On squatting courgettes and scottish veggie gardening tomes

Midsummer's here and the land of eternal light, is well, a bit light to be honest. Not much in the way of dark nights here at the moment. The 'Sim-dim' or twilighty light hours at night have allowed me to get a bit more reading done. In celebration, Mr Flowers bought me a new book. The courgette is home grown and explained in paragraph 5......after a peedie divergence.

To be fair - I attempted to buy the book myself in the local Orcadian Bookshop - but as I clutched my copy a wee old lady was bemoaning how difficult it was to get vegetable gardening right in Scotland and it made her guy wabbit trying. I stood and eavesdropped in amazement, I could have been listening to myself, she went on to tell the nice sales lady none of the 'proper' books were really quite right, the magazines downright depressing as they showed pictures of things growing happily in the midst of England, in seasons which escape most of us in Scotland, never mind in the far north. Never mind she said trying to watch a gardening programme on the telly - its like watching some alter-ego of a garden watching national programmes on gardening. [Except the Beechgrove of course (sensible programme) which at least is based and grows sonsie cabbages and alike, in Scotland.]

I'm sorry chaps but the rest of the gardening books/programmes based in the UK just plain lie, they tease, the timing's are wrong often by a month or more, the varieties are often wrong and its really no ones fault - those are just the facts. If you're trying to learn to grow veggies in Scotland using a generalised non Scottish book, you'll probably depress yourself trying to follow the rules. And, I'm by no means a veggie nationalist!

For many of us up here, its like a tease really all this gardening stuff in the national media, reassuring to hear this poor old sweet lady also shuns such things and talks back to the TV and the Radio when they're on - telling them how different it is here. Like getting up and giving a seat on the bus, I handed my book over to the lady and said that this was probably what she needed. A book written on growing veggies and fruit in Scotland. Whilst I've not read it cover to cover - its got to be more relevant than most other things written in main stream publishing and I had it in my sticky mitt for about 10 seconds. I guess, maybe, if its contents live up to the cover, I did my good deed for the day. So my own copy came home and now its here. I've leafed through it - it appears to be quite sensible, so I introduced it to my first courgette of the season, so they could get acquainted.

The first courgette of the season is quite exciting isnt it? Hardly a glut the first one, but the promise of a glut to come. I've got two fish boxes planted with one courgette 'Green Bush' in each. Not outside of course, not here in my wall-less windy garden. They're safely snuggled up, squatting in one of the polytunnels at the local college. Warm and wind free, growing beautifully. Who say's squatters rights aren't fruitful and of course I'll not keep on about the benefits of fish box growing will I, its a love affair deeply matched for me!

I'll let you know how I get on with the book - the courgettes not withered thus far, so that's a good sign. Another are the 14 references to Orkney, acknowlegement of windy weather's affects on attempts to grow vegetables, a general inability to grow runner beans outdoors up here and even the mention of Planticru's (which will please Janet). Finally of course - my old tutor, Mr Anderson's advice for many things including the ability to correctly plant a cabbage or any brassica is by testing with a pull to said brassica's leaf which should break off before you can tug it out of the ground (as so also say's Mr Chaddock garden guru of Orkney who also calls this the 'rabbit test', is as always deeply sensible. Lovely to see so many lovely Scottish growers mentioned Including Mr Chaddock and Mr Hutichson (of the giant Orkney vegetables!) and I'm going to enjoy reading more of it during the 'simmer dim' we're currently experiencing in the land of the eternal light.

Whilst I thrust it into the ladies hand at the bookshop without thoroughly reading it - and I didn't bludgeon her to buy it (she was an old lady after all) - I've heard plenty about it as it was being written to know its a potential gem and it should do her vegetables a good turn.

I may bore you all heartily with a review - but thus far the book gets a big tick, as does the courgette although 'courgettes' are not included in their 'Indoor fruits' chapter......although they acknowledge some of the more tender veggies can be grown with cover.....

Will it do what it say's on tin - 'The only guide to growing fruit and vegetables specifically for Scotland's climate' -  I certainly hope so, otherwise I may have short changed a little old lady.however the same authors have written another deeply sensible Scottish gardening book, so it's looking hopeful......

*I'm sure it will prove very helpful but until I've read it cover to cover I can't really say if it does what it says on the tin*

As for the 'A horticultural compendium second to none' - by the Scottish Field, well they've not read my windswept almost finished horticultural manuscript yet, have they!