BLOOM 2008

I went to the Bloom Flower Festival in Dublin presented by Bord Bia (the Irish Food Board) last week. It is the second year that the event has been on in Phoenix Park and I couldn’t miss the opportunity to take some photos for my website.

Big business
The amenity horticulture and landscaping sector is currently worth about €2 billion to the Irish economy annually, so the event is a key player in highlighting modern gardening trends and products. There were plenty of stalls selling a great range of home-made produce including cheeses, spreads and sweets. My son (who came with me) disappeared and returned with the biggest chunk of delicious fudge (it took him three days to finish it). It looked like a piece of marble stone and was a work of art…before it was devoured.

There was a large turn out of nurseries displaying this year’s plants as well as companies showcasing the latest in gardening labour saving devices and accessories.


There seems to be a lot of drama this year too in the garden, with bold architectural planting, which reflect what a creative lot the Irish gardeners are. Environmental issues are high on the agenda in the gardening world. Organic vegetable growers were well represented by the Dublin Meath Growers and there were sponsored gardens highlighting the need to feed yourselves from home grown produce, make your own compost and save the water that comes off your roof to irrigate the plants.

BLOOMIN’ MARVELLOUS

Health and Well-being
Floristry was well covered too, and a whole pavilion was taken up with fantastic displays. One that caught my eye used blue and red neon lighting to highlight the already bright colours. They were aptly called Madflowers. Less mad were conservation groups such as Bird Watch Ireland who reflected the diversity of outdoor interests and if anyone was interested in cookery there were displays running all through the weekend. A big emphasis was put on health and wellness at the show and dieticians and health experts were at hand to give talks and advise people on how to get - and stay healthy.


DESIGN
I was particularly interested in the show gardens. These are generally gardens that are so well laid out and planted that you could come away feeling as though your own plot was just a pile of old broken toys and wind blown overgrown shrubs. Don’t let that put you off though. It is the same as walking around the Ideal Homes Exhibition. The rooms are beautiful but are not lived in. In fact both my lad and I got told off a few times for climbing over the ropes and walking around the designs. The gardens can spark off your imagination but if you incorporated some of the ideas into your own garden they wouldn’t necessarily look the same as in a show garden as they would be more than just something to look at.

High Standards
The standard of design was really high for all sizes of gardens and although most designers are based in the Southeast, (perhaps reflecting denser populations, more expendable income and different priorities).

Small gardens used structures to give the illusion of space; one designer used large irregular four sided frames to magically change your perspective on the view (likened to Alice through the Looking Glass). I really enjoyed the use of different materials in the designs, one garden had slate, water, grass, bricks, slabs and wood all in the space of a few feet. Architectural features are important in a garden to give it depth. Peter Donegan went one better and included items that were either recycled or recyclable, including a 1957 pink, three storey pleasure boat. The Living Classroom entry inspired school grounds to be used for organic food production and to learn about biodiversity. The key phrase being “Think global act local”. School grounds tend to be concrete and grass so initiatives that will promote organic growing and educational wildlife areas with a pond will hopefully be the norm. It doesn’t have to be serious either. The south Dublin Education Society designed a Good Fun School Garden which incorporated overflowing baths and graffiti as well 5 separate areas representing the senses. Bord Bia will soon be coming out with a DVD on the subject so teachers can keep an eye out for it.
An inspiring day out and I plan to return next year. You can check out some of the photos on my website or visit the Bloom website

BUTTERFLIES IN THE GARDEN

June is bustin’ out all over
It doesn’t seem a minute ago that we were planting daffodil bulbs in containers for early spring colour. Now we are witnessing a real surge in growth as herbaceous borders are full of flowers and the vegetable patch is providing it’s first rich pickings. Salad plants are usually the first off the starting block with lettuce and rocket shooting up ahead of the radishes. If you have salad crops grown from seed, keep an eye on them and thin out early sowings. (Their final spacing is usually indicated on the seed packets if you still have them).

Give them some room
Congested seedlings never reach their full potential, as they distort one another as they grow, resulting in a much smaller crop. Carefully pull out unwanted seedlings, leaving the rest at the desired spacing. Water the row to settle the soil back around the roots of the remaining ones. If you are wanting to plant more veggies in the patch, June is the right time. Crops to sow outside in early June include runner beans, dwarf French beans, kohl rabi, carrots, marrows, cauliflowers, peas, ridge cucumbers, sweet corn, swede, lettuce, endive, squashes and spinach.


Attracting butterflies to the garden
Have you ever fancied having your garden full of butterflies in the summer? You might be pleased to learn that attracting butterflies into the garden doesn’t take much effort and just a bit of thought now will ensure that your garden is a riot of activity in the coming months. Even if you’re garden is tiny, butterflies will still be attracted to it as long as you have planted suitable nectar plants as it’s the nectar from the flowers that supplies the adult butterfly with food.

You’ll never work alone
To increase the number of butterflies in the garden, plant suitable flowers such as bluebells, dandelions, pansies, primroses, sweet william and wallflowers. If you want to encourage butterflies to stay right through until autumn, then chrysanthemum, French marigold, forget-me-nots, lavender, mint and honeysuckle could also be planted. Garden centres will be able to give you plenty of advice about nectar bearing plants for spring and summer. Plant them in a sunny but sheltered spot as butterflies enjoy the warmth. The more different species of plants you have, the greater the variety of species of butterflies you’re likely to attract. Keep the new plants well watered too as this helps them produce more nectar.

Feeding the caterpillars
You can also boost the population of butterflies by providing a good food source for caterpillars. Nettles, sweet rocket and garlic mustard are all ideal and most common species of butterfly will be happy to lay their eggs on these plants. Caterpillars will not cause noticeable damage but if you have problems with caterpillars eating the your cabbage leaves, take time to pick them off as opposed to spraying with pesticides. Alternatively, some gardeners prefer to cover their cabbages with fleece to stop butterflies from laying their eggs there. For those who are not that keen on having nettles growing with other plants, you might prefer to plant some nettles in pots instead and bury them in the ground in a sunny area where they will do the same job but not get out of control. If you grow herbs, plant enough for both yourself and the caterpillars as they enjoy eating things like fennel, parsley and dill and this will help to keep them away from other flowers in your garden. If you have any doubts about how effective this type of garden is at attracting butterflies, go down to Swan Park and have a look to see the activity in the butterfly garden.

FORAGING

FORAGING FOR FOOD

Some of the tastiest food you ever eat can come out of the hedgerows and countryside. At most times of the year you can pick up something very tasty to put in the salad or make into a delicious pudding. Now that we have the fast summer plant growth we can go foraging.

We might have to wait a while to get certain fruit. Crab apples, sloes and rosehips are still too young yet, but hawthorn leaves are out in abundance. It might surprise you that these young leaves are extremely tasty and make a great addition to any salad. The berries later on in the year are also edible and are very high in vitamin C.

A few plants to look out for
Stinging nettles (Urtica dioica). We have just had our first stinging nettle soup of the year and delicious it was too.

Ransoms (Allium ursinum), -also known as wild garlic. Walking along the paths of Swan Park in Buncrana you will see swathes of this plant. It will complement many dishes.

Gorse (Ulex europaeus). This thorny plant makes a beautiful backdrop to the hillsides of Inishowen as it burst into intense yellow blooms. The plant's flowers are intensely flavoured and make a colourful (and tasty) accompaniment to any salad or wine ingredient. Just be careful how you pick them!

Bogland heather (Calluna vulgaris). Young tips can be used to make mead or ale. The flowers are also edible and make a colourful addition to a hedgerow salad or a boiled pudding.

Primrose (Primula vulgaris) and Common Dandelion (Taraxacum officinal ) Both have tasty flower heads for a salad.

Garlic mustard (Allaria petiolata) This common hedgerow plant has tasty leaves full of vitamin C that make an excellent addition to any salad. The leaves also have antiseptic qualities and can be added as a preservative to stews or sauces that you want to freeze.

Sheep's Sorrel (Rumex acetosella) These leaves are very common around the peninsula. The leaves and stems of the plants are edible and can be eaten both raw or cooked. However, like all the sorrel family the plant is high in oxalic acid, which is mildly toxic and interferes with digestion. However, cooking the plant by blanching in hot water leaches out the chemical and renders it safe for consumption, it will remind you of spinach.

I must stress here that when you are foraging for food in the hedgerow; make sure you know what you are picking. Don’t let children just eat any old thing, especially not mushrooms until you give them the all clear.

Elderflower cordial
Later on in the year we will be getting elder berries to make jam and wine but for now we can be using the flowers for a refreshing cordial

Elderflower cordial is a delicious summer tonic that you can make yourself. Julie’s mother makes plenty of bottles of this tasty drink every year and it goes down really well with children and adults alike.

This recipe is best made with fresh flowers, which have been picked on a sunny day when they are still creamy in colour and before they fade to white. At this time they have the highest amount of pollen, which contains the yeast.

4.5 litres (1 gallon) of water
1.8kg (4lb) cane sugar
Juice and thinly peeled rind of 6 unwaxed lemons
70 grams of citric acid (2.5 ounces)
40 elderflower heads. Shake them well to remove live insects and only wash if picked beside a road.

(The ingredients are very open to interpretation, you might like to use less lemons or use 30ml (2 tblsp) of cider or wine vinegar in place of the citric acid) There is also a recipe for elderflower champagne which only uses 2 flower heads.

Method: Bring the water to the boil and pour into a sterilised container. Add the sugar, stirring until dissolved. When cool add the lemon rind and juice, also the citric acid (or vinegar) and elderflowers. Cover with several layers of muslin and leave for 24 hours. Stir 3 times a day for 5 days. Filter through muslin into strong glass bottles. The drink is ready after two weeks. Serve chilled, diluted with still or carbonated water to taste. It is best used within three months but it has been known to last up to two years.

For an extra special treat at dinnertime, why not dip the fresh flower heads in batter and deep fry.

Photo: Make a refreshing cordial with elderflowers

NEILS TIPS FOR HEALTHY SUMMER BEDDING

The fantastic weather we have had around the peninsula recently has promoted the growth of summer bedding plants. Garden centres are bulging at the seams with an even wider choice than ever before to brighten up our gardens. I went down to see Neil Porter at his garden centre on the Buncrana road in Carndonagh this week to see what will be filling the peninsulas planters and containers this year. Neil has expanded this year and has two large polythene tunnels at his home-based garden centre and both of them are housing a terrific choice of plants.


Summer plants
“I grow bedding plants that are reliable and proven to give a great show, even right on the coast.” Says Neil. This year I have a couple of new additions. The first is Million Bells, these are small petunia like flowers and very hardy and wind tolerant. They have a trailing habit and come in various colours including red (crackling fire) and lemon yellow.”

The other is the Calibrachoa, also known as ‘Seashore Petunias’.” says Neil. “These plants have a similar growing pattern to the Million Bells and will thrive in the most open spaces. I am also stocking the favourites - lobelia, busy lizzie, geraniums, verbenas, begonias, fuchsias, marigolds, surfinias and osteospurmums, all of which are very well behaved in baskets or containers”.


Neil’s tips for looking after bedding

Neil has had a lot of experience with bedding plants and the baskets and containers in his garden centre are looking great. I asked him to share some of his secrets of success.

Young bedding plant care
“When tending to young bedding plants make sure that the air circulation is good and that the plants are growing in a bright place. Spreading the plants out also help to keep down most fungal diseases that enjoy damp conditions. Try to keep the water from the hosepipe or watering can off of the plants, especially in sunshine; this could damage the flowers and leaves. The pH of tap water changes all of the time, which could have stunt young plant growth. If at all possible try to use water from a well or water butt. This will give the plants a far better chance of thriving”.

Give them room
Putting too many plants into hanging baskets might not be the best thing to do says Neil. “I don’t tend to put a plant in the centre of baskets. Too many plants in such a small area can mean that none of the plants do well,” he advises. “Don’t be tempted to cram them in too tightly. If you put anything into the centre of the basket, make it a plastic bottle. Cut off the bottom and push it down into the soil, this is then filled with water everyday to slowly wet the soil”.


Focal point
“If you do have containers that need a central focal point then Marguerites (Argyranthemum) can be very effective. These plants originated in the Canary Islands and Madeira, and are used to the coastal growing conditions. There are loads of different types of ornamental shrubs that can be used to good effect as well, such phormium, dwarf conifers, bay trees and cordylines”.



Wonder tonic
Neil has been using a new product on the market called SB Plant Invigorator. This is a wonder tonic for bedding plants. “Someone recommended this biodegradable product as a great all rounder for plant health. It is a very concentrated, natural product and acts as a growth stimulant and pesticide, controlling pests such as whitefly, aphids, spider mite and mealy bug. It is also a plant wash, foliar feed and it also cleans the leaves! Not bad from one application” (The Co-op are looking to stock it). Neil stresses the importance of getting the right feed for your plants. “Different plants and shrubs need different nutrients. You don’t want a high nitrogen feed to promote leaf growth if you are looking for a show of flowers, check the labels before you buy”.


Choosing the right compost
Reading labels is also important when choosing the right compost. Neil explains. “When filling the pots and containers up with compost, pay particular attention to the type of compost you are using. Hanging baskets require a heavier, more soil based compost to ensure the containers don’t dry out too quickly and will take up water even when they have dried out. Pots will need another type of soil. There will ones to suit all types of planting”.

Neil also advises a fresh start with compost. “Old containers and pots used last year will need emptying out and new compost added. Over wintering pests such as vine weevil will quickly eat the roots of new plants that are planted”.


Deadheading
Neil has one last piece of advice to give me before heading off to serve another happy customer “Deadheading the bedding plants is crucial to ensure a long flowering season. Taking off the dead flower heads, this stimulates the other buds into action and also thickens up the plant to make is bushier.”

Photo: Neil Porter happy at work in his busy nursery on the Buncrana road in

Carndonagh.