
do taste better.

:-)

Half-wish I had a glut of tomatoes - but then that's why I grow 'em in
hanging baskets... never get too many.


--
jane

Don't part with your illusions. When they are gone,
you may still exist but you have ceased to live.
Mark Twain

Please remove onmaps from replies, thanks!

On Thu, 4 Sep 2003 17:52:17 +0000 (UTC), "Franz Heymann"
wrote:

It is much cheaper that way, if you do a full
cost-benefit analysis.

No it jolly well isn't! Can you justify?

Pam in Bristol

wrote in message
...
On Thu, 4 Sep 2003 17:52:17 +0000 (UTC), "Franz Heymann"
wrote:

~
~"Andy Spragg" wrote in message
...
~ "Franz Heymann" pushed briefly to
~ the front of the queue on Wed, 3 Sep 2003 08:24:37 +0000 (UTC), and
~ nailed this to the shed door:
~
~ ^ "Phil & Diane Martin" wrote in message
~ ^ ...
~
~ ^ Help,,,,,,,,,,,,to many tomatoes,,,,,,,,,freezer full of tomato
~ ^ soup,,,,,,,neighbours sick of tomatoes,,,,,,,,,,,,no more
~ ^ chutney!!!!!!!!!!
~ ^ any suggestions
~ ^
~ ^ Start a compost bin.
~ ^ Amateur vegetable growers frequently suffer from overproduction
~
~ Ah. Any /professional/ tips on how I might avoid this error in future?
~(1) Invest in a neighbour who overproduces chronically, thas saving you
~from following suit
~(2) Buy your vegetables. It is much cheaper that way, if you do a full
~cost-benefit analysis.
~
'tis maybe so, *but* if you add in the cost of a gym membership to get
all the exercise you would otherwise get digging and maintaining a veg
plot, it's a heck of a lot cheaper to grow your own!!!

You have a point.

Plus you always know what's gone into homegrown veg... and they really
do taste better.

:-)

With all respect to my neighbour, whose tomatoes, cabbages and broccoli are
always welcome, they taste no better than the organically grown veggies we
buy.

Half-wish I had a glut of tomatoes - but then that's why I grow 'em in
hanging baskets... never get too many.

Hey, I might consider growing one or two in a 2 ft 6 in pot housing a
Banksia rose against a South wall. What variety do you grow like that?
Whose seed do you use?
When and where do you start the seeds off?

Franz

"Pam Moore" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 4 Sep 2003 17:52:17 +0000 (UTC), "Franz Heymann"
wrote:

It is much cheaper that way, if you do a full
cost-benefit analysis.

No it jolly well isn't! Can you justify?

Before I started losing my marbles, I could command upwards of £20 per hour
for consulting work. I could not possibly generate £20 worth of vegetables
in an hour's work.

Pam in Bristol

In article , Franz Heymann notfranz.
writes

"Andy Spragg" wrote in message
...

Ah. Any /professional/ tips on how I might avoid this error in future?

(1) Invest in a neighbour who overproduces chronically, thas saving you
from following suit
(2) Buy your vegetables. It is much cheaper that way, if you do a full
cost-benefit analysis.

It's true! You pay an awful lot for the flavour.
Fruit is a much better bet. Costs a lot in the shops, you can produce it
in abundance, and it's a lot less work than veg.
--
Kay Easton

Edward's earthworm page:
http://www.scarboro.demon.co.uk/edward/index.htm

(2) Buy your vegetables. It is much cheaper that way, if you do a full
cost-benefit analysis.

It's true! You pay an awful lot for the flavour.
Fruit is a much better bet. Costs a lot in the shops, you can produce it
in abundance, and it's a lot less work than veg.

Most veg are very easy to grow, especially tomatoes. What you grow is
fresher and tastier and you know its origin. I wouldn't buy anything I can
grow easily.

But we prefer vegetables to fruit anyway ..

Mary
--
Kay Easton

Edward's earthworm page:
http://www.scarboro.demon.co.uk/edward/index.htm

(2) Buy your vegetables. It is much cheaper that way, if you do a full
cost-benefit analysis.

It's true! You pay an awful lot for the flavour.
Fruit is a much better bet. Costs a lot in the shops, you can produce it
in abundance, and it's a lot less work than veg.

Most veg are very easy to grow, especially tomatoes. What you grow is
fresher and tastier and you know its origin. I wouldn't buy anything I can
grow easily.

But we prefer vegetables to fruit anyway ..

Mary
--
Kay Easton

Edward's earthworm page:
http://www.scarboro.demon.co.uk/edward/index.htm

In article , Mary Fisher
writes
(2) Buy your vegetables. It is much cheaper that way, if you do a full
cost-benefit analysis.

It's true! You pay an awful lot for the flavour.
Fruit is a much better bet. Costs a lot in the shops, you can produce it
in abundance, and it's a lot less work than veg.

Most veg are very easy to grow, especially tomatoes.

!!
I don't have sympathy with tomato plants. I can't sense their needs ;-)

What you grow is
fresher and tastier and you know its origin. I wouldn't buy anything I can
grow easily.

The money I save from growing fruit allows me to buy organic veg

But we prefer vegetables to fruit anyway ..

Ah .. I'm the other way around.
Except for potatoes, and there's no way I can grow enough of those to
keep us through the year.
--
Kay Easton

Edward's earthworm page:
http://www.scarboro.demon.co.uk/edward/index.htm

On Thu, 4 Sep 2003 19:34:45 +0000 (UTC), "Franz Heymann"
wrote:

~
wrote in message
...
~ On Thu, 4 Sep 2003 17:52:17 +0000 (UTC), "Franz Heymann"
~ wrote:
~
~ ~
~ ~"Andy Spragg" wrote in message
~ ...
~ ~ "Franz Heymann" pushed briefly to
~ ~ the front of the queue on Wed, 3 Sep 2003 08:24:37 +0000 (UTC), and
~ ~ nailed this to the shed door:
~ ~
~ ~ ^ "Phil & Diane Martin" wrote in message
~ ~ ^ ...
~ ~
~ ~ ^ Help,,,,,,,,,,,,to many tomatoes,,,,,,,,,freezer full of tomato
~ ~ ^ soup,,,,,,,neighbours sick of tomatoes,,,,,,,,,,,,no more
~ ~ ^ chutney!!!!!!!!!!
~ ~ ^ any suggestions
~ ~ ^
~ ~ ^ Start a compost bin.
~ ~ ^ Amateur vegetable growers frequently suffer from overproduction
~ ~
~ ~ Ah. Any /professional/ tips on how I might avoid this error in future?
~ ~(1) Invest in a neighbour who overproduces chronically, thas saving you
~ ~from following suit
~ ~(2) Buy your vegetables. It is much cheaper that way, if you do a full
~ ~cost-benefit analysis.
~ ~
~ 'tis maybe so, *but* if you add in the cost of a gym membership to get
~ all the exercise you would otherwise get digging and maintaining a veg
~ plot, it's a heck of a lot cheaper to grow your own!!!
~
~You have a point.
~
~ Plus you always know what's gone into homegrown veg... and they really
~ do taste better.
~
~ :-)
~
~With all respect to my neighbour, whose tomatoes, cabbages and broccoli are
~always welcome, they taste no better than the organically grown veggies we
~buy.

Ah but you buy *organic*. They already have one advantage!

After three years of exhaustive and very critical testing (ie my
mother we have come to the conclusion that homegrown carrots are
totally different as the water content of home-growns is much much
less than commercial organic or non-organic, so they have less of a
storage life before going shrivelled, but you get the taste
concentration at the same time.
Onions are crisper and ditto for taste (though you may not want
stronger onions!!!!) and soft fruit, especially raspberries are
unbashed and wonderful. True, the latter can be picked at a PYO but
then you forego the organic option, usually. Fairly sure my local one
isn't.
Potatoes too are much nicer when just dug with the added advantage of
being able to choose a variety that is really tasty. Sweetcorn can be
picked and eaten fast enough to retain its flavour.
Runner beans do taste the same to me but you get to pick them when
they are small enough to have no strings rather than huge
grown-for-size things that you have chuck half away...
Everything else you can get equivalents for in the supermarkets which
taste similar to homegrown. I'll not willingly stop growing carrots*
or onions, even if I do have to fight off the dreaded carrot fly!

* I grew Amsterdam forcing indoors in a large plant pot of John Innes
between January and May. Easy! Tempted to plant some more this week so
I can have fresh ones at Christmas...

~
~ Half-wish I had a glut of tomatoes - but then that's why I grow 'em in
~ hanging baskets... never get too many.
~
~Hey, I might consider growing one or two in a 2 ft 6 in pot housing a
~Banksia rose against a South wall. What variety do you grow like that?
~Whose seed do you use?
~When and where do you start the seeds off?

(consults diary)

Suttons Tumbler F1 (Cherry tomatoes). Don't grow the newer Tumbling
Tom - grew 'em last year and they were dreadful in comparison. The
seeds seem expensive - 2 quid a packet of seven, but given tubs of
cherry toms are a quid each and six plants will give you way more than
this, they do work well. Two years ago I got 7lbs off on one day
(though poor things had just got blight and I had to work fast).

Sowed them 2nd week April inside. Can be sown earlier but I don't want
them too big before the frost clear date cos they need to grow compact
rather than leggy.

Three in a 12" basket do very well, and the fruit are heart-shaped -
have little points at the bottom! Maybe not as sweet as Gardeners'
Delight but still pretty darn good. And pretty!

Good luck!


--
jane

Don't part with your illusions. When they are gone,
you may still exist but you have ceased to live.
Mark Twain

Please remove onmaps from replies, thanks!

The message
from Kay Easton contains these words:

Ah .. I'm the other way around.
Except for potatoes, and there's no way I can grow enough of those to
keep us through the year.

You may notice the space-saving spud-growing tip I gleaned from GQT
somewhere around. If not, I'll repeat it for you.

--
Rusty http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/hi-fi/tqt.htm
horrid·squeak snailything zetnet·co·uk exchange d.p. with p to
reply.

wrote in message
...
On Thu, 4 Sep 2003 19:34:45 +0000 (UTC), "Franz Heymann"
wrote:

~
wrote in message
...
~ On Thu, 4 Sep 2003 17:52:17 +0000 (UTC), "Franz Heymann"
~ wrote:
~
~ ~
~ ~"Andy Spragg" wrote in message
~ ...
~ ~ "Franz Heymann" pushed briefly to
~ ~ the front of the queue on Wed, 3 Sep 2003 08:24:37 +0000 (UTC), and
~ ~ nailed this to the shed door:
~ ~
~ ~ ^ "Phil & Diane Martin" wrote in message
~ ~ ^ ...
~ ~
~ ~ ^ Help,,,,,,,,,,,,to many tomatoes,,,,,,,,,freezer full of tomato
~ ~ ^ soup,,,,,,,neighbours sick of tomatoes,,,,,,,,,,,,no more
~ ~ ^ chutney!!!!!!!!!!
~ ~ ^ any suggestions
~ ~ ^
~ ~ ^ Start a compost bin.
~ ~ ^ Amateur vegetable growers frequently suffer from overproduction
~ ~
~ ~ Ah. Any /professional/ tips on how I might avoid this error in
future?
~ ~(1) Invest in a neighbour who overproduces chronically, thas saving
you
~ ~from following suit
~ ~(2) Buy your vegetables. It is much cheaper that way, if you do a
full
~ ~cost-benefit analysis.
~ ~
~ 'tis maybe so, *but* if you add in the cost of a gym membership to get
~ all the exercise you would otherwise get digging and maintaining a veg
~ plot, it's a heck of a lot cheaper to grow your own!!!
~
~You have a point.
~
~ Plus you always know what's gone into homegrown veg... and they really
~ do taste better.
~
~ :-)
~
~With all respect to my neighbour, whose tomatoes, cabbages and broccoli
are
~always welcome, they taste no better than the organically grown veggies
we
~buy.

Ah but you buy *organic*. They already have one advantage!

After three years of exhaustive and very critical testing (ie my
mother we have come to the conclusion that homegrown carrots are
totally different as the water content of home-growns is much much
less than commercial organic or non-organic, so they have less of a
storage life before going shrivelled, but you get the taste
concentration at the same time.

I take it that you do not eat boiled carrots? Once treated in boiling
water, the initial water content is surely pretty irrelevant?

Onions are crisper and ditto for taste (though you may not want
stronger onions!!!!)

The stronger and rawer the better.

and soft fruit, especially raspberries are
unbashed and wonderful.

That is probably because commercial soft fruit are frequently varieties
which are selected for appearance rather than flavour.

I remember the days when one could actually smell the strawberries on
display at Chelsea.

True, the latter can be picked at a PYO but
then you forego the organic option, usually. Fairly sure my local one
isn't.
Potatoes too are much nicer when just dug with the added advantage of
being able to choose a variety that is really tasty.

We have that advantage at Sainsbury's. They stock a large range of
varieties, including Charlottes, which are supreme.

Sweetcorn can be
picked and eaten fast enough to retain its flavour.

One meal per year of this is sufficient. Not worth growing just for that.

Runner beans do taste the same to me but you get to pick them when
they are small enough to have no strings rather than huge
grown-for-size things that you have chuck half away...

The supermarket beans we buy have no strings and a good flavour.

Everything else you can get equivalents for in the supermarkets which
taste similar to homegrown. I'll not willingly stop growing carrots*
or onions, even if I do have to fight off the dreaded carrot fly!

* I grew Amsterdam forcing indoors in a large plant pot of John Innes
between January and May. Easy! Tempted to plant some more this week so
I can have fresh ones at Christmas...

[snip]

Franz

Top comment: How the heck do I prune this one? :-)

On Fri, 5 Sep 2003 09:13:18 +0000 (UTC), "Franz Heymann"
wrote:
wrote in message
~ On Thu, 4 Sep 2003 19:34:45 +0000 (UTC), "Franz Heymann"
~ wrote:
~ ~
~ wrote:
~ ~ On Thu, 4 Sep 2003 17:52:17 +0000 (UTC), "Franz Heymann"
~ ~ wrote:
~ ~
~ ~ ~
~ ~ ~"Andy Spragg" wrote:
~ ~ ~ "Franz Heymann" pushed briefly to
~ ~ ~ the front of the queue on Wed, 3 Sep 2003 08:24:37 +0000 (UTC), and
~ ~ ~ nailed this to the shed door:
~ ~ ~
~ ~ ~ ^ "Phil & Diane Martin" wrote in message
~ ~ ~ ^ ...
~ ~ ~
~ ~ ~ ^ Help,,,,,,,,,,,,to many tomatoes,,,,,,,,,freezer full of tomato
~ ~ ~ ^ soup,,,,,,,neighbours sick of tomatoes,,,,,,,,,,,,no more
~ ~ ~ ^ chutney!!!!!!!!!!
~ ~ ~ ^ any suggestions
~ ~ ~ ^
~ ~ ~ ^ Start a compost bin.
~ ~ ~ ^ Amateur vegetable growers frequently suffer from overproduction
~ ~ ~
~ ~ ~ Ah. Any /professional/ tips on how I might avoid this error in
~future?
~ ~ ~(1) Invest in a neighbour who overproduces chronically, thas saving
~you
~ ~ ~from following suit
~ ~ ~(2) Buy your vegetables. It is much cheaper that way, if you do a
~full
~ ~ ~cost-benefit analysis.
~ ~ ~
~ ~ 'tis maybe so, *but* if you add in the cost of a gym membership to get
~ ~ all the exercise you would otherwise get digging and maintaining a veg
~ ~ plot, it's a heck of a lot cheaper to grow your own!!!
~ ~
~ ~You have a point.
~ ~
~ ~ Plus you always know what's gone into homegrown veg... and they really
~ ~ do taste better.
~ ~
~ ~ :-)
~ ~
~ ~With all respect to my neighbour, whose tomatoes, cabbages and broccoli
~are
~ ~always welcome, they taste no better than the organically grown veggies
~we
~ ~buy.
~
~ Ah but you buy *organic*. They already have one advantage!
~
~ After three years of exhaustive and very critical testing (ie my
~ mother we have come to the conclusion that homegrown carrots are
~ totally different as the water content of home-growns is much much
~ less than commercial organic or non-organic, so they have less of a
~ storage life before going shrivelled, but you get the taste
~ concentration at the same time.
~
~I take it that you do not eat boiled carrots? Once treated in boiling
~water, the initial water content is surely pretty irrelevant?
Come to think of it, no I don't. Raw in coleslaw, baked batons in
garlic butter in foil for roast dinners, stir fried pieces... don't
boil them at all!

~ Onions are crisper and ditto for taste (though you may not want
~ stronger onions!!!!)
~
~The stronger and rawer the better.
I think I've outdone my SO this year - even he can't peel them without
crying....
~
~ and soft fruit, especially raspberries are
~ unbashed and wonderful.
~
~That is probably because commercial soft fruit are frequently varieties
~which are selected for appearance rather than flavour.
True. Bush and tree fruit is def worth growing because it's hardly any
effort and arrives most years as a kind of gift. Blackbirds
permitting!

~I remember the days when one could actually smell the strawberries on
~display at Chelsea.
~
~ True, the latter can be picked at a PYO but
~ then you forego the organic option, usually. Fairly sure my local one
~ isn't.
~ Potatoes too are much nicer when just dug with the added advantage of
~ being able to choose a variety that is really tasty.
~
~We have that advantage at Sainsbury's. They stock a large range of
~varieties, including Charlottes, which are supreme
Still not quite as large as the growers' options. I rarely go to JS
now as they are nowhere near as good as they used to be. Pity. Our
local one has minimal numbers of people on tills at any time, so you
always have to queue, even if it's 10pm. So I go to Waitrose next door
where they actually *do* open more tills if needed...

~ Sweetcorn can be
~ picked and eaten fast enough to retain its flavour.
~One meal per year of this is sufficient. Not worth growing just for that.
I have now got a nice fat freezer drawer of cobs. Yum.

~ Runner beans do taste the same to me but you get to pick them when
~ they are small enough to have no strings rather than huge
~ grown-for-size things that you have chuck half away...
~
~The supermarket beans we buy have no strings and a good flavour.
Lucky you. Every time I resort to Waitrose beans I always find a good
proportion of stringy ones. Luckily for the past 4 years I've had
enough out of the garden to have loads in the freezer. Bit thin this,
but that's the heat for you.

I think we can agree that to be worth it, it needs to be fun for the
grower or it becomes a chore. It's also not worth it if the things you
feel you can grow better are not things you normally eat. If you have
to give away most of your marrows, say, why grow them? I have had my
broccoli fail this year thanks to birds (grrrr), but won't have to buy
most other veg *that I eat* for months and perhaps not at all, which I
think is the best situation.

I personally won't grow sprouts, broad beans or parsnips cos I loathe
'em. No point.

sorry folks - thread getting a bit long...


--
jane

Don't part with your illusions. When they are gone,
you may still exist but you have ceased to live.
Mark Twain

Please remove onmaps from replies, thanks!