Sunday, September 14, 2008

The Fruit and Vege Varieties

The package will contain two seeds of each of the four varieties of fruit and vegetable. These varieties have been selected for several reasons:

1. They are all popular varieties
2. They are easy to grow
3. Together they cover a broad range of characteristics and growth habits.

The information below will also be included in the project package.

DWARF BORLOTTI BEAN

What are they? Borlotti beans are a dual purpose variety as they can be harvested as a usual green bean when 12cm long or in the more traditional way by shelling the seeds when the pods are dry. They are also known as the Italian bean, and are great in stews, bean salads or soups.
How do you grow them? This variety is best sown in Spring and Summer. Plant the beans 25mm deep in a moist, well-drained soil, preferably in a sheltered sunny position. The seeds should germinate at around 7-10 days. Keep well watered and mulch around roots in hot weather. Plant should be ready to harvest in 8-10 weeks.

SWEET CORN

What are they? This early cropping sweet corn has a terrific taste and produces large, even quality cobs.
How do you grow them? This sweet corn variety prefers a sunny position which is sheltered from the wind, ideally on a well-drained soil which has been enriched with peat or well-rotted manure or compost. It is best sown in Spring to early Summer and should be planted 25mm deep and 250mm apart. Water regularly for best results. This corn variety should be ready to harvest at around 12 weeks.

ARMENIAN CUCUMBER

What are they? This heirloom cucumber variety has a wonderfully refreshing taste, with really large fleshy fruit of an unusual pale green colour. They can be harvested in about 60 days and stores well.
How do you grow them? This variety prefers a well prepared soil with added fertiliser. The seeds should be sown in Spring to early Summer, and should be planted 12mm deep, direct in the final position.

TOMMY TOE TOMATO

What are they? This heirloom variety of cherry tomato is the best tasting tomato of all varieties and produces brilliant red fruit of about apricot size. It is ideal for salads or slicing.
How do you grow them? The seeds should be sown in early spring to early summer, or all year round in warmer areas. They should be planted 6mm deep in a warm, sunny position. The plants will need stake support and prefer regular watering. Harvest the fruit when red, however slightly coloured fruit will ripen indoors. Leave the fruit on the plant as long as possible for larger, sweeter fruit.

2 comments:

Bells said...

I'm a keen but still "young" veggie grower. Looking forward to watching how this project goes.

Anonymous said...

These look great. Can't wait to see how the project develops. :)