Chas knows his onions (From Ealing Times)

Chas knows his onions

9:27am Thursday 2nd September 2010 in

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When Chas Hodges isn’t playing in his band, he’s down on his allotment. He talks to Nick Elvin

CHAS Hodges’ fingers may be best known for tinkling the ivories as one half of Chas and Dave, but look closely and you’ll see they are more than a little green.

That’s because an important part of the musician’s life is growing his own veg. Chas, who started gardening in the early 1970s, is the proud holder of an allotment near his Hertfordshire home, and he has now decided to share the knowledge he has built up over the years in a new book, Chas and His Rock ’n’ Roll Allotment.

Chas says allotment gardening has made a comeback in recent years, gaining in popularity with all ages.

“Winter or summer it’s great; it’s got everything going for it,“ he says. “My house doesn’t have a garden, but my last place had a big garden and I could use that to grow things. When I moved here about ten years ago a mate of mine said get an allotment. When I got here there were eight or nine plots to choose from; now there is a long waiting list.

“When I started it was seen as a little bit cranky, an old boys’ thing, but it’s not considered that now.“ With a busy schedule of live shows and rehearsals with his current group Chas And His Band, how does he find the time to tend to his crops?

“Little and often, maybe half an hour or an hour a day keeps it in shape,“ says Chas, whose number one crop is onions. “Always take the hoe along with you. As soon as you see a weed, jab it with the hoe before they take over.“ Chas says he decided to write the book after he saw the state of some of the vegetables pictured in a gardening magazine.

“There was a free gardening magazine with the newspaper, and I saw it had pictures of some pathetic looking vegetables. My wife said you can show them a thing or two. I’ve written about what has worked for me.“ The 66-year-old says the book is ideal for anyone who wants to learn more about growing their own food, but especially for “a young man about to get married, and his wife wants to grow some organic vegetables, but he doesn’t have a clue how“.

But the book is not simply a how-to manual. Using a liberal sprinkling of humorous anecdotes, plus some language you wouldn’t expect to hear on Gardeners’ Question Time, Chas has steered away from writing a book that is “technical and not very entertaining“.

“I’ve aimed to be entertaining, but you also learn how to do it along the way,“ he says. “The plan is to make you enjoy gardening rather than it being a chore.“ Of course, Chas is well-known for his music, so has he written any songs while on the allotment?

“I always get ideas,“ he says. “I’ve got an old 1940s ’jeep’ which I take there with all my gardening stuff in it. In the glove compartment I have a notebook. Without fail, when I’m there, some idea will come to me. So I get the notebook out and write it down. It’s a great place for inspiration.“ Chas and His Rock ’n’ Roll Allotment is out now, published by Apex, www.apexpublishing.co.uk Chas & His Band play The Radlett Centre on Saturday, September 11, 7.30pm. Details: 01923 859291, www.radlettcentre.co.uk