General secretary of the General Federation of Trade Unions GAWAIN LITTLE calls for support and participation in the national partnership organised to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the 1926 general strike
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Brilliant brassicas
MAT COWARD battles wayward pigeons in pursuit of a crop of purple sprouting broccoli
15purple sprouting broccoli
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THIS winter’s endless storms have, I fear, done for my purple sprouting broccoli.
It’s not that they’ve been toppled by the winds. I long ago learned the hard lesson that tall, overwintering brassicas need to be thoroughly staked if they are to survive. Preferably, the stakes themselves should be taller than the plants, even once they’ve been driven 18 inches (46cm) into the ground. The stem of the plant must be tied to the pole in several places.
My stakes had held, and so had the old bootlaces I used as string, but when I went to check the purple sprouting after one of the recent gales I found the fine-mesh netting had blown away.
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