“A Lifetime of Blooms: Rita’s Enduring Connection with RHSI”

In 1971, a young couple embarked on their gardening journey together after purchasing their first home. Rita, now a member of the RHSI, joined the society a year later, eager to enhance her knowledge and passion for gardening. Little did she know that this decision would mark the beginning of a lifetime dedicated to learning, growing, and savouring the joys of her outdoor sanctuary.

Over five decades later, Rita remains an active and devoted member of the RHSI community. The society’s bulletin, a source of inspiration and connection, keeps her engaged and linked with fellow gardening enthusiasts. Rita recently shared a heartwarming tale from a RHSI talk she attended with her mother a couple of years before her mother’s passing in 1979.

Rita, who modestly claims not to have a lucky bone in her body, recounted the day her mother’s luck shone brightly. At the RHSI event, Rita’s mother won a Sarcococca, commonly known as Sweet Box, renowned for its delightful winter scent. In a gesture of love and remembrance, Rita’s mother presented her daughter with the thriving plant.

Even today, the Sarcococca thrives in Rita’s garden, becoming a living testament to enduring memories and cherished moments shared over the past half-century with the RHSI. As winter descends and the garden is enveloped in darkness, the plant’s fragrant blossoms and glossy foliage serve as a poignant reminder of Rita’s mother and the countless happy times spent cultivating a love for gardening within the RHSI community.

Rita’s story encapsulates the essence of the RHSI – a community that not only nurtures gardens but also fosters lasting connections and treasured memories. As Rita continues to revel in her garden, she stands as a testament to the enduring joy and sense of belonging that the RHSI provides to passionate gardeners, particularly those, like her, who have gracefully entered the golden years of life.

Without the top few inches of topsoil on the earth’s crust, life on earth would not be possible as we know it.  In fact, we wouldn’t even be here on Earth.  Unfortunately, as a species we don’t fully appreciate this important fact and have played a massive role in the destruction of topsoil.  Since the 1960’s nearly one third of the global arable land area has become degraded and according to the Soil Association 10 million hectares of land are abandoned every year due to soil erosion.

During the International Year of the Soil in 2015, we campaigned with the People for Soil Campaign for some legal protection for soils.  We tried to raise awareness about the importance of protecting this most valuable resource we have on Earth but we failed.  There is still no legal protection for Soils.  There is detailed EU protection for air, water and other natural assets but not for the most important being on Earth – The Living Soil.  Imagine, 95% of all our food comes from soil and also fuel, clothing and so much more.

How is it possible that everyone is aware of climate change and rising sea levels but no one seems to be aware that we have only 60 harvests left if we continue to farm the way we do now.  These are figures from the United Nations WHO.

Now we are in 2023 and there is still no legal framework for protecting our soils.  The ironic truth is – if we were to make our soils fertile again and we can only do this by bringing carbon back into the soil through compost or manure. The carbon would be taken from the atmosphere and deposited into the soil.  So maybe we should all become soil warriors rather than climate warriors?

We really can’t afford to lose any more with an ever increasing world population.  Thus our most important task in the world is to preserve and enhance our soils so they can keep producing sufficient food for the future.  Wouldn’t it be a wonderful lifetime’s achievement to leave a plot of land in better health than when we found it?

Mother Earth

It can be quite difficult to get a thorough understanding of soils, partly because the players and mechanisms are nearly all invisible to the naked eye and soil scientists don’t often have the knack to explain it in ‘normal’ language.

We need to make a mental choice and start treating soil like ‘Mother Earth’ – with care and respect.  The American word for soil ‘dirt’ is really the ultimate insult for the giver of all life.

In the end, everyone and everything will end up as new particles of soil.

Serotonin for gardeners

There is one thing that a lot of vegetable gardeners agree upon: we all know that when we’re working in the garden and getting our fingers dirty, all our worries and stresses seem to fade away.  Researchers from the Bristol University and University College London found out the reason.  Apparently there are friendly bacteria that are quite common in a fertile soil that actually activate brain cells to produce the brain chemical serotonin.  Low levels of serotonin are linked with various disorders including anxiety, aggression, depression to mention a few.

So now we finally have the proof of what we already know – gardening cheers us up!  Just take off your gloves and even your shoes and spend more time getting dirty.

Understanding soils

The soil in your garden or farms can vary quite a lot.  There may be patches of excellent soil where a garden once was or rocky, stony patches where rubble was buried.

In order to find your ideal spot, take out your spade and dig a few large holes in different places in your garden.  Compare the sods (spade depth) and look out for the following things:

Colour of the soil (the darker the better)

Texture (see below)

Is it loose or compacted (see how easy it crumbles)

Are there any worms or worm channels

Are there many plant roots (do they penetrate deeply?

Is there orange mottling (this is iron that has oxidised and indicates temporary waterlogging)

If you dig a little deeper you can see your soil profile.  You should dig about 50cm deep and 50cm wide.  This will give you excellent information on the depth of your soil.  A soil is made up of topsoil, subsoil and the underlying rock.  There is usually a clear difference between the topsoil and subsoil.

The topsoil usually has:

A darker colour

A looser structure

Plenty of worm and insect channels and plant roots

The subsoil is lighter in colour, compact and with very few traces of life.

You should easily be able to identify the layers and measure the depth of your topsoil.  A depth of 30cm of good topsoil would be more than perfect.  A depth of 20cm is sufficient but more care and effort is required to improve it.  Anything less than 20cm you’ll find that your crops will be struggling and you should definitely invest in raised beds.

Soil Texture

Many people mix up the terms soil structure and texture.  The texture of a soil is determined by the amount of sand, silt and clay particles present.  These are classified according to their size with sand being the largest and clay the smallest particle.

Sand:   0.06 – 2mm

Silt:      0.002 – 0.06mm

Clay:    less than 0.002mm

Over hundreds of thousands of years rocks have weathered down into small particles and these form the main ingredients of most soils (peat soils are the exception).

Clay soils are sticky when wet and hard as rock when dry.  They are very difficult to work.  On the positive side they are less prone to leaching and thus are nutrient richer soils.

Silty soils are reasonably moisture retentive but can compact easily.

Sandy soils are very free draining, easy to cultivate and warm up early in spring.  Unfortunately they can’t hold water and nutrients very well.

Luckily most soils are made up of a mixture of sand, silt and clay particles.  An even mix would be the ideal.

There are two easy tests to identify what texture your soil is:

Jam Jar Test

Get a large jam jar and half fill it with crumbled up soil, add some water and shake it vigorously and let it settle.  The sand particles will settle within a minute, the silt particles within an hour and the clay particles within a day.  The next day you should be able to see clear layers of the different particles and their proportions.

Finger test

Take a small handful of moist soil and rub it between your thumb and fingers.  If it is smooth and sticky and can be rolled into sausage shape it’s a clay soil.  If it feels gritty and can’t even be rolled into a ball it’s a sandy soil.  A silty soil has a soapy silky feel when rubbed and leaves the fingers dirty.  A peaty soil looks very dark and has a spongy feel.

Now here comes the important information:

Any soil can be improved by compost or composted manure application!

Soil Structure

The fertility of your soil depends largely on the soil structure.  If the soil is crumbly and can be worked easily, then your plants will be thriving.  A well-structured soil consists of crumb particles which join the lumps of mineral and organic particles together.

The first thing to do is to pick up a handful of soil and feel it, smell it and see how easy it crumbles.

A dream soil is one that smells sweet like forest soil, is dark in colour and crumbles easily when rubbed between your fingers.  It should let the water penetrate easily and also hold moisture in dry weather.  It should have sufficient nutrients including trace elements that are available as and when plants need them.

The important fact is that any soil can be significantly improved over a number of years if it is well managed and cared for.

Life in the soil

It is very difficult for us to fully appreciate what goes on in the soil.  If we could only see the creatures toiling away relentlessly we would probably take better care of it. A healthy soil is teeming with life. They are tiny, but seen through a microscope, they open up a fascinating world of wonders.  In one gram of soil, the number of bacteria ranges from 100,000 to several billion.

In one hectare of good agricultural land (100m x 100m) there are: 20,000kg Microorganisms, 370kg Protozoa,  10kg Springtails, 50kg Millipedes and woodlice, 17kg Insects, beetles and spiders,  4,000kg Earthworms.

All those soil organisms play a significant role in maintaining a healthy fertile soil.  If these organisms were not present the soil would have no life – it would die. Their role is to break down the crop residues and other natural inputs and mix them with the soil.  As they break down the waste, essential plant nutrients are being made available to plants.

There is another great invention of nature: the warmer the soil, the more active these microorganisms are and the more nutrients they release.  That’s also when plants need more nutrients.   So how do we encourage these creatures?  We simply feed them with compost, manure, crop residues, seaweed, weeds, etc.

The founder of the Soil Association, Lady Eve Balfour, wrote in 1943:

‘The health of man, beast, plant and soil is one indivisible whole; the health of the soil depends on maintaining its biological balance.’

(Note: There is a lovely podcast on the life of this remarkable and brave woman on BBC Radio 4 podcast – Great Lives – Lady Eve Balfour) 

An old country wisdom:

“A farmer should live as though he were going to die tomorrow; but he should farm as though he were going to live forever.”

Humanity completely depends on the soil for our survival on earth.  There is nothing greater we can do than to leave a plot of land more fertile than we found it.

This is what we have to understand: what we take out from the soil we have to give back.

Soils can counteract global warming – Soils act as carbon sinks

Soils store 4,000 billion tons of carbon – this is far more than forests that store 360 billion tons of carbon and the atmosphere which stores around 800 billion tons.

The carbon in the soil is what gardeners often refer to as compost or composted manure from a farm.  This was used for millennia by gardeners and farmers and only with the widespread introduction of artificial fertilisers after WW2 the problem started.

We have stopped putting organic matter back into the soil for 70 years and the organic matter content of soils which was often in the region of 5% has dropped to 2% in arable areas.  This carbon has been released into the atmosphere.

The organic matter content is the living component of our soils.  It’s everything that is and was once alive.  The remainder of the soil is the mineral matter that is derived from rock particles.

A healthy humus rich soil acts as a carbon sink (carbon deposited in the soil) and can thus counteract global warming.

It’s logical if you think about it.  Plants absorb (breathe in) carbon (a greenhouse gas) from the atmosphere and when you compost the plants (or anything else) this carbon is going to make up the organic matter or humus which is quite safely stored in the soil for many years and some of it even for many decades.

So, the most active way to counteract global warming is to compost every bit of waste which is decomposable.

I’m sure that within a decade people and countries will get grants to grow crops for composting which will act as carbon sinks (absorb and store carbon).

What can gardeners do to combat climate change?

Our main priority should be to increase the organic matter content in the soil.  This way our soils become a lot more fertile and productive as well as helping to combat climate change –  in our own small way.

This is what we can do in the garden:

Making compost

Learn how to make great compost and use everything that can possibly be composted and even get some other ingredients from other sources.

Growing peas, beans or clover

These plants belong to the Leguminosae family and work in symbiosis with soil bacteria to fix atmospheric nitrogen.  This is a free ecological service.

The production of synthetic nitrogen requires 5% of the world’s annual gas consumption – another contributor to global warming.  Many farmers now realise this and sow clover into their fields and make huge savings in not having to buy nitrogen fertilisers.

Seaweed

If you live close to the coast, seaweed is an excellent garden fertiliser and increases the organic matter content in the soil.  Simply put it onto the soil (unwashed) in late autumn after the crops are harvested and remove it in early spring and put it into the compost heap or spread it around fruit trees.

Green manures

A green manure is a crop that is grown and dug back into the soil for the simple reason of improving soil fertility – increasing the organic matter content and for nitrogen fixation. Examples include clovers, rye/vetch mix, phacelia, buckwheat and many more.

Mulching

Mulching with a natural material such as wood chips, bark mulch, leaves, straw and even lawn mowing around fruit bushes and other perennial crops are a wonderful method of both feeding the crops, improving soil fertility as well as bringing carbon back into the soil.

Mulching around vegetables plants may be more of a problem especially in the wetter parts of the country as a mulch often attracts slugs and snails.

No – Dig system

When we dig over or cultivate our gardens, carbon will be released from the soil.  That’s why many gardeners have adopted a no-dig system and rely on mulching.  I try to dig as little as possible – my test is if I can push a garden fork into the soil without using my foot – there is no need to dig.

Benjes Hedge (dead wood hedge)

That’s a great project idea.  Put in stakes or strong branches in a parallel line (about 1m distance) and then back fill the gap in between with hedge cuttings, branches and any other woody material.  This makes a wonderful habitat for robins and wrens who will nest in there and eventually sow the seeds after having eaten berries from fruiting shrubs.   Just as important – that’s a pile of carbon slowly getting back into the soil.

To summarise: A healthy soil produces healthy vegetables, so if your plants are ailing the first question you should ask yourself, is my soil fertile enough?

Fact:

It takes 1,000 years to form 1 inch of topsoil through natural processes

Fact:

A healthy soil reduces the risk of flooding and protects ground water sources through neutralising and filtering pollutants.

Quote:

“Upon this handful of soil our survival depends. Husband it and it will grow our food, our fuel, and our shelter and surround us with beauty. Abuse it and the soil will collapse and die, taking humanity with it”.

Sanskrit text 1,500BC

Quote:

“We are using the world’s soils as if they were inexhaustible, continually withdrawing from an account, but never paying in.”  (Heinrich Boell Foundation)

Klaus Laitenberger

Klaus Laitenberger is the author of three vegetable gardening books. He was the Head Gardener at the Organic Centre in Co. Leitrim and restored the gardens of Lissadell House in Co. Sligo. He is a regular contributor to the Irish Garden magazine.

Klaus also works as a gardening consultant and gives lectures and talks nationwide on growing food. His books have attained excellent reviews from other horticulturists and top gardening newspaper & magazine writers and other gardeners alike.

Instagram  

Website

https://greenvegetableseeds.com/books/

As winter loosens its grip and the promise of spring beckons, there’s an undeniable excitement in the air. Nature’s subtle hints are beginning to unfold, and one of the first signs of the changing season is the emergence of little green snowdrop shoots in Irish gardens.

To celebrate these brave and cheerful plants, we’re thrilled to invite you to our Snowdrop Weekend from February 8th to the 11th. Picture this – a garden adorned with the delicate beauty of snowdrops, creating an enchanting atmosphere that’s perfect for shedding the winter blues.

Our Snowdrop Weekend will be a captivating experience, open daily from 11:00 to 16:00. Join our Head Gardener, Paul Smyth, for two insightful tours at 12:00 pm and 2:00 pm. Paul will share his expertise, offering a glimpse into the fascinating world of snowdrops and the art of cultivating a stunning garden.

After your exploration, head to our cozy coach house for a moment of relaxation. Indulge in the warmth of freshly brewed tea, aromatic coffee, and scrumptious homemade cakes – a delightful treat to complement the beauty of the surroundings.

So, mark your calendars and gather your loved ones for a weekend filled with the joy of nature’s awakening. Let’s bid farewell to winter and embrace the beauty of spring together.

We can’t wait to welcome you to our Snowdrop Weekend – where nature takes center stage, and the magic of spring comes to life. See you from February 8th to the 11th!   Free for RHSI members and €8.00 for Non members  Click here to book

Welcome to The Paddock! Located just outside Swords, Co. Dublin, surrounded by tilled fields and my partner Daphne’s family, this our garden, a post-pandemic garden that had it’s inception the day the lockdown was announced.

It all started with a vegetable bed, that was documented on social media channels of Johnstown Garden Centre, where I work as Head of Horticulture. As three weeks of restrictions on movement turned into months, the garden grew, the lawn shrunk, and the plant purchases increased. The once acre site is now home to our garden, which includes a football pitch, not a full size one, a trampoline, a big one, and a Pylon, a great big one, but not the biggest.

Plants are central to all that I do in the garden, I try to use plants in combinations to create not just colour, but structure and textural interest throughout the year. In The Patio Garden, the project that followed the first vegetable beds, some specimen plants have been traveling companions of mine from other gardens, plants such as the dwarf Betula albosinensis grown from seed that measures a meagre 1m in height after 14 years, or the Chaenomeles sp. Picked up from the ground as germinating seed inside a fallen fruit on the grounds of the university in Galway over ten years ago, it now cascades bright red flowers from November to March, and three heritage varieties of apple trees purchased from Irish Seed Savers a decade and half past, trained as columns.

Most of the plants have come from my workplace, Johnstown Garden Centre, so I can say that, nearly, everything in the garden is widely commercially available. In my role at work, it is my job to purchase the plants for the garden centre, everything from bedding plants, houseplants, alpines, perennials, shrubs and trees. One eye is always on the lookout for something unusual, something with great flowers, something with fabulous foliage, that I would like in the garden, and that I think other gardeners would like too.

Over the past four years, I have been amazed at how fast the plants have established. I am learning; being surprised by how some plants survive a frost in one area, while the same variety turns to mush in another, defying logic and has me searching for a reason. I am adapting my approach to planting; I am a full-time horticulturist but a part-time gardener, gardening on my days off only, means large areas of the garden have to be relatively low-maintenance. Being surrounded by large tillage fields, the garden is an island for wildlife, practices consider the birds and bees, and all the other creatures. I am compromising; designing a garden with a family in mind, a football pitch: plants close by have to withstand near goal misses as footballs crash into their stems. There is a trampoline, never used, verbally abused by me nearly every day, it’s days are numbered.

Our garden brings us joy all year, even now at the end of January, sitting in The Fire Pit Garden, sheltered from the breeze the fragrance of Daphne flowers wafts across from The Patio Garden from D. ‘Spring Herald’ and adjacent to the vegetable garden D. Bhilua ‘Jacqueline Postil’ adds more scent.

A walk to The Patio Garden has me admiring Hellebores and as I stop to admire the large blooms of Helleborus ‘Cecilia’ I inhale sweet scents of the low growing D. ‘Perfume Princess’, I can see snowdrops bursting into bloom, whil growth shoots of Alliums bring promise of warmer longer days.

In The Pylon Garden, I admire the foliage of Melianthus major, the bicoored blooms of Correa ‘Marion’s Marvel’, and check on the newly planted Cordyline ‘Elerctric Pink’, to see how this pink striped bright leaved clump forming cordyline has come through the recent cold snap, it looks fine

Over the coming months there will be lots to do, lots to see and new plants to buy and plant. A couple of bigger projects to tackle, and I look forward to sharing these with you here.

To see more about The Paddock visit my website: ciaranthegardener.com

Facebook:ciaran burke

Instagram: ciaran_burke

Website: www.ciaranthegardener.com

Over the next 12 months, we invite you to share your best garden photos and monthly gardening tips as we curate a treasury of green wisdom. Why? Because in December 2024, we’ll transform these shared moments into a stunning calendar, and guess what? It’s not just a calendar; it’s a fundraising event!

💡 How It Works:

📷 Share your best garden photos and monthly tips throughout the year.
🗓️ Over the months, we’ll gather this wealth of green inspiration.
🌟 In December 2024, the best submissions will become a masterpiece calendar.

🌱 A Calendar for a Cause:
This calendar won’t just hang on walls; it will make a difference! All proceeds from the sale will go directly towards the RHSI Bellefield Project and the conservation of Irish Horticulture. By indulging in a piece of our community’s green journey, you’re contributing to something greater.

🌿 Sustainable Design:
But that’s not all! Our calendar is sustainably designed and printed in Ireland on quality paper stocks ranging from 10% to 100% recycled content. These stocks are made with pulp originating from managed forestry schemes grown for use in paper. Plus, we’ve used non-toxic, plant-based inks to make this calendar not only beautiful but eco-friendly.

💚 How You Can Support:

🌿 Keep sharing your garden moments and tips.
📅 Save the date for our calendar release in December 2024.

Let’s make 2024 a year where our gardens not only flourish but also contribute to a meaningful cause. Share your green moments, nurture our community, and let’s create a calendar that not only marks time but leaves a lasting impact!

We launched our private RHSI Members Group on Facebook at the end of December and are delighted with the amount of members joining!  We encourage you to join the community!

🌿 Why Join?
This exclusive group is designed to enhance your RHSI membership experience by providing a dedicated space for collaboration, knowledge sharing, and networking. Here are a few compelling reasons to join:

Knowledge Sharing: Connect with fellow members to share your expertise, tips, and insights. Whether you’re a seasoned expert or just starting out, the group is a fantastic platform to exchange ideas and expand your horticultural knowledge.

Ask Questions: Have a gardening query or seeking advice on a specific plant? Our members group is the perfect place to ask questions and tap into the collective wisdom of the RHSI community.

Event Updates: Stay informed about upcoming events, workshops, and exclusive member activities. It’s your go-to source for the latest RHSI updates and opportunities.

Community Building: Forge connections with like-minded individuals who share your passion for horticulture. Whether you’re a hobbyist or a professional, the group provides a supportive environment for building lasting connections.

🌱 How It Works:
Getting started is easy! Simply follow these steps:

Request to Join: Click here https://www.facebook.com/groups/838326468043435/?ref=share_group_link  We’ll promptly review your request and add you to the community.

Engage and Participate: Start exploring the discussions, join conversations, and don’t hesitate to ask questions or share your own experiences. The more active you are, the more you’ll get out of this vibrant community.

Join us on Facebook, and let’s cultivate a thriving community of passionate RHSI members!

Written by Dee Seewell for the RHSI The Journal Spring 22

I first began working with community gardens in 2011 when I was invited by Kilkenny Education Training Board to run a gardening class in a small, rural development office garden, with an enormous polytunnel.
As soon as the group met it became apparent that this would be more than a series of simple workshops. A gathering of people had come together who were keen to transform the garden. They worked hard to create vegetable beds, flower borders and herb planters. They shared tea and cake, formed friendships, and learned from one another. The weeks turned to months and as the food grew to harvest, they shared it all, swapping recipes and meals, celebrating the harvest festival and the pre-Christmas wreath making and flower arranging. The next year they did it again, changing and adapting, welcoming new members, firming up friendships.
That, in essence, is what community gardening can be about. It’s as much about the social aspect as it is about gardening. Unlike allotments, where individuals and families rent a small piece of land and do all the work, taking home the harvest, community gardening is about sharing. Some community gardens are open all year to the public, others have set opening times and days, some are behind closed doors in therapeutic settings. Some community gardens share the space with allotments, whilst others might be more about fruit growing with community orchards. Some gardens only grow flowers, others everything imaginable. Complete beginners and experienced growers are always welcome, allowing people to learn from one another, and there are jobs for all, some more strenuous than others, depending upon your preference.
The benefits of community gardens are many, as those first gardeners found out for themselves. They mentioned how successes and failures of growing food are normal, they had a better appreciation of how difficult it can be to grow food, how long it takes, that they were able to try out different flavours that were once popular but not now available in supermarkets. They were surprised that they felt more connected to their community, more likely to shop locally and learnt about the seasonality of food.
If your appetite has been whetted and you’re thinking of joining a community garden, check out the map on www.cgireland.org to see if there’s one close by to you. If not, and you’d like to start one, the following shares a few steps to help you get started:
● Find some likeminded people, ask around, put up posters in local shops or social media. Think about what type of community garden you’d like and who will be using it.
● Find the land. Have a chat with your local Tidy Towns group, county council community section, parish church or family resource centre.
Once you have the people and the land, the rest will follow. In no particular order, start a club, join your Public Participation Network (PPN), approach your local Education Training Board for horticulture tutor help, gather tools and equipment and start fundraising for materials. Join Community Gardens Ireland so that you can connect with more people, pick up tips, advice and help along the way.

Dee Sewell

Dee Sewell is proprietor of Greenside Up, which promotes wellness, social inclusion & community development through social, community & therapeutic horticultural & environmental education. Based on the Carlow/Kilkenny border, Dee provides consultation, designs, talks, training, mentoring and talks about community gardening in Ireland. For more information see www.greensideup.ie