Flashback to Richard’s days of pumpkin glory.
GARDENINGI RECEIVED this little e-missive the other day and it tickled me.
The balance between veg and flowers in the garden, and especially in my little column, is a delicate one.
Any road up, this made me chuckle.
It came from one Ian Wheeler, whose brother, Trevor, and I go as far back as being in the same Swanmore soccer team that won the junior schools’ trophy round about 1964.
Ian wrote: "It looks as if the thrashing you got at the last pumpkin competition has put you off reporting of pumpkins and proper veg.
"All we seem to be reading of in your column is flowers, hanging baskets and some weird hedge that has no place here.
"You ought to take a leaf out of my book and believe in… 'if you can’t eat it, drink it, smoke it or make love to it, it has no place in the garden’. But, having said all that, I do enjoy your column.
"Many thanks, (from a very tongue-in-cheek) Ian Wheeler, current IW pumpkin champ."
The pumpkin competition could well make a come-back next year, when I’ll take on-board Ruth Illman’s suggestion and involve schools early in the year, so they can prepare well in advance.
There’s also a possibility, that a picture me, draped over my (then) prizewinning pumpkin could decorate a Southern Vectis Bus as part of the Island Thinkers campaign
Odd they should ask me, really.