Friday, September 17, 2010

The Beet to Beat!

The neighbours on my street have been working together for the past few weeks to organize a street festival and car-free day. Our street will closed to traffic for an afternoon of fun including a bike parade and dog pageant, stilt walkers and street hockey. My contribution is our street's first ever horticultural showdown. I have invited neighbours to submit entries of the biggest, baddest, most beautiful or just plain weird fruits and veggies they have been growing in their yards. I'll be showcasing this giant chioggia beet.

The beet has quietly occupied a space in the raised veggie beds since about April. I've placed a fork and a quarter next to it to give you a sense of how large and hefty it is (I wish I had a scale.) I'm very pleased with this beet, especially since last year's beet crop was a total bust. Once the veggie competition is over, I'll be pickling this bad boy so it can be enjoyed for months to come. My neighbours are starting to come through with their entries. A lady down the street has entered a mammoth tomato and a hot pepper that's at least 1 foot long. And my mother has a collection of gargantuan beans that have to be seen to be believed. I'm hoping for lots more entries. It should be a lot of fun. So far the standard has been set high: this is the beet to beat.

1 comment:

Connie said...

Beautiful Beet! Sounds like a fun time for your neighborhood....we must celebrate all we can before the seasons change!