THEY SOW SEEDS TOO

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume LXX, Issue 13463, 9 October 1941, Page 6

THEY SOW SEEDS TOO

BRITAIN'S BOMBERS GROW TOMATOES BETWEEN FLIGHTS Between spells of strafing Nazi bases in Europe. Britain's airmen are i growing vegetables for their own j messes. And they are using American seeds, for a quarter of the consignment of vegetable seeds sent to Britain under the "Bundles for Britain" plan was allocated to the R.A.F. One Fighter Command station near London, nest of Spitfire "ana Hurricane raiders, has ten acres of "waste" land under cultivation and another three or four acres are being sown with winter vegetables. The men there have planted 30,000 lettuces. 2,500 tomato plants. 5,000 cabbages. 2.000 bru-ssels sprouts, as well as acres of peas, beans and potatoes. This station is meeting Britain's onion shortage with half an acre of onions. The gardening movement is part of a plan by which R.A.F. stationthroughout Britain will have fresh vegetables for their messes from spare corners of their airfields. The Air Council have appointed a gardening expert. Mr A. H. Whyte. Horticultural Adviser to the Air Ministry, and it is his job to work in liaison with catering officers and County Agricultural Officers. He supervises questions of implements. seeds and" fertilisers, and gives advice on cropping in relation to differing conditions of soil and climate. The gardening work carried out by the airmen is quite voluntary, but. as the average Britisher is a keen gardener, there is no shortage willing hands. The vegetables grown are normally sold to stations messes at current prices.