2015 Competition - The Longest Chilli!

Measurement was along the full length of the chilli as
many were heavily curved. 
This particular chilli type is typically upright and bushy.

Back in the early part of the year, we announced that the theme of the 2015 competition would be the "Longest Chilli", and sold a number of small chilli seedlings to members for them to bring on through the year.  Participants were asked to bring in their chillis (whether individual fruits or the whole plant) to the AGM for judging.  When sold to the members (at a token price to cover a rather paltry prize), and in the spirit of true competition, no hints on growing or cultivation were given.

We do have to admit that the subject of "Longest Chilli" was a late decision, as the original intention was to be "Most Fruits On A Chilli Plant".  We duly planted about 50 seeds of Dorset Naga which is supposed to be the hottest variety bred in Britain, and began to raise them to a decent seedling height for distribution to the members.   Sadly, one of the cats wandered into the conservatory and saw a tray of fresh earth on the floor, prompting her to do what comes naturally to a cat, and bringing the annoyment of kitty dirt from the outdoors to the indoors as well.  The Dorset Nagas ended up strewn across the floor and we could not rescue enough for a competition.  Those that were left had a distinctive odour, although they were at least well fed and fertilised.

Therefore, frantic replanting of another variety that we had to hand meant that the theme had to be changed.  The Chilli chosen (or more accurately, still available) was Joe's Long Cheyenne.  This has the distinction of being one of the longest chillis available, and in commercial propagation will often grow over a foot long (30 cm, for our more modern readers).  This chilli is listed as being of "medium" heat, and is significantly less hot than Dorset Naga.

After highly scientific collation of results involving a piece of string and a child's ruler, we are pleased to confirm that the winner was Vicky Regan, who managed a chilli of 10.5 inches!  She won a rather small box of chocolates, which are estimated to have survived less than 10 minutes.

Most growers recommend that chillis are grown under glass for larger fruit, and to ensure that they ripen sufficiently in our climate, as they are used to longer, hotter summers than are typical here.  Joe's Long Cheyenne is also a tall bush variety on account of the length of the fruit, and does need staking and some room to develop.  We did however discover when talking to the participants in this "trial" that there was little to be determined from the results on whether the plants were best grown under glass or in the open (so long as they did get some decent sun and heat).  Some of the smaller plants were grown under glass, and some of the longer in the open.  The moral is therefore that, if you want to grow chillis (and they are quite easy), but don't have a greenhouse, don't get too hung up on their final position as you can get good results wherever they are placed, at least in our part of Surrey.

Thanks to all the competitors: although many of the initial entrants fell by the wayside - typically going on holiday and losing the original plant (!), which should teach them a salutory lesson for next year - the full results are below:

Name	Length (inches)
Vicky Regan	10.5”
Jilly Ball	10.25”
Ken Jobling	10.0”
Sandy Berry	9.5”
Jeremy Ball	9.25”
Richard Dove Mary Hutchinson	9.0” (tied)
Jane Firmin	8.5”
Julie Mitchell	7.5”

November Meeting 2015 - Our AGM

Madam Chair Jane addresses the 2015 AGM

The 11th of November saw us hold the Annual General Meeting for 2015.  Thank you to all those who attended; the business of the Club does need to be discussed and the AGM is the right place to do it.

Sadly, we were informed that Shirley Istead, our President for many years (and before that, our Chair), had decided to resign from her post owing to ill health.  Jane, our Chair, thanked her for her hard work over the years, and proposed that Shirley be given Life Membership.  The members resoundingly passed this resolution.  In addition, and in particular as Shirley will be a hard act to follow, the members agreed that we would operate without a President for the time being while we examine the way forward.

We were also presented with the accounts of the Club from the Honorary Treasurer, which show us to be in good financial order, and to an report of the shows from the Honorary Show Secretary.  Following the move of the show back to Hurst Green this year, the members agreed that we would continue to hold the shows in St. Agatha's Hall and that we would continue to invite "The Grow With Us Club" (LODHS) to take part and to show alongside us.

Attendance was good this year - nearly 50 of the members were in the hall.

Partly as a result of discussions at the AGM, the Committee understand that the Rules of the Society are rather outdated and inaccurate; it is therefore the intention of the Management to redraft the rules and to present them to the membership at the February meeting, so that they may be voted on at the March meeting which will be in part an Extraordinary General Meeting in order to do so.  Although we are a relatively small Club, it is essential that the Rules are accurate, and this is the first time for a number of years that they have been looked at properly.

Nibbles and a social!

There was a good attendance at the event, as you can see from the photographs.  This may have been in part because the Committee has learned, over the years, that bribery goes a long way, and that most of our members respond well to the prospect of free drink and food!  As usual, therefore, members brought along a plate of nibbles each, and mulled apple juice was also served; the second half of the AGM being a thoroughly enjoyed social!
 
We also held the "Longest Chilli" competition at the AGM; the results will form the subject of another post.