Veg growers across Ireland have been vying for top prizes

Veg growers across Ireland have been vying for top prizes on show benches around the country, exhibiting metre-long parsnips and carrots, football-sized onions and impossibly huge pumpkins for us all to admire.

At the biggest of them all, Tullamore Show in Co. Offaly, the cream of Ireland's veg growers have been competing for the coveted Bridge House All-Ireland Collection of Vegetables. The prize went to Michael Walton, of Ballisadare, Co. Sligo, while Margaret McGoldrick of Dromahaire, Co. Leitrim, took the All Ireland Quality Potato Championship.

If you fancy your own chances, Mount Stewart, near Belfast, is holding its Autumn Fair at the beginning of October including a flower and vegetable show where you can enter your prize produce, chutneys and jams.

It's also time to plan your campaign for next year: here are our top tips for success, whether it's a local village show or competing with Tullamore's finest.

Choose the right seed variety: those specially bred for showing give you a head start
Start early: prizewinning onions are sown under cover the day after Christmas
Visit them every day: the attentive gardener gets the prize
Feed, feed, feed: the bigger, the better
Stay vigilant for pests: they can ruin all your hard work with one well-aimed munch