Growing Parsnips
July 10, 2020
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25th July 2007 I am often asked what is the best method of growing both long carrots and parsnips for the show
Hello. I'm Medwyn Williams – eleven times Gold medal winner at the Chelsea Flower Show, Past Chairman of the Royal Horticultural Society Fruit Vegetable and Herb Committee and President of the National Vegetable Society.
I haven’t been able to put anything on my Blog for the past couple of weeks owing to technical problem. Don’t ask me what it was, probably some garden gremlin got into the works! I have to say that I am very please with onions for Tatton Park Show which we will be staging from Monday to Wednesday afternoon prior to Judging. The smallest is 21.5 inches around and the biggest at 23.5 around. There seems to be two shapes amongst them with four or five bulbs being very tall specimens.
We have been lifting vegetables since Thursday18th and hope to finish on Sunday around tea time so that the lorry can then be packed and ready to set off on Monday morning. There’s no doubt that it’s the worst possible weather for staging a display, some of the carrots immediately after lifting were very rubbery and you could even straighten out a bendy stump carrot! God only knows what they are going to look like by week on Sunday when the show breaks down.
I had a new potato on trial this year called Panther that I believe is German in origin, a first early with fantastic potential for the show bench. It however another white oval, but does crop very well giving very large tubers and I would say on the same sort of time scale as Winston. I was able to get two good sets to stage as exhibition types on the front of my stand as well as a large basket full. I don’t know if we will be selling it for next year, we are currently looking it.
My blanch leeks have survived as well and I should be able to get leeks with a length of 18 inches plus and over 9 inches in girth.
My six Cumbrian pot leeks are also looking good and they will be shown in 7 inch pots with a girth of 11 inches.
The two new Parsnips are looking tremendous with ‘T16’ appearing to be the strongest and tallest as well as being greener than T13. I shall be pulling them this morning.
25th July 2007 I am often asked what is the best method of growing both long carrots and parsnips for the show
There is no doubt that over the past few years this show has become one of the main events in the keen
Peas are a good example of a vegetable that’s easily destroyed by careless handling and poor packaging; they should be cut off
9 thoughts on “Preparing for Tatton Park Flower Show”
Was hoping to take a few exhibits to Tatton myself Medwyn but we’re manic at work and i’ve had to abandon the idea. Best of luck with the display.
The new white potatos sounds interesting, have you managed to taste any? The yhave to be betetr than Winston?
How long do you leave from cutting of potato haulms to harvesting in the ideal world?
Is that John, Brynmawr Allotment?
Good luck, the onions I bought from you are doing fine!
How did the Tatton stand turn out? I assume that you will be doing a stand at Harrogate?
Again apologies for the late reply. We have spoken since on the phone and congratulations on winning with the potatoes at Shrewsbury, not the easiest of shows to win at by any means. It’s a show where some really top growers such as Don Owens, Andrew Jones and John Bebbington usually do well. I did manage to pick up another Gold at Tatton but the dreaded Thrips nearly persuaded the judges otherwise!
Thanks Medwyn, even though its nearly a fortnight ago I have only just recovered from staging at Shrewsbury in virtually every class, I have let the garden go a bit since, stuff just won’t wait for me to get round to it. I used your potato mix this year and was in the cards in all four of the spud classes (there is a fifth but that needs 30 varieties!)so it proves it does the trick. I hope you will be seling it again next year. Amour was the top performing variety and worst for me was definitely kestrel, it seems to be losing its quality, often had deep eyes, los of colour including some virtually colourless tubers and some scab.
Any interesting new varieties coming up in the 2014 catalogue?
Don’t praise him too much Medwyn. I have to put up with him you know… 🙂
Medwyn, Its about time I praised Marcus for his results at Harrogate (sadly I missed the show due to illness) so didn’t see his collection or French and runner beans. He might be a good each way bet for the Banksian medal at next years national.
Whatever happened to summer?