NEWPORT, UK (AP) – Ian Neale from Newport earned a place in horticultural history by cultivating the 38.8kg (85.5lb) swede.

His efforts won praise from the unlikeliest of people – cannabis activist and hip-hop superstar Snoop Dogg.

In a short YouTube clip, the rapper – wearing a Cardiff City football jersey and standing in front of a marijuana-plant background – sends a “shout out” to Mr Neale.

“Man, I want to tell you something, when I do my show in Cardiff, I want you to come backstage and see me because I do vegetation myself and I want to know your secret,” he says in the video.

“So Ian Neale… come see your boy Snoop Dogg, I’ve got two tickets for you when I get to town. Ya dig?”