(Click on the title for a link to The Organic Centre in Rossinver)
A few days ago the Inishowen Partnership Job Initiative put on a bus trip to an organic farm - the Organic Centre at Rossinver, Co Leitrim. As I haven’t been getting out much this summer, I jumped at the chance to squeeze into the sixteen-seater mini bus. The company was a lively group of people who are working around the peninsula on various community project, all of us sharing a keen interest in gardening and environmental issues.
The Organic Centre was set up in 1995 as a non-profit making company. The aim of the centre is to provide training, information and demonstrations of organic gardening, growing and farming. The centre is on a 19 acre site and provides:
· Demonstration gardens and growing tunnels showing organic methods of food production
· A wide range of training courses geared at all levels from the interested amateur gardener to a professional grower
· Information and advice for commercial growers and farmers
· A wetland sewage disposal system
· Display gardens open to visitors-including a children’s garden, a taste garden, a heritage garden, an unusual vegetable and salad garden, and an edible flower garden
· A willow sculpture area.
· Display of composting techniques
· An orchard and soft fruit area
· A shop and café (to be opened shortly)
The centre employs eight staff and has an award winning FAS training scheme aimed at people interested in a career in organic horticulture. At the core of all the activities in the centre is an educational and information focus. This means that whilst the gardens are attractive and interesting to the public it also aims to deliver a message about sustainability and good environmental practices to visitors.
The administrator at the centre took us around the new wooden building that will soon be the information centre, shop and café. The modern training rooms are already being used for courses including, basket making, building houses out of alternative materials to concrete (such as straw bales and wood), herbal first aid kits and cooking with wholefood. The building itself has an interesting grass roof that blends in well with the countryside; they only have to throw a goat up their once a year to keep it in shape! The building is also connected to the wetland sewage system that handles all the wastewater; this slowly seeps through the land, cleaning the water as it goes along. By the time the water has reached the pond a few hundred metres away it has been totally cleaned. The pond is teeming with wildlife! The system can cope with 200 visitors a day, so it’s very efficient. Next we were shown around the herb gardens, flower borders and vegetable areas. The healthy looking vegetable are sold from the centre as well as supplying an organic box delivery service around the local area. After a break for lunch (just over the border at the Lough Melvin holiday centre in Garrison, Co Fermanagh), we had a tour of the five polytunnels (whuch was just as well as the heavens opened with heavy rain showers).
When we got back to the centre we weren’t put off by the heavy rain showers as the next part of the tour was around the five polythene tunnels. At the doors were Calendulas (marigolds) in flower to attract greenfly predators and small ponds are placed in the corner of each tunnel to keep the slug hunting frogs happy. The organic tomatoes, beans, sweet corn and cucumbers were pest and disease free, as were the herbs used for cutting. We finished the tour by being shown around the fruit areas. Raspberries, gooseberries and currants were all planted in rows into grass areas then mulched with a thick layer of straw to keep the weeds down. The grass path makes picking the fruit easy and clean. No muddy boots here. The apple and pear trees were done in the same way. The centre is concentrating on re-introducing old varieties of apple trees that are in danger of disappearing. Most of these apples are very resistant to disease and have more flavour than a lot of the commercial strains. Before we knew it we had gone an hour over our scheduled guided tour. It’s surprising where the time goes when you’re having fun! The drive back takes between 2 to 3 hours. This soon passes when you’re in good company.
For further information contact The Organic Centre at: www.theorganiccentre.ie tel. 07254338
Horticultural,environmental.
The Organic Centre was set up in 1995 as a non-profit making company. The aim of the centre is to provide training, information and demonstrations of organic gardening, growing and farming. The centre is on a 19 acre site and provides:
· Demonstration gardens and growing tunnels showing organic methods of food production
· A wide range of training courses geared at all levels from the interested amateur gardener to a professional grower
· Information and advice for commercial growers and farmers
· A wetland sewage disposal system
· Display gardens open to visitors-including a children’s garden, a taste garden, a heritage garden, an unusual vegetable and salad garden, and an edible flower garden
· A willow sculpture area.
· Display of composting techniques
· An orchard and soft fruit area
· A shop and café (to be opened shortly)
The centre employs eight staff and has an award winning FAS training scheme aimed at people interested in a career in organic horticulture. At the core of all the activities in the centre is an educational and information focus. This means that whilst the gardens are attractive and interesting to the public it also aims to deliver a message about sustainability and good environmental practices to visitors.
The administrator at the centre took us around the new wooden building that will soon be the information centre, shop and café. The modern training rooms are already being used for courses including, basket making, building houses out of alternative materials to concrete (such as straw bales and wood), herbal first aid kits and cooking with wholefood. The building itself has an interesting grass roof that blends in well with the countryside; they only have to throw a goat up their once a year to keep it in shape! The building is also connected to the wetland sewage system that handles all the wastewater; this slowly seeps through the land, cleaning the water as it goes along. By the time the water has reached the pond a few hundred metres away it has been totally cleaned. The pond is teeming with wildlife! The system can cope with 200 visitors a day, so it’s very efficient. Next we were shown around the herb gardens, flower borders and vegetable areas. The healthy looking vegetable are sold from the centre as well as supplying an organic box delivery service around the local area. After a break for lunch (just over the border at the Lough Melvin holiday centre in Garrison, Co Fermanagh), we had a tour of the five polytunnels (whuch was just as well as the heavens opened with heavy rain showers).
When we got back to the centre we weren’t put off by the heavy rain showers as the next part of the tour was around the five polythene tunnels. At the doors were Calendulas (marigolds) in flower to attract greenfly predators and small ponds are placed in the corner of each tunnel to keep the slug hunting frogs happy. The organic tomatoes, beans, sweet corn and cucumbers were pest and disease free, as were the herbs used for cutting. We finished the tour by being shown around the fruit areas. Raspberries, gooseberries and currants were all planted in rows into grass areas then mulched with a thick layer of straw to keep the weeds down. The grass path makes picking the fruit easy and clean. No muddy boots here. The apple and pear trees were done in the same way. The centre is concentrating on re-introducing old varieties of apple trees that are in danger of disappearing. Most of these apples are very resistant to disease and have more flavour than a lot of the commercial strains. Before we knew it we had gone an hour over our scheduled guided tour. It’s surprising where the time goes when you’re having fun! The drive back takes between 2 to 3 hours. This soon passes when you’re in good company.
For further information contact The Organic Centre at: www.theorganiccentre.ie tel. 07254338
Horticultural,environmental.
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