DO you know your onions?

Well it doesn't matter if you don't because we will help you grow a whopper.

All you have to do is send a stamped addressed envelope marked 'Onions' to The Review, The Marina, Harbour Road, Lydney, and we will send you a packet of 10 Kelsae onion seeds so that you can take part in our competition to see who can grow the biggest onion in the Forest of Dean and Wye Valley. You can also call in the office to pick up your packet.

We have a supply of Kelsae seed, the number one exhibition strain used by the top gardeners to produce eye-watering whoppers.

It's all a bit of fun to get you thinking of the sunny days ahead.

All we ask is that if you do grow a big 'un you bring it along to Bream's Annual Flower Show in August for the official weigh in. There will be £50 cash prizes for the biggest entry from an under 16 year-old and for adults, as well as a prize for the biggest entry from a public house and a school, plus vouchers for second and third places.

But get a move on ... our supply is dwindling as loads of Review readers get in the gardening mood, and time is running short if you want your Kelsae to be the king!

Top local gardening expert Roy Haviland, a member of the Gloucestershire Guild of Judges, and the man who judged the entries at Newent's Famous Onion Festival, is your gardening guide.

ROY'S TIPS

THE ground you have chosen for your onions is usually double dug – two spades deep – in the autumn, but because of the extremely wet weather this has not been possible. You must complete this task as soon as it is possible.

When you dig, put in around four inches of well rotted farmyard manure in the bottom of the trench before you back-fill. Then leave the ground until it is time for planting.

When you receive your 10 onion seeds you must germinate them as soon as possible.

You will need a 5inch (13 cm) shallow plant pot. Fill it three-quarters full of good, soil-less compost. Place your seeds around the pot about three-quarters of an inch from the outside edge. Slightly press them into the compost and cover them with some Vermicultite or silver sand, no more than one-eighth deep.

To germinate successfully, the temperature inside the propagator, greenhouse or window sill should be approximately 65F (18C) no higher, and certainly not below 55F (13C).

If you do not have a propagator, you can always use the bottom five inches (13cms) of a clear plastic lemonade bottle.

You should be able to see the seedlings through the compost in approximately 14 days. When they reach one and a half inches (4 cms) with a shape like a crook they should be carefully removed from the compost and re-potted individually with the same type of compost into three inch (8cm) plastic pots. Keep in the same conditions as before.

•Don't miss your Review to get more advice next month.