Romanesco cauli/broccoli?

[smallblueplanet]

SBP
They were the GYO free seeds, WINTER they dont do winter in Dorset LOL

Cool! or rather not cool....maybe they don't do winter in Wilts either? well not this year anyway!

[pigletwillie]

If I find it SBP I will pm you.

[smallblueplanet]

If I find it SBP I will pm you.

Most kind me duck.

[pigletwillie]

Ey oop me duck, pm your address you relocated woolyback you and I will post the broccoli romanesco off chuck.

[Poledragon]

For a good climbing bean, try Kentucky Wonder. It's an old heritage variety and really lives up to its name - at least, it does up here.

I've got a decent amount of home saved seed if anyone wants to try a dozen. It didn't fare too badly in the heat of last year either.

[smallblueplanet]

Poledragon we tried Kentucky Wonder last year (and actually the seeds are in my 'seeds swop' thread). They grew well but compared to Blue Lake they were not as fine or prolific - but as you say last years weather was a bit hot.

[silverfork]

Romanesco and tennis balls

Going back a bit... I use pound shop tennis balls instead of 'Build-a-balls' (as seen in the Organic Gardening catalogue), to make any shape framework. It just depends where you slice the holes. Last year i had a good, sturdy temporary fruit cage by sticking canes straight in the ground and making a rectangular structure, draped with stretchy nylon netting. If the canes go all the way through the ball and out the other side, the structure is really strong. Also works for teepee or tent shapes.
Also, I grew Romanesco last year, and I just pulled it up yesterday, as it goes. It had a bit of a traumatic start, as I had to uproot my entire patch and replant it elsewhere (long story, guerrilla gardening, bulldozers came), but it recovered to produce lots of curds, tasty, maybe milder than broccoli/calabrese. I never got a big solid head like the picture on the packet, but I think that was due to the uprooting. When I cut the central floret, I got masses more from side shoots, just like broccoli. I'm growing it again.

[smallblueplanet]

Thanks silverfork, we also like the sound of masses of side-shoots, there's only two of us eating it and one central head is a bit much at one go.

I'm wondering whether a frame-work can be done with plastic actimel bottles and string - it'll be a case of trial & error later on, with the mesh weighted down by bricks. Can't afford tennis balls!

[theothermarg]

I,vjust finished picking a row of Romanesco very handy this time of year
but it was a long time coming and i thought it wasn,t much for all the land it took up. blue lake beans are the only ones i grow,i love them so much and keep the seed from year to year

i do feel clever doing these smillies (prob won,t happen now i,v said that)