Gary Askwith said:Ok Cab thanks......annoyed to find out my swedes are by now inedible-a few have not flowered yet-will they be ok or it it likley to be too late?
And how do you know the right time to pull the swedes, what exactly am I looking for?
In simple-I've-never-done-this-thing-before terms
The reason to sow swedes late, especially in the South, is because in warm weather they run to seed. When they run to seed they're not so much inedible as really unpleasant; imagine eating slightly cabbagy wood.
Sow them now (I sow in July, every year, sometimes even as late as August) and they'll keep growing till winter. Harvest as soon as they look big enough to use, have them out as you need them. They should store okay through winter in the ground, but if they start getting eaten by nasty beasties then have them out and use them (I usually dice, parboil and freeze if I need to use them up).
In some parts of the country you struggle with swedes. Dunno why, but in tose places people just grow turnips insteas
