Merry Christmas from

We want to thank all our customers and Friends for visiting, shopping, participating in courses and training and generally supporting our work. We wish you a great growing season in 2012!

Our theme for 2012 is “Skills for Life and The Organic Centre team has come up with 7 ideas for the new gardening year matched to a new course, which can make a huge difference:

1. Develop a low maintenance garden. Gardening is addictive and as soon as the days get longer and the weather warmer and the garden centres and plant suppliers offer the latest new variety, that new seed and the must have plant this year, we go over board and buy or order, but are we prepared? So if you think you won’t be able to resist the latest trends, prepare your special bed now, 10sqm, for all the impulsive buys and try to develop a low maintenance garden. You won’t regret it!
New course: Garden set-up and useful structures March 4th

2. Harvest all year round. Self-sufficiency is a great idea, but to come even close to produce all your vegetables all year round you need a specific and detailed plan for sowing, planting and harvesting and you need to start in February.
New course: Plan a year’s harvest: start now on February 18th.

3. Propagating flowers and border plants can help reducing cost. To save money as a gardener the best way is to improve your skills in sowing, composting, propagating and grafting. Grafting your own fruit trees does not only save you money it can become a very exciting and rewarding hobby. Dividing perennials can produce fantastic presents for other gardeners.
New courses: Grafting workshop February 26th and Propagating perennials 6th October.

4. Save water and harvest rain water. Water as little as possible in the outside garden and you will save money (water charges are looming) and time. Mulch your beds, hoe in dry weather and so keep evaporation down, have good soil that enables plants to send their roots deep down and find water. Try to harvest rainwater for all your garden needs and for domestic use.
New course: Rainwater harvesting systems 10th June

5. Get your compost right and be a real pro. Collect green and brown materials separate and mix 2 to 1, once you have enough for a compost heap of 1m X 1m X 1m. Cover the top with plastic. Speed up the composting process by rebuilding the heap from top to bottom after 3 month Good compost is the wonder elixir for gardeners.
Courses: The complete organic garden course starting 11th February and Organic Gardening for beginners 3rd March

6. Grow food organically and cook food nutritionally. Grow only what you like to eat and work on your cooking skills. Prepare meals in the most nutritional way.
Courses: Soups, dips and breads 29th April, Cooking without 12th May, Raw food un-’cooking’ 16th June

7. Try something new: Make your own beer, felt your own scarf, make your own soap, learn about micro greens, bake glutenfree.

Please note we are closed for business from the 23^rd of December 2011 to the 2^nd of January 2012 inclusive. If you book courses or buy seeds and sundries online during that time we will start shipping goods and confirming courses from the 3^rd of January 2012 onwards. Thank you!

BONBINI F1

An outstanding spinach variety.  It is high yielding, excellent taste, slow to bolt, very attractive leaves and mildew resistant. Isn’t that wonderful?

Sowing: Sow small amounts every 3-4 weeks from late March until July.  Sow 3 seed per cell in modular trays and plant out 4 to 5 weeks after sowing without splitting up the module.

Spacing: Between rows: 20cm Between plants in the row: 15cm

PERPETUAL SPINACH

Very easy to grow, extremely high yielding and also very healthy.  You will only need a few plants (3-5) to supply you with regular meals of spinach.

Sowing: March until July. It can either be sown directly into the garden or first raised in modular trays.  The seeds are actually clusters of seeds and as soon as the seedlings appear they should be thinned to leave just one seedling per station.

If sown indoors sow one seed per module about 2cm deep and about 4 to 5 weeks later plant out.

Spacing: Between rows: 45cm Between plants in the row: 30cm

TREE

An amazing plant that grows up to 2m.  The leaves have a red tinge.  Most unusual and attractive.  You may grow it more as a curiosity than as a vegetable.

Sowing: Late March- May Sow 1 seed per module and plant out about 4-5 weeks after sowing.

Spacing: Between rows: 45cm Between plants in the row: 45cm

SQUASHES

UCHIK KURI

Uchiki Kuri is one of the most reliable squashes to grow. Orange/red pear shaped fruits with a nutty flavour.  Well worth trying.  Highly recommended by Jason Horner for its taste and reliability.

Sowing: Mid April until late May

Sow individual seeds into small pots (7cm) or large modules and keep in a warm place.  Pot on into a 10cm pot when ready.  Plant out in late May-June after hardening off.  Initial protection with a cloche is beneficial. Between plants: 1.2m

SWEDE

GOWRIE

A purple skinned variety with excellent disease resistance and excellent taste.  The one to try if you haven’t had success with swedes in the past.

Sowing: April to June Sow one seed per module about 1cm deep and about 4 – 5 weeks later plant out. Note: I found module grown plants vastly superior to direct sown swedes.

Spacing: Between rows: 30cm Between plants in the row: 20cm

STEVIA

STEVIA REBAUDIANA

A plant that is 30 times sweeter than sugar and with not calories.  You can just pick leaves to sweeten any drink or food.  It will be very popular! Only grow indoors or in summer in a very warm garden.

Sowing: Sow 2 seeds in each cell of a modular tray from early April until late June.  Plant into a tunnel or greenhouse about 5-6 weeks after sowing.  Alternatively pot on into a 9cm pot containing good potting compost and place on a warm south-facing windowsill.

SWEET CORN

SWEET NUGGET F1

Sweet Nugget produces super-sweet sweetcorn.  Produces very long, delicious cobs.  A very early variety so performs well under cooler conditions.

Sowing: April to May Sow individual seeds into small pots (7cm) or large modules and keep in a warm place.  Pot on into a 10cm pot when ready.  Plant out in late May-June after hardening off.  Initial protection with a cloche is beneficial.  Between plants: 45cm Between plants in the row: 45cm

TOMATO,

BEEFSTEAK

A very large beef tomato with delicious fruits.  It will remind you of your holidays in the Mediterannean.

Sowing: February to March Sow 5 seeds into a small pot (7cm) and keep in a warm place.  Pot on into individual 7cm pots when ready.  Plant into greenhouse or polytunnel.

Spacing:  Between rows: 50cm Between plants in the row: 50cm

SUNGOLD F1

The ultimate tomato.  Any taste comparison of different tomato varieties will always have Sungold on top.  It produces hundreds of golden yellow cherry tomatoes.  You can’t miss out on them!

Sowing: February to March Sow 5 seeds into a small pot (7cm) and keep in a warm place.  Pot on into individual 7cm pots when ready.  Plant into greenhouse or polytunnel.

Spacing:  Between rows: 50cm Between plants in the row: 50cm

TIGERELLA

A delicious tomato with very attractive striped fruits.  Excellent cropper.

Sowing: February to March Sow 5 seeds into a small pot (7cm) and keep in a warm place.  Pot on into individual 7cm pots when ready.  Plant into greenhouse or polytunnel.

Spacing:  Between rows: 50cm Between plants in the row: 50cm

TURNIP

PURPLE  TOP  MILAN

A delicious and very reliable variety with purple tops and white skin.

Sowing: Sow small amounts every 3-4 weeks from late March until July.  Sow 1 seed per cell in modular trays and plant out 4 to 5 weeks after sowing or sow direct into a well prepared seedbed

Spacing: Between rows: 25cm Between plants in the row: 10-15cm

SALAD MIX

COLOURFUL AND MILD

Our own mix of the most, colourful and tasty oriental salads.  Very easy to grow.

Oriental salads are excellent from late summer onwards right through the winter if grown under protection.  In spring they are very prone to fleabeetle attacks and are best avoided unless grown under a fleece.

Sowing:Sow small amounts every 3 weeks from late June until late September.  Seeds can be sown directly into the ground or into modular trays (5 seeds per cell) and planted out 4 weeks after sowing.

Spacing: Between rows: 25cm Between plants in the row: 25cm (5 seedlings per station)

FRILLY & DECORATIVE

A frilly salad mix, very decorative , ideal for fancy dinners.  Very easy to grow and also delicious.  Our own mix.

Oriental salads are excellent from late summer onwards right through the winter if grown under protection.  In spring they are very prone to fleabeetle attacks and are best avoided unless grown under a fleece.

Sowing: Sow small amounts every 3 weeks from late June until late September.  Seeds can be sown directly into the ground or into modular trays (5 seeds per cell) and planted out 4 weeks after sowing.

Spacing: Between rows: 25cm Between plants in the row: 25cm (5 seedlings per station)

Those up in Scotland and in the west have seen hardly anything but rain whilst those in the east and especially the south-east have been suffering from lack of rain. It’s almost as if we’ve two countries – the wet one and the dry one. However, we’ve all suffered from a cooler summer than usual as well which certainly doesn’t help for ripening tomatoes and the other greenhouse crops.

If you find you’ve tomatoes that look as if they should be ripening but they aren’t, try bringing them into the warmth of the house and keeping them in a bowl with a ripe banana. The banana gives off ethylene gas which encourages ripening.

I’m happy to say our How to Store Your Home Grown Produce has really taken off now that the harvest is starting to come in. What we’ve tried to do is write a practical book covering the best traditional methods of storing and modern methods like freezing that take a lot less time and effort. We’ve touched on chutneys and jams etc., but not in as much detail as in our Easy Jams, Chutneys and Preserves.

Your maincrop potatoes should be ready this month, with a little luck. I had an email from a chap who had been advised to leave them in the ground and dig up as required to eat. You might just get away with this but the chances are that the slugs will get the crop before you. Far better to harvest when ready and store them.

For years I’ve stored my potatoes in hessian sacks and because there’s always the odd slug hiding in a potato I drop half a dozen slug pellets into the sack as I fill it. So another email arrives from the health and safety executive. This is apparently an untested procedure and could potentially poison you. Sadly they’d no evidence for this and couldn’t quantify the risk or even properly define a risk.

I’m still alive, you’ve been warned and it’s nice to know our taxes aren’t being wasted. (Yes, that was me being sarcastic!)

A couple of real risks you should be aware of though. If you’re manuring this autumn, do try and check the provenance of the manure. Aminopyralid weedkiller is still causing many growers problems and is likely to continue to be a problem for years to come. There’s a lot on the site about this devastating problem here: Aminopyralid

Another risk that all gardeners should be aware of is tetanus. The germ lives in the soil, especially manured soil and can enter the body through a small scratch or thorn prick. It’s a very serious illness, potentially fatal. However, keeping your vaccinations up as you should do anyway will make you immune. If in doubt, just ask at your doctors. As jabs go, it’s not a painful one – take a coward’s word for that!

It’s an awkward month, September, not really time to start digging over but a bit late for replacing crops as they are lifted. Bare soil will soon develop a cover of weeds so my advice is to go for a green manure. They prevent rain leaching nutrients, help with soil structure and smother weeds. Later on you can just dig them in. There’s information on the site about green manures.

Finally for this month, many thanks to all who filled in the survey about the web site. It’s given me a lot to think about and will really help me improve it further. The main problem people seem to have is actually finding things on the site. Worse than my shed! Hopefully I’ll come up with the right answers and reorganise it so things are clearer.

1. Flower and Plant Sale

at The Organic Centre, Rossinver, Co. Leitrim Sunday 11^th September 2011 from 11am-4pm

Free admission.

Visitors to The Organic Centre gardens often ask about the colourful borders brimming with flowers and herbaceous plants looked after by Jill Scott, Fermanagh’s award-winning gardener.

Anyone thinking of creating a new border or giving their existing garden a make-over will get plenty of advice on the best place to grow your plants, how to care for them and when to divide them. Jill will be on hand to answer your questions and her new booklet “Organic Gardening is Simple” will also be on sale. It has been described as a “little gem”, and is full of practical advice.

Over 50 varieties of plants will be on offer, 20 of which are more unusual or difficult to find, such as TRICYRTIS, PINK HYSSOP, CERINTHE, BLACK IRIS and PINK MEADOWSWEET. All plants are perennial, and survived last winter’s minus 18º cold. (Please bring a box to take your plants home.)

For a small deposit, plant orders for collection in October or spring may be placed.

Horticulturist Ciaran Burke will also talk on environmental awareness of plant production and ornamental gardening.

Kieran and Kealin Beattie from Leitrim Flowers will have a stall with their fantastic range of cut flowers grown naturally in Leitrim.

There will be guided tours around the centre gardens and a special tour for children.

The Grass Roof Café will be open with delicious food and the Eco-shop will have overwintering vegetable transplants for sale for the first time.

2. Inspirational Homes – Guided tour at 2pm

Sunday the 11^th September will also see 15 “Inspirational Homes” in Leitrim open to the public with special guided tours. One such inspirational home is The Organic Centre designed by architect Colin Bell. It houses education rooms, offices, a café and shop. A timber framed structure, using local materials, with a grass roof allows it to sit beautifully in the Leitrim Landscape.

Inspirational Homes Leitrim documents and makes accessible the unique built heritage and diverse ways of building that this distinctive county has tucked away in its landscape. The aim of the project is to facilitate the sharing of experiences, knowledge and skills amongst builders, homeowners, architects, self-builders and anyone with an interest in making sustainable the future of building in Ireland. This is done through the website www.inspirationalhomes.ie

3. Summer activities at The Organic Centre

August 14th 2pm: Adult Hat Making Workshop

2 hours of intensive felting to create your own unique hat.

All materials provided. €20 per adult.

August 21st 2pm: Children’s Felt Making Workshop

2 hours of funky felt making fun, €15 per child.

All materials provided.

Every Sunday in August we offer visitors to the gardens a guided tour with their entrance fee at 3pm.

Families can also go on our Discovery Trail (self guided).

Bring your own picnic and enjoy the beautiful surroundings of The Organic Centre.

Lettuce transplants are available in our shop.

New from September: Vegetable transplants for Autumn planting and Winter harvesting.

Rossinver, Co. Leitrim, Ph: 071-9854338

info@theorganiccentre.ie, www.theorganiccentre.ie

Founded by Galway based entrepreneur Oisín Concannon, Irish Organic Weedkiller has invested EUR250,000 in its new 5,000 sq. ft. factory, the company’s first. Previously the company outsourced the production of its suite of garden products. Irish Organic Weedkiller estimates that the factory will produce over 260,000 litres of weedkiller in its first year. The company expects to create the 20 new jobs over the next 18 months in areas including sales, marketing and administration.

‘Following strong incremental sales across our network of distributors in Ireland and high demand for the product in export markets including the UK and mainland Europe, we took the decision to invest in our first production facility. Our new facility will help us to control our costs, maintain strict quality and facilitate new product development,’ said Oisín Concannon, Founder and Managing Director, Irish Organic Weedkiller.

In early 2009, Oisín, a father of small children, was searching for a non-toxic weedkiller safe for use in his garden. He spotted a gap in the market when he learned that no 100 per cent natural, non-toxic weedkiller existed in the Irish market. Fourteen months later, with no previous track record in product development, he launched Ireland’s first natural, Irish made alternative to chemical weedkillers. Irish Organic Weedkiller is the only Irish company licensed to manufacture and market a 100 per cent natural weedkiller in Ireland and holds licenses to develop 13 natural weed killer products.

With the product now available nationwide in all leading garden centres and hardwares, the company has added two new products to its portfolio; the innovative Weedball dispenser for the easy application of weedkiller along walls and curbs and a 100 percent natural path and patio cleaner. Irish Organic Weedkiller is due to launch its products in Norway this month and the UK in September and plans are underway to bring more new products to market over the next 12 months.

‘In pre-launch testing our product performed quicker and more effectively than the market leading synthetic weedkillers and excellent customer feedback continues to drive sales. Despite the challenging times, we are confident in our product, our customer base and ultimately confident in Ireland as a great place to do business. Our commitment to invest in opening the factory and create new jobs is testament to this,’ concluded Concannon.

Irish Organic Weedkiller was shortlisted for the Best New Green Product Award at The Irish Green Awards 2010 and The Green Entrepreneur Awards 2011. Oisín Concannon was also names as Galway’s Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2010.

www.owk.ie

Many of the Wild Fuchsia’s including Fuchsia Magellanica were hammered back during the cold winter weather but in many cases new growth is appearing from the base and where this new growth is present you should cut back the dead and damaged stems to the strong new growth.

Feeding with the granular Super grow fertiliser will encourage the plants to grow strongly over the next two months.

For colour in baskets and containers look for the double flowering varieties which produce larger and more colourful blooms.

Remember now is a great time to plant both the hardy and double flowering Fuchsias in your garden for some instant summer colour.

Jobs in the garden this week.

1. New Potatoes for Christmas, yes it possible, In mid July the Christmas seed potatoes will be available for planting into raised beds or Potato pots for a crop of new potatoes for Christmas. Simply Pot up five or six of these special tubers in Super grow compost in a potato bag and place in a greenhouse or tunnel to grow on for great tasting early potatoes this December. The new Christmas potato tubers will be ready to plant in a couple of weeks.
2. Protect existing potato crops from potato blight by treating your plants to a spray of Promoxamil blight treatment. Promoxamil is a systemic blight treatment suitable for both potatoes and tomatoes and protects against blight by working from within the plant. Apply a treatment of promoxamil every two to three weeks.
3. July is the time to thin Apple and Pear clusters on your fruit trees. Select the smallest fruit lets and remove leaving about three strong fruit lets to develop. This helps to ensure the remaining fruits form to full size tasty fruits. Remember to feed all fruiting plants now with Vitax Q4 for excellent fruit this summer.
4. Plant summer flowering roses now for some instant colour, Roses have just come into flower and will reward you with lots of colour and scent until early Autumn. Many varieties are suitable for planting both into flower borders and also in patio planters.
5. Cut back Lupins and Delphiniums blooms once the flowers are faded, cut back the stems to new growth at the base. Plant a selection of late summer flowering Perennials including Chrysanthemums, Penstemons, Arum lilies and michaelmas daises for colour to early winter
6. Plant a selection of salad and vegetable plants now to help provide plenty of fresh greens from August until early winter. Cabbage, cauliflower, Sprouts, kale and lettuce can still be planted.
7. Trailing petunias are one of the best summer flowering basket and patio plants you can plant this summer. Hot pink and Barney purple are two of the best varieties and will flower from now until early winter. They are ideal for creating a strong vivid display of colour. Take my advice and plant 3 trailing petunias in your baskets or window boxes for a stunning show of colour.
8. Its time to split summer flowering Iris, Simply dig up the clump, split the existing clump of Iris with a sharp spade and replant into new locations in your garden.
9. Potash is important for all fruiting plants – Apply a dressing of Sulphate of potash to all fruiting plantings now, simply apply a handful of potash to the soil around the fruiting plants. Potash is beneficial to apples, pears, Plum, cherries, blackcurrants and gooseberries.
10. July is the time to propagate your own plants from cuttings and seed, Geraniums, Hydrangeas, sedums and fuchsia can be propagated now from stem cuttings taken from this year’s young growth, simply dip into rooting powder and place in a gritty compost.
11. July is an excellent month to plant flowering and foliage climbers; I recommend summer flowering clematis, scented honeysuckle, flowering hydrangeas and the lovely free flowering wisteria. Remember to add organic compost to the planting hole when planting.

Join us for Sunday carvery lunch at the bay leaf restaurant, families welcome. Afterwards take a stroll through the Edinburgh woollen mills centre at Horkans lifestyle & Garden centre – we open 7 days – every Sunday from 12 to 6pm.

When: 17th July   11am – 5pm

Special features:

• “Peat free compost” with head gardener Julia Lehmann and information by The Irish Peatland Council.

• Launch of “Organic gardening is simple” by award winning gardener Jill Scott from Fermanagh

• Cooking demonstration in the barn with fresh organic vegetables from the garden by guest chef Neven Maguire from McNean House and Restaurant Blacklion

Tickets: Only €7, concession €4, members and children free

Other activities:

• Hans Wieland will tour the centre’s polytunnels and give advice on how to use this wonderful invention to maximum benefit.
• Market gardener Mary O’Connell will give gardening advice.
• Compost games
• Spot the seeds
• How to grow and use herbs
• Demonstration on spoon carving
• Information about The Irish Wildlife Trust
• Information on Organic School Gardens by SEED
• Artist Heidi Wickham will conduct “vegetable felting workshops” for all the family.
• The Grass Roof Café will be open for sumptuous summer dishes.

For more details contact Hans Wieland 071-9854338 or email hans@theorganiccentre.ie or www.theorganiccentre.ie

There’s quite a lot you can start at this time of year. Beetroot, spring cabbage, Chinese cabbage, carrots, kohlrabi, lettuce, rocket, peas (use an early variety so they’ll mature before the season ends) French beans, spring onions and radish.As your early potatoes come up, give the soil a quick fork over and then rake roughly level, Bet you find some spuds you’ve missed! You can sow French beans for a late crop or you could use a green manure like mustard – there’s more in my book Vegetable Growing Month by Month.and on the site here: Monthly Guides

Keep a close eye on your main potato crop. There have been a few scattered reports of blight, which really depends on the weather. So far, touch wood, not in our area but you never know. There’s an article on potato blight here: Potato Blight

The year has turned and the days are growing shorter. Hardly seems possible does it? Yet the plants know. That’s why Chinese cabbage like Pak Choi and salad rocket are ideal for sowing now and the garlic and onions are bulbing up. Your garlic should be nearly ready now. You may well think of garlic as a strong flavour, but when it’s slightly immature and freshly pulled, it’s actually quite mild and can be eaten as a side vegetable. It’s lovely roasted with a little olive oil and it still wards off vampires.Don’t leave garlic too long in the ground though, the bulbs start to split apart as it prepares to grow again next year.

If you’ve a friend who you think would like this newsletter, feel free to forward a copy or they can sign up for their own copy here. If you change your email or wish to stop getting this newsletter, please follow the link at the very end to change your options.

That’s nearly it for this except for this quote from an email I’d like to pass on.

“Tell Val I have managed to combine small quantity easy jam making and being able to go out in the garden at the same time thanks to my bread maker. Athough my garden isn’t that big I do have veg and fruit among the flowers and as it has been such a good year for strawberries we have been almost fed up with them.

Looking through recipe books I noticed there was a jam cycle function on my Kenwood breadmaker so gave it a go. Well talk about easy; 9oz sugar 9oz fruit 3 teaspoons water, switch on machine to jam settings – go out in garden to try and keep those pesky weeds at bay and 1 hour later 1 pot of delicious jam – Good eh? I’ve tried it with some blackcurrants and a mixture of tayberry, strawberry – perfect set every time.”

Jam in the breadmaker! We’ll be buying our electricity from British Gas next!

Please do take that survey to help us make the site better if you can, Allotment Survey.

Thanks for reading

In this newsletter:
1. The Organic Centre Garden Party
2. To water or not to water?… that is the question
3. “Think like a Flower. Organic Gardening is Simple” a new book by Jill Scott
4. Organic Centre Summer Courses coming up:
5. New from September overwintering crops

1. The Organic Centre Garden Party

The Annual Organic Centre Garden Party 2011 will take place on Sunday 17th July 11am – 5pm
Special features this year are: “Peat free compost” with head gardener Julia Lehmann and the launch of “Organic gardening is simple”, a new book by award winning gardener Jill Scott from Fermanagh.
After Neven Maguire from McNean House and Restaurant Blacklion cooked up a storm in the barn at last years party we will have him back for another cooking demonstration with fresh organic produce from our gardens.
Hans Wieland will tour the centre’s polytunnels and give advice on how to use this wonderful invention to maximum benefit.
Artist Heidi Wickham will conduct “vegetable felting workshops” for all the family.
There will be compost games and seed spotting and advice on how to grow fantastic herbs.
The Grass Roof Café will be open for sumptuous summer dishes.

Knowing is growing is our theme for 2011.
We have seen a huge increase in people gardening and growing vegetables, herbs and fruit and our aim is to support everyone who wants to grow organically without pesticides and herbicides, GMO-free and with a very low carbon foot print.
Our demonstration gardens, various polytunnels and orchard show how to grow healthy food with great taste and full of nutrients. We show good rotation and explain how to improve soil fertility and deal with weeds and pest and diseases in an organic way.

What better place to get a taster of the skills required than at the Organic Centre’s annual Garden Party. All your questions on how to garden organically will be answered on this one day informative and fun filled event. Mark the date in your diary now – The Organic Centre, Rossinver, Co. Leitrim is the place to be on Sunday 17th July!
Tickets: €8, concession €5, members and children free

2. To water or not to water?… that is the question

by Hans Wieland
“Watering is rarely necessary outdoors in the West of Ireland. The only time you may need to water is after transplanting your seedlings outdoors”. (Klaus Laitenberger)
“As well as weeding your plot, one of the main summer preoccupations is watering your plants. Some require more than others.”(Alan and Jackie Gear)
“Even in the apparently wet climate in the British Isles, most vegetables benefit substantially from an increased supply of water, particularly in the drier regions of the country.” (Joy Larkcom)
“Watering depends a lot on your soil conditions.” (Jill Scott)
“Get to know your garden, the soil, the plants and water accordingly.” (Mary O’Connell)
5 experts and 5 opinions, so what are we supposed to do? My answer is simple: Become your own expert in watering.

When to water?
Here are a few guidelines:
Seeds need water for germination, you can water the ground or seed compost in advance, for watering seeds you need a fine rose for your watering can.
Transplants should be transplanted into moist soils and watered until they are established, if you transplant on from modular trays to pots, young plants should be watered regularly.
Plants need water to suck up nutrients from the soil. Quick-growing leafy vegetables like salad crops or spinach need more water than root crops and other plants with deep roots.
Each plant has its own water needs and as water mainly stimulates leaf growth, root crops for example could produce excessive leaf growth if overwatered. I find that root crops grown organically tend to develop good root systems to go in search of nutrients.

Peas and beans need water especially at the stage when fruits start to swell.
Important: All crops in polytunnels and under cover need regular watering.

How to water if you water
It is generally accepted that watering thoroughly every few days is better than to water a little and often. If I do water in the outside garden I give the plants a good soaking. In the polytunnel I would water Monday, Wednesday and Friday in the morning with a heavy dose, depending on the requirements of the plants, e. g tomatoes will get 5-6 litres each, lettuces much less. I would also try not to splash the water on top of the plants, but water around the root. Young carrot seedlings and all other seedlings can be watered with a fine rose. Try to avoid watering in full sunshine as it might scorch the leaves.

My watering tools are 10 litre watering cans with a medium and a fine rose and a hose with a spray gun, that can provide mist as well as a full single jet spray.
I collect rainwater in butts and tanks as it is much better (no chlorine) and softer than mains water and best of all for free.

Important: With fruiting vegetables (tomatoes, cucumbers, beans and sweet corn) the critical time for watering is when the plants are flowering and the fruits are swelling. This is also the time when they benefit from your home made comfrey liquid (potash) fertiliser.

I let you go with a little piece on my own

Watering philosophy
“Young plants which have left the cosy environment of the propagation shed or hardening off area and are planted in the garden need a good watering in, but regular watering in the outside garden will make them dependent on us gardeners. It is much better to let them find their feet and develop roots to look for water and nutrients. Occasional help, especially in dry spells, is needed and allowed. Think of young plants like teenagers, who go off to college. We drive them to Dublin and make sure the flat has power and water and occasionally bail them out, if they are in trouble, but if we continue do all their washing and cooking at the weekend, when they come home, they will always come home and won’t learn how to turn on the wash machine and cook dinner. They need to find their roots elsewhere, as do the young plants in the garden. In the process of searching for water they develop their root system and become independent, strong and mature plants, which can look after themselves, much as we like our teenagers to develop.”
Happy hardening and watering!

3. ‘Think like a Flower’

“Organic Gardening is Simple” a new book by Jill Scott
Interview by Christiane Share

Jill Scott, a well- known local gardener and recipient of multiple gardening awards, has recently published her first book, ‘Organic Gardening is Simple’. The book is a compendium of excellent gardening advice, selected from many years experience in organic gardening. It is illustrated with photographs of Jill and husband Mark’s Fermanagh garden, including a patiently captured ‘action shot’ of a slug travelling towards its milk trap (and doom!) Jill’s book will officially be launched at The Organic Centre Garden Party on Sunday 17th July with special guest chef Neven Maguire from McNean Restaurant in Blacklion.

Jill grew up up on a farm in County Kilkenny where growing vegetables and raising animals was automatically organic, as chemical agriculture was hardly known. Her early education in gardening involved plenty of weeding. No child’s favourite task, yet Jill remains a thorough weeder to this day, rarely passing a weed without swiftly plucking it out, a practice she would encourage in others. As she points out, one tiny weedling (as I like to call them) will quickly give rise to hundreds more if it is allowed. For removing extra tiny weeds, like those that shoot up between gravel, Jill uses a kitchen fork!

It is this practicality, efficiency and attention to detail that characterises Jill’s work as a gardener, the resplendent results of which can be seen by visitors to the Organic Centre in Rossinver, where she dedicates time each week to the creation and maintenance of flower beds and a lush floral polytunnel that is favoured by the centre’s birdlife. Jill has been involved with the Organic Centre since its beginning sixteen years ago. Jill’s generous work in looking after the Organic Centre’s gardens adds much interest and beauty to the setting.

Jill has a particular interest in companion planting as a means of controlling pests and increasing pollination and colour in the garden. Her book includes a helpful chart of the plants that like and dislike each other. Jill uses companion planting extensively in her own garden in Belcoo. She runs a day course there each summer so that visitors can observe and learn all about the benefits of companion planting in a home garden setting.

Jill takes a lot of cuttings, and her border plants are available though the Organic Centre and from her garden. When interviewing Jill about her book I of course had to ask her what her favourite plant is: “I love Campanulas. I love anything that has a bell shape. So Campanulas, Penstimon, Foxglove and that sort of thing. Beautiful! You hear the bees inside and you hear the wings buzzing. It’s lovely!”

It is interesting to discover that as a gardener who works with flowering plants, at a centre that makes great use of polytunnels, at home Jill focuses on growing a wide variety vegetables, including tomatoes, cucumbers and beans, outdoors, rather than in a polytunnel or glasshouse.
“They taste nicer”, she says. “As they take much longer to get where they are. I feel they’ve got more goodness in them, especially as they get natural rain water rather than chlorinated tap water.” Jill believes growing ‘exotic’ vegetables outside is simply a matter of choosing the right varieties and being a little persistent. She will try to grow something three times before giving up.

Jill and Mark don’t eat meat, and so consume a greater proportion of vegetables. Their incredible energy can perhaps be attributed to this, along with the wider benefits of gardening.
If Jill could grow only one vegetable it would be Charlotte potatoes, “Because I love potatoes. Twice a day, in soup at lunch time and with dinner.” Jill grows plenty and stores them carefully so that they will last well beyond harvest.
She encourages everyone to try growing something, even if only on the windowsill, because the results are, more often than not, very gratifying.

“If you’ve got a little bit of garden, go out and try something easy. Encourage children to sow some radish seeds or grow a few strawberry plants. Do a little bit at a time. I think some people take on too much, with disappointing results. The important thing is to prepare your ground well. So just cordon off a little bit and really concentrate on it, digging it over thoroughly. If you can get some mushroom compost, leaf mould or well-rotted manure, dig that in.
She’s right, of course! The most important thing is to begin. If you want to get started on a garden of your own, or enhance the garden you have, Jill’s booklet has tips on designing your garden, growing herbs and edible flowers, starting an orchard, caring for plants, and dealing with pests! She includes list of plants for different areas.

Jill is an intuitive gardener; her husband has said she “thinks like a flower, thinks like a bird, thinks like a vegetable”. “As students at the Organic Centre last year we were lucky to have Jill close by to answer our questions. Now that I have moved on it is reassuring to have Jill’s useful and inspiring book to hand in the garden,” says Christiane Share, who conducted that interview for us. Jill’s book is available through The Organic Centre, Rossinver, Co. Leitrim for €7.

4. Organic Centre Summer Courses coming up:

Grow your own fruit Summer workshop Saturday 2nd July
Dry stone wall construction Saturday 2ndand Sunday 3rd July
Start preserving vegetables and fruit now Sunday 3rd July
Natural Cosmetic Making workshop Saturday 9th July
Poultry for the home (with a farm visit) Sunday 10th July
Soap Making Workshop Saturday 23rd July
An introduction to Companion Planting Sunday 24th July

All courses €79 per person per day including lunch and tea/coffee/scones in the morning. (Some material cost for some courses!)

Tel: 071-9854338, info@theorganiccentre.ie,www.theorganiccentre.ie

5. New from September on:

Transplants for overwintering crops will be available from September onwards. We will have winter cabbages, oriental lettuces, coriander, parsley and chervil.