I’ve got the hang of growing celeriac now – after a few failed attempts, I’ve learnt that they need a lot of compost, and a lot of watering, preferably with a liquid feed mid-season to give them a little extra oomph. This season in particular, I’ve been feeling very proud of my patch of ten celeriac plants, especially the biggest of them, which was looking so great.
I eagerly went to harvest it at the weekend, and was totally deflated to see a huge hole on the side. On closer investigation, the hole was hollowed out on the inside of the root. It opens into a whole little chamber, filled with water, and hanging out inside…? Yep, a big slug. On the outside of the hole, were a few little maggoty things.
Now, I don’t know which came first, the maggots or the slug, but I think one did the initial damage, and the other reaped the rewards. Perfect teamwork, but now I am one celeriac down.