Coventry man's crop of monster veg

[dutchman]

Retired Coventry Market trader unveils 460lb pumpkin and 40lb cabbage



If Rupert Stephenson offers to show you his giant marrow, please do not be alarmed!

The former Coventry market trader now loves nothing more than growing crops of monster vegetables and his collection for 2014 has taken him to a new level.

Rupert, from Radford, and his partner Blanche even spread their veg-growing wings to wider climates this year, while a firm favourite – a 57.5-pound marrow – saw them finally win a sought-after award.

Rupert, a retired fishmonger on Coventry Market, said: “Blanche and I had a good year last year; a 460lb pumpkin and 40lb cabbage, but fancied something new.

“So this year we swapped seeds with fellow giant veg growers around the country and bought some exotic veg seeds off the internet.

“We grew giant African maize to ten feet tall, giant beetroot and tomatoes to 5lb each, African beans, kale, rape and Boer squash to 12lb, and even peppers a foot long.

“Of course, we grew a mountain of normal veg to feed the family and friends and a plot full of dahlias for the lovely colour, and we grew our giant pumpkins and marrows again.

“This year was hard as a long cold winter meant we were six weeks late setting seed and planting out, then the wettest winter in years turned into the longest dry warm summer I can remember.

“We had to spend hours at night after work watering by hand and every weekend weeding and tending the plots.”

After all their hard work, the pair entered various village shows winning a number of prizes at Fillongley show, including the cup for most points in the horticultural tent.

They also entered the marrow Sunday contest at Rowington village club where, after six years of trying, they finally won the marrow class with their 57.5-pound whopper.

But what do you do with a crop of monster veg at the end of the season?

“Well, it’s not to be wasted,” explains Rupert. “The pumpkins and marrows are off to Coventry and Nottingham markets for charity events.

“We gave a lovely lot of veg and dahlias to St John the Baptist church’s harvest festival and the giant butternuts, carrots, cabbage and others taste great cooked up by Blanche – trouble is, we need a bigger freezer now!”