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Grow your green fingers


EASTER has come and gone at the Irish Seedsavers Association in Scariff and their geese are getting fat, as they help trim back the grass and weeds in preparation for a busy planting season.

Chrys Gardener with the resident geese at Seedsavers. Photograph by Declan MonaghanVolunteers are busy on the grounds of the Irish Seedsavers in Capparoe with the glorious sunshine that has come our way, as they prepare to plant the crops for next year’s seed harvest.
Encouraging further volunteers to catch the greenfingers bug, the charity organisation is holding volunteer days each Tuesday and Thursday where people can not only learn valuable gardening and planting skills but it is also a great way to meet others in the community.
Seedsavers is currently a hive of activity, with the organisation’s honey bees busy pollinating and local volunteers preparing the ground for its fresh batch of potato crops. In addition, trees are being sown, budded and grafted and the first of the flowers and blossoms are beginning to come through.
Even the geese are playing their part in helping to prepare the 20 acre site for the new season as they are set out to the fields to trim back the weeds and help keep nasty pests away.
Having taken on the post of project manager of the association, Chrys Gardener is facing her first planting season in the new role and she is hoping to oversee a drive for new volunteers and a push to increase recreational visitors.
“There are a large number of volunteers that are beginner gardeners that have taken a lot away from volunteering here. They ask what do I do, how do I go about this and where do I go from here. I think why this is happening is partly due to the recession. There has also been a move in the last ten to 15 years from growing in the garden to convenience food, but I think people have realised now that it tastes better when food is organically produced and produced locally. Most people in Ireland would be maybe only two generations removed from a farming background where everything would have been grown here. Now once more we are seeing a return to farmers markets and people are getting more interested in gardening again,” Chrys said.
Seedsavers have being planting their potato crops, which will generate plenty of interest this year as they have an excess potato seed yield, which will be made available to members of the public. Typically the potato crops at Seedsavers are held over for members only.
Interestingly, the Irish Seedsavers Association produces 12 varieties of first early potatoes and a further 11 varieties of second early potatoes, which it harvests for seeds. It has ensured the survival of many native potato varieties and currently grows the Lumper potato, famous for being the potato crop that failed at the outset of the Great Famine.
“The Lumper is much reviled for its infamy as the potato which caused the Irish famine as well as being described as having poor flavour. This prejudice aside, the Lumper is a lovely potato to grow, with strong upright shoots, beautiful white flowers in abundance and produces big crops of large white skinned potatoes with the characteristic deep eyes. Resistance to late blight is low, but high yields are possible if planted early and diseased stalks are removed before tuber blight sets in,” Chrys explained.
According to Chrys the fact that this variety had a high yield was one of the main reasons why people grew them at the time of the famine. Irish Seedsavers recently planted a handful of these potatoes at a ceremony commemorating the Irish famine in Mayo.
In addition to the large types of potatoes grown for seeds at the site in Capparoe, Seedsavers has over 200 varieties of apples and will this year be sowing a plot of apple trees for the Department for the Environment.
The orchards are amazing to see, especially when they are in full bloom and equally their apples offer a unique taste experience.
“What we are hoping to achieve here this year is encouraging Seedsavers as an experience, be that as a volunteer helping out or by attending a tour or for the younger people by attending the Easter, summer and halloween camps,” Chrys added.
The Irish Seedsavers Association is primarily a seed farm and is the larger of only two operating in Ireland. Chrys highlighted that most of the seeds and varieties of seed crops grown here are imported from the UK and Europe, but what is being cultivated in Scariff are Irish native varieties. The significance of this is that the seeds are more accustomed to the Irish climate, soil and those seeds that survived harsh winters and wet summers produce a stronger and resilient crop. Chrys also stresses that the skill of seedsaving is also tremendously beneficial, albeit a long process. It ensures that from a pack of seeds a wealth of produce can be harvested and can continue to be produced well into the future.
The Irish Seedsavers Association is kickstarting a new social element on site on the last Friday of each month beginning on April 30 next, where a pizza and music night will be held from 6pm.
Anyone interested in volunteering or who wants to get more information about seedsavers can contact 061 921856 or visit www.irishseedsavers.ie.

 

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