Kitchen Garden Forum

Re Banana Shallot shortage. First the good news, in Basildon [Essex] Town Centre we have a small French Market. As many Banana Shallots as you could wish for. Now the bad news, it is only there until Saturday 4th.I have spoken to the stallholder re could we lay on a supply for next year, he was a bit cagey on this as the French suppliers are not happy on sending them abroad, so much for open boarders in the Common Market. I have passed my email address to him, and he has promised to speak to his guvnor re a supply for next season. Of course I bought a few for myself. SHALLOT MAN

Lucky you, I bagged mine at a Normandy market last year and have about a kilo ready to go out when the weather is better and a tray or two started off in my heated greenhouse which are coming on great guns. I picked out the medium sized and smaller ones to bring home as some of them were 6-7 inches long.

Hi Pigletwillie. re your planting shallots in a heated greenhouse. you might be interested that the old dockers used to plant shallots in pots on the shortest day,[ in south facing lee of house] to get them started, they would plant out mid march, if soil was in a suitable condition, & harvest on the longest day, taking great care to dry out thoroughly. Shallot Man PS, how did you train the Memsahib to shift manure?

I knew that people sow onion and shallot seeds on the longest day but didnt realise they did the same with sets.

As for the Memsahib shifting manure, well shes a great lass, but carefull use of a cattle prod works wonders.

Piglet, I take it SHE carefully wields the cattle prod and you jump to it.


At any rate when she reads this thread be ready to run, very very fast.

No, no need to run, she is tied up in the workshop until I need some more muck moving.