Veg Gone Mad

[Solitaire]

Everything has gone mad

My toms keep producing flowers and fruit even though I prune them back, the French Beans and lettuces have gone beserk, I have so many I don't know what to do with them and the courgettes and cucumbers have gone on the rampage across the beds, I keep lossing my carrots

There's only me have most of them time and my neighbour grows his own veg, so I'm at a loss what to do.

[Two_Sheds]

let your French beans dry on the plant, and use them as dried kidney beans.

Next year ... sow fewer plants

[Solitaire]

Being new to growing I think I went a bit overbaord with the seeding , next year I will be able to gauge better when and what to plant

[deezyb]

the newbie bug hits us all Solitaire! always too much at the same time...still fun though...and well done that you've got sooooo much! check out the recipes threads to see what to do with all your stuff...freezing always an option if nothing else!

[SarzWix]

Tomatoes and courgettes can be made into sauces and frozen, french beans can be blanched and frozen - keeps the taste of summer going over winter
Lettuce are a bit 'eat now', but at least they'll enrich the compost bin if you can't get through them all

Tis a nice problem to have, better than everything dying

[Solitaire]

I saw my neighbour in his veg garden and gave him 3 lettuces, a bag of French Beans and a pot of cherry plum jam, he seemed really pleased I know he likes my cakes, just hopes he does the jam

[Nippy]

If you really have so much, is there a residential home or nursing home near by who could use your produce.
Charities have bazaars and fetes at this time of year maybe they could sell it to boost funds.
By the way we have so many raspberries that us and the neighbours are fed up with them

[Two_Sheds]

If you really have so much, is there a residential home or nursing home near by who could use your produce.

I tried giving away my surplus one year to a Lunch Club ... the "cooks" looked at me gone out. They only reheat microwave meals you see

As for school - they wouldn't let the children have anything (strawberries) because of Health & Safety

[Solitaire]

Hubby is over on Monday until Thursday and I've told him he has to help eat the veg and salad

[gojiberry]

The problem with catering outlets for surplus veg is that they often don't have the facilities to prepare it due to it being classed as a contaminated item. That,s why the ready prepared veg is such a big market.

Ian

[Alison Adams]

I tried giving away my surplus one year to a Lunch Club ... the "cooks" looked at me gone out. They only reheat microwave meals you see

As for school - they wouldn't let the children have anything (strawberries) because of Health & Safety

For 'show and tell' Charlies class (7 year olds) is encouraged to bring in made items to talk about, so last week he took a punnet of strawbs to explain how we planted and grew them and then to share them with the class. Relief teacher behaved like they were ricin flavoured and wouldnt even let Charlie eat them himself incase he had an allergy we hadnt known about (?!) They were put on a shelf for the day to go off.

[zazen999]

For 'show and tell' Charlies class (7 year olds) is encouraged to bring in made items to talk about, so last week he took a punnet of strawbs to explain how we planted and grew them and then to share them with the class. Relief teacher behaved like they were ricin flavoured and wouldnt even let Charlie eat them himself incase he had an allergy we hadnt known about (?!) They were put on a shelf for the day to go off.

Oh honestly, words fail me.

Everything has gone mad

My toms keep producing flowers and fruit even though I prune them back, the French Beans and lettuces have gone beserk, I have so many I don't know what to do with them and the courgettes and cucumbers have gone on the rampage across the beds, I keep lossing my carrots

There's only me have most of them time and my neighbour grows his own veg, so I'm at a loss what to do.

I'm sorry Solitaire - you have only yourself to blame. If you will live in the south of France

[You lucky thing, I loved it down there - even though I was ill it was brilliant].

[Maddie106]

Everything has gone mad

My toms keep producing flowers and fruit even though I prune them back, the French Beans and lettuces have gone beserk, I have so many I don't know what to do with them and the courgettes and cucumbers have gone on the rampage across the beds, I keep lossing my carrots

There's only me have most of them time and my neighbour grows his own veg, so I'm at a loss what to do.

LOL..what a wonderful position to be in!!
I have an outdoor cucumber in a cheap plastic mini-greenhouse that is set on world domination!! And that's in the north of England too!
But as long as it grows me tasty cucumbers, I'll let it do it's own thing.

Cucumbers can be wrapped tightly in cling film and will stay fresh in the fridge for a long time by the way.

[Bramble_killer]

I wish we had gluts

We eat everything we grow at the moment and I keep looking hungrily for more. I'd love to be your neighbour!

[Solitaire]

My cucumber has just woken up and flowering and is taking off all over the beds