Giant veg Guinness World Records broken at Malvern Autumn Show

Seven giant vegetables are believed to have smashed Guinness World Records as competitive growers showed off their supersized produce at competition.

The provisional records were set on Friday at the National Giant Vegetables Championship , part of the Malvern Autumn Show at the Three Counties Showground in Worcestershire.

Among the potential record holders was a 26.02kg (4st 1.8lb) beetroot, a 7.808kg (1st 3.2lb) sunflower head and a cucumber plant measuring more than 7.5m (24.6ft).

The achievements came despite a challenging summer for growers, with record-breaker Graham Barratt - who presented the giant cucumber plant - describing the weather as "bonkers".

Organisers said the seven records would need to be verified, with confirmation expected on Saturday.

Barrett said his success had come down to feeding the vegetable the "right things at the right time", but this year's hot and dry weather had made growing more difficult.

"This year, only one word can describe it - bonkers," he said.

"You've had to look after your plants more, you've had to keep them watered, fed... most things have finished too early for the show, so next year I think we have to learn to start the plants a bit later."

According to the provisional results, the record breakers are:

Peter Glazebrook - heaviest sweetcorn kernel - 0.408kg (0.8 lb)

Graham Barratt - tallest cucumber plant - 7.598m (24.6 feet)

Terry King - dandelion/weed with the longest root - 1.127m (3ft 7in)

Vincent Sjodin - heaviest beetroot - 26.02kg (4st 1.8lb)

Vincent Sjodin - heaviest sunflower head - 7.808kg (1st 3.2lb)

Kevin Fortey - longest tromboncino - 1.486m (4ft 8ins)

Kevin Fortey - heaviest luffa - 5.014kg (11.1lb)

'Why we flushed away Dragons' Den investment'

Why council plans to offer buildings to advertisers

Growers have faced unusually difficult conditions this year following a hot and dry summer, with many having to provide significantly more water to their crops.

Steve Harris, who grew a 23.5kg (3st 7lb) marrow, described the process as a "balancing act".

"Giant marrows need about 20 litres (5.2 gallons) a day to help them grow - so it's been a real balancing act to make sure they have enough to continue to thrive, but not so much they actually split," he said.

Derek Hulme, 65, from Stoke-on-Trent, said some giant pumpkin and marrow growers had seen their vegetables split because of the conditions.

"The conditions have been so dry, we're watering more. But then the vegetables soak up more than it can actually cope with and then they split wide open."

Neil Hands, who won the heaviest red cabbage category with an 18kg (2st 12lb) entry, said the heat had also caused problems.

"It's too hot for my cabbages," he said. "They need it to be cooler. I've just been watering and watering."

Despite those conditions, some enormous entries made it to Malvern.

Ian Paton won the heaviest pumpkin category, while Jack Baggs took the heaviest marrow title with a 107kg (16st 12lb) entry and Curtis Leach won the squash category with one weighing 279.5kg (44 st).

Maggie Walter, from Plymouth, took home a £1,000 prize after her 3.95kg (8.7lb) aubergine was judged the heaviest.

She said she "never expected" to win and described the victory as a "nice surprise all round".

Walter grew eight aubergine plants in a polytunnel using irrigation from a borehole, but said several had gone soft when they came to harvest them.

"We parted the foliage a bit more and at the back there was this bad boy," she said of her winning vegetable.

Other winners included Derek Richardson, whose 45.5kg (7st 2lb) swede topped its category, while Sjodin also produced the heaviest kohlrabi at 31.5kg (4st 13lb).

Joe Atherton dominated several categories, growing the heaviest cantaloupe melon and onion, as well as the longest beetroot, carrot and parsnip.

This year's championship attracted 597 entries from 169 growers competing across 33 categories.

Tim Saint, from Reading, Berkshire, entered eight different types of giant vegetable, including a 304kg (47st 12lb) pumpkin.

"I get up at 05:30 in the morning before work and as soon as I get home at 17:00 I'm out again until it's virtually dark," he said.

Despite the work involved, Saint said meeting other growers at Malvern made the effort worthwhile.

"Its like a gathering of the clan really," he said. "Everyone is so nice - it's like meeting your family."

Follow BBC Hereford & Worcester on BBC Sounds , Facebook , X and Instagram .

Giant pumpkin grower hopes to beat previous record

Battling heatwave havoc, giant veg growers prepare for judgement

Man says growing vegetables as big as babies is like a sport