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I really should practice what I preach. What with one thing or another, I haven't harvested my broad beans as regularly as I should have. I blame Paul. It was his job to pick the beans on our last visit to the plot; he obviously harvested

Last week I mentioned that my broad beans were mysteriously free from their usual curse of blackfly. Strictly speaking, blackfly isn't a black fly, but a 'black bean aphid'.And while my broad beans may be free from the pest this year, they normally

cope with this weather - a thermal vest and a good pair of hiking socks does the trick - but my poor little broad bean plants have just gone in the ground and look a bit horrified. Most of thebean seeds sowed directly outside last year failed

planted in my children's plots, complete with home-made plant supports. According to my children "when the beans grow they can use the wigwams too", because "you did say that sweet peas help to encourage the bees to pollinate them".The wigwams are both

After a slow start my runner beans are finally off and away and are producing a late but very welcome crop. At the start of the season I wondered if they were going to get past the first post (or up the first foot or so of cane actually). Slugs

is transformed and comes alive. This is because the stems are suffused with a blush of red and the berries are truly spectacular. They are the shape of turbans and gradually transform themselves from bean green to the colour of burnished Ribena. Sadly

edition of the magazine) and beans (the September issue) for drying. A bit of an Italian themed day!I have never grown either before and didn't realise that radicchio is actually a red form of chicory. I had also always thought of chicory as crisp white

available bottled in vinegar. Roasted or boiled, however, it is not only delicious but a wonderful colour so I propose it as a new entry in the charts.Turnips are very definitely low on the list along with long leathery runner beans.The kohlrabi is too

in any one area. I group my crops into legumes (peas and beans), alliums (onions and garlic) roots (carrots, parsnips and beetroot) and brassicas and leafy crops (cabbages, broccoli and rocket). As well as reducing the likelihood of pests and diseases

to leave. The beds dedicated to growing hungry crops, such as beans and courgettes will need plenty of organic matter added, such as garden compost or well-rotted horse manure.Beds dedicated to growing root crops, such as carrots and parsnips will not have