Gardening
Allotments
Help preserve Britain's natural heritage
Do your bit to keep British biodiversity alive, urge Kim Wilde and Raymond Blanc, by growing heritage fruit and vegetable varieties
Who knows when we'll need a plant extract to formulate a new medicine, or simply another variety of vegetable to replace one that is being wiped out by blight?
The 'Dig your dinner' campaign, supported by Kim Wilde and Raymond Blanc, was created by organic food brand and champion of biodiversity, Seeds of Change.
The idea is to encourage us to grow tasty, unusual vegetable varieties - so while we're helping to preserve what's left of our natural heritage for future generations we also get the added benefit of delicious new flavours to experience.
TV gardener, Kim Wilde, says: “This is an exciting opportunity for the British public to help keep great tasting veg on our dinner plates. Growing your own, even if it’s just adding some freshly grown herbs to your dinner really does make you feel fantastic.”
Raymond Blanc, world-renowned chef and Dig Your Dinner ambassador believes in the powerful flavours of home grown organic food: “Anyone interested in food is constantly looking for new and delicious flavours. At my hotel and restaurant, Le Manoir aux Quat’ Saisons, we grow over 90 types of vegetables, which are commonly known as ‘heirloom’, many of which I originally discovered in my mother’s garden. I support the Seeds of Change Dig Your Dinner campaign which challenges the nation to experience the exceptional taste of growing their own organic produce, as well as helping to preserve endangered British food varieties.”
The Dig Your Dinner campaign will donate 1% of Seeds of Change sales to Garden Organic, the charity which safeguards a collection of over 800 seeds facing extinction in its Heritage Seed Library.
Director of Gardens and Gardening at Garden Organic, Bob Sherman comments: “Our Heritage Seed Library conserves over 800 vegetable varieties under threat of extinction. We have identified ten especially tasty varieties from our collection to raise awareness of seed preservation; the delicately sweet ‘My Girl’ Tomato, the herby flavoured ‘Kenilworth’ Tomato, the ‘Ryder’s Midday Sun’ Tomato, the ‘Rousham Park Hero’ Onion, the richly flavoured ‘Blue Coco’ Climbing French Bean, ‘Mrs Fortune’s’ Climbing French Bean, the sweet tasting ‘Gravedigger’ Pea, the fresh, solid ‘Jeyes’ Pea, the ‘Brighstone’ Dwarf French Bean and the juicy ‘King of The Ridge’ Cucumber.
"These endangered seeds are only available through Garden Organic’s Heritage Seed Library and Dig Your Dinner is encouraging everyone to participate by growing these and other forgotten varieties to help to preserve this diversity. People can also choose to plant organic seeds from heirloom varieties, which may become forgotten over time.”
The ten varieties
'My Girl' Tomato
Medium to large, plum-shaped, red fruits with few seeds. Thin-skinned tomato that is very sweet in taste. Originally donated to Garden Organic by George Roberts Seedsman of Daventry in the 1950s.
'Kenilworth' Tomato
Classic round, red sumptuous tomato with a sweet and herby flavour. Donor George Garratt sourced this from the last commercial grower who stocked shops in Kenilworth up until the 1960s.
'Ryder's Midday Sun' Tomato
Plump, yellow tomato. Donated by J M Cullen from Friston, Sussex who had grown them since the 1960s. Originally from the seed company Ryder’s of St Albans, just before the firm was sold in the 1970s and all its varieties were discontinued.
'Rousham Park Hero' Onion
Flat and yellow-skinned onion. Originated around the end of the 19th century at Rousham Park, Oxfordshire and was once a favourite for exhibition.
'Blue Coco' Climbing French Bean
Violet pods, purple-tinged leaves and lilac flowers. Good rich, meaty flavour - delicious steamed, eaten raw or in stews. Seeds originally donated by Robinson’s of Lancashire.
'Mrs Fortune's' Climbing French Bean
The plant grows to 6ft and is very prolific with pale blue flowers. The pods are smooth, medium green background with dark blue shading and develop into darker blue. The seeds are white with maroon mottling when ripe. They are very tender and not stringy. The seeds were donated by two friends who share an allotment next to each other in Bristol. One of them used to visit an elderly lady called Doris Fortune, in the early 1960s and was given some beans by her. They originated from an old retired gardener who tended the Royal Family's garden at Windsor.
'Gravedigger' Pea
Very sweet flavour with excellent cooking qualities. Obtained from Mr Thompson, a retired farmer from Meer End, near Honiley. He originally got them from his neighbour Mr Beal who in turn got them from his friend, the gravedigger living at Kidlington, near Oxford.
'Jeyes' Pea
Sweet, solid peas, delicious fresh, but will also freeze well. Donated by D Bland of Wellingborough in Northants, this variety is believed to have originated in the Luton area about 60 years ago. Vegetables of New York (1928) states that Messers Jeyes was a Northampton-based seed merchant.
'Brighstone' Dwarf French Bean
Pods are dark green heavily flecked with mauve and are about 5” long, curved with pronounced beak. The fresh beans cooked very well and taste nice and sweet. Found on the Isle of Wight, known as Brighstone, a village in West Wight, which has a history of shipwrecks on its shores. The story goes that the bean seed came from a wreck before the turn of the century. Local gardeners have grown this bean on allotments for years.
'King of The Ridge' Cucumber
Well-shaped fruits, growing to about 10 inches long. The fruit is sweet and juicy when young but skins need peeling for salads.
More on growing fruits and vegetables
- How to grow vegetables
- When to start growing vegetables
- No garden? Start a window box allotment
- Start a vegetable patch with your grandchildren
- Terry Walton's allotment blog - a weekly crop of down-to-earth gardening advice
Useful websites
Reader comments
I believe anyone can visit the gardens for free. I have on two separate occasions done just that, they are a joy to see. Jeanne
Posted by: jeanne O'Reilly | 19/04/2008 17:48:50
Well done Raymond! I have always wanted to view your gardens at Le Manoir Quat' Saisons. having dined at one of your restaurants. Could Raymond arrange for me to take a stroll around the gardens on June 1 or June 2nd, s'il vous plais? And if I can help to promote this campaign, I can collect more info & advice on my visit...thanks so much!
Posted by: norma abbott | 17/04/2008 19:57:38
