Kitchen Garden Forum

Memo to self: Next year avoid going on holiday just when the crops are peaking. I've just picked lots of beans, courgettes & cucumbers and the first few tomatoes (despite some blight)and we depart on holiday the day after tomorrow. Luckily we're self-catering so can take surplus stuff with us but how do the rest of you manage if you want to holiday in this country and get the sunniest time of the year?

Hi Primrose

I won't go away at this time of year any more but when I last did I asked a neighbour to pick everything. I told her she could have everything she picked and she was delighted. She came down daily with her daughter and grandchildren and ate/froze everything.

Dear Chantal, i'm surprised that they weren't scared to death, we all know of your strange looking veg.

Dear Primrose, i have to say, like Chantal i have freinds and family that are more than willing to pick the veg, i'm just having a bit more of a job to get them to do the weeding though.
Failing that, if you strip everything off even if quite small, the veg plants should be fine when you get back, if you are only going for a week of course and not a years cruise.

What?? Me go on a cruise ?? Where I have to wear respectable clothes and spend my evenings nightclubbing in the bars?? Definitely not my scene. My idea of Hell actually.

Me and you alike then Primrose.

If you ask neighbours etc to pick veg it's important to make them understand that they're actually doing you a favour as well and that beans and courgettes MUST BE PICKED! A short lesson in veg growing won't go amiss. Some of our friends have been a bit reticent and over polite!
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Granny

Friends, and family are fine picking your veggies when on holiday if it is your garden but the allotment is different kettle of fish.

We find if you tell one to pick for you they all think it is a 'free for all'.

I don't go away this time of the year but for others that do with families it can be a problem.

Is there a solution?

Beryl.

I must admit that I had to give some lessons on picking before I left them to it. Getting them understand that although I wanted them to every bean and courgette possible, there was no requirement whatsoever to scoff their way through over 200 leeks!

We generally don't go for more than a week and that's usually in the first week of the school holidays, so not really a peak time for picking. Unfortunately neither of my neighbours would recognise a fresh vegetable if it jumped up and down shouting "I'm a fresh vegetable, I'm a fresh vegetable". So I wouldn't like to let them loose in my garden.

we like to go away in winter to get some sunshine to break up the long dfark nights so we are here when the glut is on , but then we are at the Grandchild stage so past school holidays