These vegatables in the photo look wonderful don’t they, fresh ,healthy, tasty and yet they are going to be no better for you until you eat them!

Sounds like a stupid statement, yet all the time I drive past gardens and allotments with row after row of sad veg that’s just left to make compost fodder.

The  problem is quite simple – people don’t grow what they want to eat or what they like to eat, or they will grow just too much of one variety or one type of vegetable which leads to a glut or just getting fed up with the same thing

So the  questions you should always ask yourself before sowing any plant are:

Will I use this?

Do I like the taste?

I know it sounds like a stupid question but we only have to think of beetroot and radishes the two vegetables that suffer most from this problem, because radishes generally get left  too long in the garden and they become too big and loose that wonderful crisp sharp bite which I believe is best appreciated just dipped into good mayonnaise.

Beetroot when fresh and roasted bares no resemblance to the ones we find in jars and is in fact the perfect complement to a strong cheddar cheese and makes a great rissotto.

Remember that your time is precious – you can’t make any more time, you can’t save time for a rainy day so what’s the point in wasting it growing vegetables you wont eat.

It costs you to buy the seeds,  to add compost and make the effort to plant seeds – its pointless exercise if at the end of all this, the vegetables are going to sit in your garden looking sad and neglected waiting for that trip to the compost heap

I suppose beetroot and radishes suffer the most because they are the easiest veg to grow but before you rush out and plant loads –  ask yourself

How much space will it take up in the bed and for how long?

How long can I leave it in the garden before it’s past it’s best?

How many ways can I use this vegetable in my recipes?

Don’t get me wrong –  I think  its really important to try new varieties and different types of  vegetables –  but try them in small amounts that don’t fill up precious space in your veg plot with something you might not like!!

If you read my posts i recommend what i feel are the tastiest varieties  and the easiest ways to grow them

Because as we all know freshly picked organically grown vegetables are without doubt infinitely better for you, taste amazing, and give you a  great sense of achievement. Especially if your children helped in the growing of them.   Just remember :

ITS BLOODY POINTLESS GROWING ROWS OF COMPOST FODDER !!!