World record-breaking vegetable grower Gareth Griffin is making an appearance at the Harrogate Autumn Flower Show.

The event will be taking place at Newby Hall, Ripon from September 13 to 15.

The annual event attracts 30,000 visitors a year and shows off some of the best produce and flowers in the country.

Last year Gareth from Guernsey beat the world record for a giant onion, his weighed 8.9kg.

This year he has high hopes for his super-sized cabbage and tomato.

Fascination with growing giant veg competitively runs in the family and Gareth’s wife Wendy plans to enter a giant cucumber for judging.

Gareth said: "My efforts to surpass last year’s giant veg world record have unfortunately fallen foul of this year’s wet and dull weather which is not what onions like.

"There is no secret ingredient to success. It’s a matter of choosing the right seeds, giving them good soil and light and looking after them. Achieving the world record last year was the culmination of more than 30 years of trying and is no guarantee of future success.

"I was lucky that multi record-breaking Peter Glazebrook shared some onion seeds with me helping to set me on the path to success. You never really know how big your produce is going to be until the week of the show owing to factors such as pests and splitting so it is a tense time.

"The giant vegetable growing community is highly competitive, but it is a friendly rivalry and that is a big part of the appeal for me. My fellow enthusiasts were the first to congratulate me on breaking the world record and there is a real camaraderie, with growers sharing their seeds, tips and ideas."

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Success with his giant onion at last year’s show not only secured Gareth the world record but also internet fame, with more than 157,000 views of his entry on the Guiness Book of Records website.

Gareth said: "There is a lot of public interest in giant vegetables – particularly onions, pumpkins and tomatoes. I think it is because they capture the imagination, while being fundamentally the same as any regular sized vegetable found in all of our kitchens."

Gareth plans to continue growing for long as he can. He says he enjoys looking forward and planning for the next season and it keeps him fit and active.