IRISH SEEDSAVERS

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Background: The ISSA is a voluntary organisation dedicated to the location and preservation of traditional varieties of fruit and vegetables. The Association maintains a seed bank which distributes seed of these non-commercially available vegetables, as well as a network of heritage potatoes. We pass them on to members so that they can learn to save them and in this way ensure a living agricultural legacy.

A primary goal of the ISSA is to bring Ireland's cultural and genetic heritage into the hands of ordinary people. One of the unique aspects of seed saving networks, which exist all over the world, is the opportunity to share in the responsibility and joy of conserving the planet's diminishing genetic resources in a real and practical manner.

ALPINE AND HERBACEAOUS SEEDS
If you are feeling adventurous then try collecting seeds from alpines and perennials to grow in your own garden. Some of the seeds need nature to take care of them so put them in a pot, label them and put them in a sheltered spot away from slugs. Some might germinate quickly but others need a frosting before they appear. Alpine plants are one of the easiest plants to grow from cuttings. If you see any plants you like the look of then cut off a couple of small pieces of stem with a node on it and push it into compost. Be careful if you try this in garden centres or parks as you could get arrested for stealing. Stick to friends’ gardens!

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KNAUTIA

Photo: Knautia persicifolia

PLANT OF THE WEEK
Cottage garden plants are looking terrific at this time of year. Tall plants in the cottage garden are a must and if you plant thickly then there is no need for staking. Bearded Irises have a bold structure and can support flimsier stems of such delights as the Delphiniums and large campanula persicifolia. One tall plant that would need a bit of support in the cottage garden that was brought to my attention this week was the Knautia macedonica. These upright perennials bear globular, bright crimson flowers that insects adore. The flowers are going over now and the birds are walking along the stems and having a feast on the abundance of seeds. All together these plants have been a haven for wildlife for well over two months, these are a must for the wildlife garden and if you can get some seeds before the birds eat them, then they will germinate in any sunny, well drained spot in the garden.

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BALD PATCHES

I was cutting the grass earlier this week in between the showers. I noticed that certain areas were wearing thin because of children playing, which is great to see. Lawns do tend to take a battering at this time of year so a bit of routine maintenance wouldn’t go a miss. Use a spring rake to remove moss that has built up and if you can be bothered to dig out perennial weeds this should be done as well. If you enjoy cutting the grass then apply an organic fertiliser, following the instructions on the box. Don’t fret it there are bald patches appearing where the children play as we can sort those out later at the end of summer.



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QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Photo: Windswept apple tree.

I missed the monthly meeting of the Swilly Gardening Club again last Monday. But all was not lost as the group held a midweek meeting where John from Mac’s landscaping did a very interesting presentation in his polytunnel on planting up baskets and containers. It’s the first time that I have been inside a tunnel this season and the smell of the bedding plants, soil and humidity brought back memories of how much work is involved in growing annual plants. John had a wonderful selection of fine looking plants. There were pansies, violas, busy lizzies, surfinias, dahlias and fuchsias to name but a few. John is like myself when it comes to planting up, he likes a riot of colour and will try and get as many plants into the container as possible to give a grand display.

After John’s demonstration I talked to some of the members of the club to see what I missed at the Monday meeting. There was a quiz, which went down very well and a question and answer session for people to get advice about all things horticultural.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Before I start with the questions from the club, I had a question that I needed answering myself. On the estate where we live there are two trees. One is an old Hawthorne, which was here before the estate. Hawthorne trees such as this are the fairy trees that are cherished and steeped in folklore history. The other tree is equally as fine and is the tree that represents Ireland, the Oak. This oak tree is again quite old and was here before we were. Some over zealous lads on the estate had fun one evening peeling the bark off some branches for a bit of fun. The branches were about the radius of dinner plate and the lads peeled off the bark all around the branches and up to a length of about three feet. I asked Colm Grant from the club about whether we could protect the branches in some way to stop disease getting into the tree.

Once the bark is peeled off a tree the affected trunk will die. The main activity of the growth of a tree is just underneath the bark. All of the layers of bark don’t have to be removed to kill the affected area either. There is nothing that can be put over the affected area and within a few years the branches will die back. Thankfully the lads didn’t peel the bark off the main trunk. This would have killed the tree entirely. As it is the branches will die back to the main trunk and then the tree will seal the area up to protect itself from further infection. I have passed this information on to the lads concerned but they are interested in another sort of wood now, wood for the coming bonfire in June!

Q. When should you start to prune back broom?

A. Broom can be cut back after flowering. It is important to cut back these shrubs when they are very young to encourage bushy growth. Broom can get very leggy and the branches are very brittle similar to the buddleia bush. Both of these shrubs suffer damage if not pruned back when the wind whips up on the peninsula.

Q. I have fruit trees that have red growths on the bark, what is this?

A. The trees have developed canker. The bark is probably shrinking in concentric circles, which will lead to further infection. This is a serious disease of apples and pears, and is especially bad in poorly drained soil. Cut off the damaged twigs and cut out the canker from the stems and branches. Check at the local garden centre to see what organic sprays are available to control the problem.

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HANDY TIPS

HANDY TIPS
It’s amazing what tips you can pick up at a meeting. There are the ones about not forgetting to put drainage holes in your pots before you fill them or make sure the chains of the hanging basket aren’t under the liner of the basket when you make it up (you have to take the whole thing apart). I liked this one though. When making the baskets you might be advised to put in water retaining crystals to help keep a constant supply of moisture to the plant roots. Don’t go out and spend your hard earned money on this product, simply use a disposable nappy! The nappies work in the same way and will be a great benefit to the plants if put around the edge of the containers. They are so effective that you shouldn’t put them on the base of the container, as the roots will get too wet. (I do not indorse this last suggestion at all though as it is totally non organic!)



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JUDGING GARDENING COMPETITIONS

TIDY TOWNS INITIATIVE
Julie warned me not to go to the Tidy towns Annual General Meeting in Buncrana last week. “They will set you on doing something” she wisely commented. I went anyway and as predicted I came out of the meeting with the rather exciting position of Public Relations Person, (with two other people, thankfully). This means that it is our responsibility to positively promote the initiative throughout the summer to gain some valuable points when the judges sneak into town sometime in June or July. The points are getting harder to get each year as towns across the country increasingly improve their areas. Inishowen are doing very well as a whole because the towns are more or less on par with other towns that have far more revenue to spend on projects. There are so many positive improvements in all the towns this year that I’m sure with the hard work and determination of the committees and voluntary workers; Inishowen will be a force to reckon with.


GARDENING COMPETITION
At an earlier meeting I was recruited to help out with the Buncrana Gardening Competition. There are plenty of opportunities to win prizes and best of all this year it will be free to enter! I am aware that I am neglecting other towns in the peninsula (sighs of relief from other committees!) so to counteract this point I would like to give some pointers to help you when it comes to entering the competition in your own town.

JUDGING
I devised a checklist to help me decide who the winners were when I judged a competition last year. I gave a total mark out of a hundred. I did find that a lot of people lacked confidence when it came to their own gardens. I don’t know why this is, maybe it is because of familiarity and the grass is always greener in someone else’s garden. I can assure you though that every garden has a distinct personality and even a pile of old logs or old wooden furniture can be turned into a feature as a haven for wildlife!

Please just use the following list as a guide for the competition. The judges who assess your garden will also have their own method of picking their favourites and they will probably have different tastes to me

Overall design-Hard Landscaping.
This section looked at walls, raised beds, paths and included a point or two for consideration to neighbours. 20 points

Features in scale.
Here I checked out the overall look of the garden and assessed if each feature complemented another and was in scale. I also looked at ease of access throughout the year. 10 points

Year round interest and good use of space.
The shrub planting for all year interest was looked at. Other features such as focal points that draw your eye into the garden all through the year were assessed. The good use of space within the garden was also looked at. 20 points

Originality.
This included anything different from the usual lawn and borders. Points were given for features such as children’s areas, use of water, attracting wildlife, use of natural or recycled products and any thing else that caught my eye. 10 points

Soft Landscaping.
This category included the positioning of summer plants, herbs, shrub borders, vegetable patches, compost bins, sheds and any other features such as trellis. I also gave a mark for hard or unusual plants that were in the garden. 20 points

Lawn Quality.
The lawn was assessed to see how well it was maintained. Points weren’t given to moss or reed covered lawns but I did give points for lawns that were being used for recreational purposes so it didn’t matter if there were a few bald patches. (I have enough of those myself!) If there was a small town garden without a lawn I looked at the general quality of the floor covering and marked accordingly. 10 points


Hanging baskets and Containers.
Here I looked at the colour scheme (As I said earlier this is all down to personal taste so I was never harsh with the points given). The condition of the plants is much more important and I marked that accordingly adding points for regular watering, feeding and deadheading. 10 points

Don’t feel as though you have to have hanging baskets and containers to be in with a chance of winning. Most judges will mark you up on other areas if you don’t have them. Some people feel that these sorts of containers should be confined to small town gardens and shops. Again it is all down to personal taste. The main thing to remember when entering the competition is to have fun.

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