Today 
RSSGardeners' musings
Photo shoot with Pippa
Posted by: Kay Maguire, 22 October 2007, 11.18AM
I was on a shoot at Pippa's yesterday for the magazine, getting pictures for her vegetable trial series 'Veg with Pippa' and seeing how all her veg is coming along. It was a beautiful day but it's been a bit of a difficult year for gardeners thanks to the weather, and for veg growers in particular it's caused all sorts of problems. Pippa's year has been quite up and down (as you'll know if you've been reading her blog) but at least yesterday we got some great shots, of radicchio (to appear in the August 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 leaves but Pippa has also grown what is known as sugarloaf chicory, which had green leaves and a much looser habit. It was more like a lettuce than anything I was picturing in my head.
All very vulnerable to slug attack and as this year has felt at times as if it's been the year of the slug, it was rather gratifying to see how successful Pippa's beer traps have been!
I have also struggled all summer to get my head round growing beans for drying and when to pick them.
You actually leave them to dry on the plant for as long as you can, but taking care not to let them get damp or they'll rot. There's a bit of a skill to it as we discovered. If you pick them too early, they are still moist and stick to the pod. If you leave them too long they start turning into a brown mush. Pippa has grown both climbing and dwarf beans and those growing closer to the ground definitely need a watchful eye.
Comments
Pippa Greenwood
30 October 2007, 11.22AM
Thank you for your comment
Thank you for your comments. All comments will be looked at by a moderator, however, due to the numbers of comments we receive, we can't promise that all will be posted on the site.