Horticulture Connected Autumn/Winter Volume 5 Issue 2

HORTICULTURE CONNECTED

Autumn / Winter 2018

News, analysis and trends in landscape, garden retail & edible horticulture

BOX MOTH THREAT

DÓNALL FLANAGAN REPORTS OF THE FIRST INCIDENCES IN IRELAND

A TREE WITHOUT FLIES

TERRY O'REGAN EXPLORES THE COMPLEXITIES OF TREE SPECIFICATION

BLACK DOGS ON THE SHOP FLOOR

LIAM KELLY PUTS THE SPOTLIGHT ON AN IMPORTANT TOPIC FOR IRISH GARDEN RETAIL

Volume 5 Issue 3

STRATEGIC AGILITY

Supported by

Looking for new ideas & inspiration?

Visit The Hardware Show to meet the largest gathering of suppliers in Ireland under one roof.

Register Now at thehardwareshow.ie 2

17th & 18th February Citywest, Saggart, Co Dublin

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

01 / EDITOR

EDITOR BARRY LUPTON

STRATEGIC

AGILITY

A

chieving long term business success is a product of a well-considered, planned and executed strategy, or so we’re told. In theory, such practice makes perfect sense. Having a strategy is like starting a journey with a fixed destination and a clear set of directions to follow.

The challenge for Irish businesses now is that it is almost impossible to fix a destination; global instability, brexit, weather and an overheating market all represent variables we have no control over. Despite this, we still have to plan. If we decide not to, we are admitting that our business is a reactive entity, completely at the mercy of external forces.

So, what do we do? To set a strategy in this market we need to begin with certainties, the most important of which is uncertainty.

Planning for uncertainty is perhaps the most challenging aspect of strategy setting. It can seem like an impossible task, and in the absence of having your own supercomputer to model outcomes, you are left with one option: Agility (the ability to move quickly and easily). No other word captures how we need to model our businesses more than agility.

It embodies how modern, successful businesses work and represents where Irish horticulture needs to go. We need to rethink how we operate, to let go of outdated practices, to embrace change, to seek it out, to invest in innovation, creativity, in education and in people. And people are key.

You can have the most creative ideas in the world, but if you don’t have the people who are willing to come with you, your ideas are dead in the water. If you’re setting a strategy for the

HORTICULTURE CONNECTED

News, Analysis and Trends In Landscape, Garden Retail & Edible Horticulture

HorticultureConnected.ie

for daily news updates

HORTICULTURE CONNECTED

Autumn / Winter 2018

News, analysis and trends in landscape, garden retail & edible horticulture

BOX MOTH THREAT

DÓNALL FLANAGAN REPORTS OF THE FIRST INCIDENCES IN IRELAND

A TREE WITHOUT FLIES

TERRY O'REGAN EXPLORES THE COMPLEXITIES OF TREE SPECIFICATION

BLACK DOGS ON THE SHOP FLOOR

LIAM KELLY PUTS THE SPOTLIGHT ON AN IMPORTANT TOPIC FOR IRISH GARDEN RETAIL

Volume 6 Issue 3

Unit 3, CTEK Building Riverside Rd, Carrickmacross, Monaghan, Ireland +353 (0)42 966 3532

next 12-24 months, start with how you are going to inspire your staff and colleagues to think and act with agility. If you can achieve that, you will at least be prepared to respond effectively when unplanned change occurs: and it will occur, that is for certain On the subject of change I was delighted that Keith Sacre of Barcham Trees and Neville Stein were willing to shares their thoughts on the subject of change, following talks at the recent Nursery Stock Conference. I was also lucky to speak with Caroline Keeling about how she has innovated and directed Keeling’s Fruit to global success. This interview will form a wider subject thread on women in horticulture in future issues. If this is a subject of interest, please drop me a line. I also caught up with Peter Donegan for the winter issue as he wraps up his World War 1 centenary garden in France.

This issue also uncovers serious concerns in relation to tree specification. Perhaps more worrying, Donall Flanagan reports on the first incidences of box moth in Ireland. In retail, Liam Kelly tackles one of the most important and least discussed issues in the sector: mental health. I hope to include further features on the subject in future issues. Also featured are Kerrie Gardener, who provides some pointers for next year’s Bloom hopefuls while Andy Whelton and Eamonn Kehoe of Kildalton share insights on robotics and foliage research.

Sincere thanks to all contributors for being willing to share their knowledge and opinion in this issue. If you have a story, research or topic you think should be covered in these pages, please drop me a line at editor@horticulture.ie. ✽

HORTICULTURE CONNECTED

News, Analysis and Trends

Editor: Barry Lupton Printers: Turners Printing In Landscape, Garden Retail & Edible Horticulture editor@horticulture.ie Print Run: 2,500 copies News Editor & Advertising: Joseph Blair joseph@horticulture.ie - 087 921 2044 Distribution: Readership of 10,000 across Creative Director: Tanya Gilsenan Ireland to businesses and professionals in tanya@horticulture.ie the following sectors: Editorial Assistant: Koraley Northen Landscape Architects / Garden Retail / Sales & Subscriptions: Florists / Nurseries / Greenkeepers / Anne Marie Browne Sports Surfaces / Local Authorities & annemarie@horticulture.ie Parks Departments / Machinery / Cover image: Enagh Farrell Education / Edible Horticulture www.enaghfarrell.com Publishers: Horticulture Connected Ltd HorticultureConnected.ie Photos: Koraley Northen & Joseph Blair

Autumn/Winter 2018 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

1

CONTENTS

CONTENTS NEWS

03

Horticulture News

INTERVIEW

28 A LOVE TO GROW Barry Lupton speak to Caroline Keeling about her career and plans for Keelings

BORD BIA 06

All the latest news from Bord Bia

EVENTS 08 H orticulture trade events

TREES 31 A TREE WITHOUT FLIES? Terry O’Regan continues his feature series on issues relating to landscape design with trees

TEAGASC 10

All the latest news from Teagasc

RETAIL

13 BLACK DOGS ON THE SHOP FLOOR Liam Kelly shares his thoughts

34

NURSERY

RESEARCH

15 BOX MOTH THREAT D ónall Flanagan urges

36 F ULL COLOUR Andy Whelton shares positive research findings into Autumn foliage and berry production for the floral market

vigilance and caution as the first incidence of box moth is identified in Ireland

TIME FOR CHANGE Neville Stein explains why companies of the future are going to need to be agile to stay in business

JOBS 21 L atest horticulture jobs from Horticulture.jobs

EDIBLES 39 M ORE THAN A BIT ON THE SIDE Lorcan Bourke shares results from a recent marketing campaign on potatoes for mosdern consumers

41 T HE ROBOTS ARE COMING Dr Eamonn Kehoe explores how labour shortages are driving a rise in automation

DESIGN

23 THE ROAD TO PERONNE Barry Lupton catches up with Peter Donegan as he puts the final touches to his centinary garden in France

26 SHOW GARDEN SECRETS Kerrie Gardener details what it takes to win gold at Bloom

2

T REE NURSERIES & CHANGING CLIMATE: THE IMPACTS Keith Sacre shares his research on tree specification in the face of a changing climate

and experiences of mental health issues in Irish garden retailing

17

Front Cover Scots Pine

EDUCATION 43

ASHTOWN INVESTMENT

PUT TO THE TEST

John Mulhern explains how students and staff had to take extreme action to save the significant landscape investment made at Ashtown

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

Drawings by Enagh Farrell www.enaghfarrell.com

01 / NEWS

HORTICULTURE NEWS GLDA INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR 2019 SPEAKER LINE-UP ANNOUNCED The title of the 2019 event is

nursery ‘A Cottage Garden’ promoted old

‘GARDENING ON THE EDGE’ –

cultivars and wild plants alike. Both see

Rewilding green spaces. The statistics

gardens as a form of artistic expression,

are stark - Wild animal populations

and together, they manage the little

have plummeted by 60% in 44 years

world they created like a theatre stage,

– WWF Habitat loss, degradation

where wild plants and straight species of

and the resulting climate change are

perennials are given the lead role.

the main causes. In Ireland broadleaf woodland make up only 2% of our

DUSTY GEDGE

tree cover. Species-rich grasslands

Dusty Gedge has been instrumental

have declined by 97%. Two-thirds of

in promoting green roofs in the UK.

the population are now living in urban

This grew out of work with the London

areas. With urbanisation comes less

Biodiversity Partnership and his work

green space and more concrete. We are

on conserving the black redstart. This

living on the edge and it has become

work culminated in the formation

impossible to ignore. If we are living on

of Livingroofs.org, the UK’s first

the edge, then we are also gardening

independent green roof organisation.

on the edge. Is there something more

Livingroofs.org is the number one

we could do on an individual level and

website on green roofs in the UK had

collectively to help restore lost habitats

has campaigned successfully for a

and restore dwindling populations of

distinct living roof policy in London.

animals, birds and insects. Do we really need a concrete driveway or a pristine mown lawn? Could we have species-rich grassland on our roofs where grounddwelling birds might find refuge? Could we plant more native trees and plants in our gardens?

KEVIN SLOAN Kevin Sloan is a landscape architect, urban planner and writer with international scope, located in Dallas, Texas. He is the founder and director of Kevin Sloan Studio, a design studio principally concerned with the urban

SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES

design and landscape architectural

MONIQUE & THIERRY DRONET

city and its new and unprecedented

problems generated by the metropolitan formation. He has taught architecture,

Berchigranges garden, located in the

urban design and landscape architecture

Vosges mountains in eastern France, is

at a number of universities and colleges,

the fruit of the complicity of two plant

including as a visiting professor at

enthusiasts constantly learning from

Syracuse University in Florence, Italy.

the observation of nature. Thierry, best

He has contributed numerous journal

described as a landscape anarchitect,

articles and is a former columnist on

gave a new life to the site - a former

architecture and design for Dallas

quarry and spruce plantation. He set up

Downtown Business News.

a great variety of areas and of habitats in the garden, where he started to bring

The event takes place on the 23

native plants from the surrounding

February in the Crowne Plaza

mountains. He eventually brought in a

Conference Centre, Santry, Dublin 9.

local plantswoman, Monique, whose

More at glda.ie

✽

CONNECT WITH GARDEN RETAIL AND DIY SUPPLIER’S AT HARDWARE SHOW 2019 The Show has become the largest and most important event for the sector, both in Ireland and the wider UK/Ireland marketplace. The 2017 Show at the RDS Simmonscourt was the largest show ever with 163 exhibitors, over 3,800 sqm of space sold, and 2,000+ visitors during the course of the two-day event.

With increased activity in both the commercial and residential building sectors as well as continued growth in the renovation, maintenance and improvement of buildings and homes, the 2019 Hardware Show will continue to be the leading show for retailers and merchants across Ireland. Among confirmed exhibitors targeting garden retailers are Hygeia, NAD and Westland. The event takes place on the 17th to 18th of February 2019 at Citywest, Dublin. More at thehardwareshow.ie

✽

Autumn/Winter 2018 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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NEWS / 01 NANGLE AND NIESEN OPEN DAYS REPORT - RONAN NANGLE

We held a series of open days here at the nursery in Aherla, Co. Cork during September which proved very successful. Attendees were drawn from both the public and private sectors with local authorities, landscape architects, garden designers and landscape contractors all well represented. I led the nursery tours myself with visits to the fields to see the amenity ornamental stock, our multi-stems, newer plantations, and the mature specimens.

Practical demonstrations included the process of lifting and rootballing trees, lifting of bare-root trees with an

examination of the vitality important fibrous root systems and correct tree care techniques. Discussions centered on the importance of correct nursery practices like transplanting, effective pruning and overall crown development.

A key driver of debate was the importance of correctly specifying trees and the merits of Irish grown trees for Irish conditions over European imports.

Lunch each day was centered around the barbeque with venison burgers from our own deer stock with organic salad from nearby Robinsons organic farm, ToonsBridge mozzarella and local Mealagulla orchard apple juice and cider.

A short video of our open day can be viewed by accessing the following below. Lifting of our rootball and bareroot stock for sale has begun in earnest from the beginning of November and we welcome enquiries from both trade customers and the private sector. Search Nangle & Niesen on YouTube or by QR code. ✽

DAFM HORTICULTURE NEWS DAFM HIGHLIGHTING PLANT HEALTH & BIO-SECURITY WITH PUBLIC AWARENESS RAISING CAMPAIGN As part of the Departments Plant Health Strategy, the "Don't Risk it!" plant health and biosecurity awareness raising a campaign was launched at Bloom in the Park on June bank holiday weekend. Through the mediums of the internet, social media and attending key events, the Department's objective of the campaign is to educate the general public about quarantine pests and diseases such as Xylella fastidiosa and Asian longhorn beetle and highlighting the social, environmental and economic impact of bringing home from abroad potentially infected plants, fruit, vegetables and wood products. The distinctive "red suitcase" campaign logo will also be visible at all

ENAGH FARRELL LAUNCHES ‘WINTER TREES’ RANGE OF CARDS FOR CHRISTMAS The front cover of this edition of HC feature’s a drawing by Enagh Farrell. She works mostly in pencil, pen, watercolour and acrylic but has a preference/love for pencil. Her work is influenced by the natural world; trees, stars and plants and the magic that can be found in nature. Ena tells HC “This work started as drawings for Christmas cards. I wanted to create cards for everyone, regardless of their beliefs. In winter the trees are naked and stand like beautiful giant sculptures and we can see the winter constellations on crisp cold nights. Winter in the Northern hemisphere can be harsh but also inspiring and magical”. These are drawings to celebrate the Winter Solstice, mid-winter, the star the Magi followed in the Christmas story, or to send seasons greetings with a nod to the beauty of winter. More at enaghfarrell.com ✽

airports and ports in Ireland reminding the public of their responsibilities when travelling abroad. ✽

DEADLINE FOR 2019 SCHEME OF INVESTMENT AID FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE COMMERCIAL HORTICULTURE SECTOR APPROACHING The Scheme of Investment Aid for the Development of the Commercial

4

GEANEY AND O’NEILL OFFERING FULL RANGE OF EQUIPMENT FOR YEAR-ROUND TURFCARE

Horticulture Sector grant aids capital

Geaney and O`Neill has been in business over 40 years experience in the sale and servicing of turf care equipment. Two products in the range are the Ecolawn’s Eco 250 Top Dresser is a walkbehind, self-propelled broadcast spreader and the Eco 250 designed for compost topdressing, sand topdressing, lawn restoration, renovation, soil amending, and over seeding. Also available is the Turbo Turf HS150 Hydroseeder for seeding and fertilizing machine which maximizes germination by mixing water, seed and fertilizer. This machine is ideal for golf course repair, cemeteries, schools, construction, smaller lawn repair and renovation.

More at thelawnmowerman.ie ✽

and equipment in the horticulture

investments in specialised plant sector. The scheme's objectives are to: promote the diversification of onfarm activities; improve the quality of products; facilitate environmentally friendly practices and improve working conditions. More at agriculture.gov.ie/farmingsectors/ horticulture/horticultureschemes ✽

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

01 / NEWS GEOFFREY WRIGHT WINS ITB ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE IN HORTICULTURE AWARD SPONSORED BY WESTLAND HORTICULTURE This award, consisting of a bog oak perpetual trophy, cash prize and certificate is presented to the student in the final year cohort, with the highest overall GPA in their year. This bog oak piece (‘High flyer’) is the work of sculptor Kevin Casey from Newtowncashel, Co. Longford. The piece has been carbon dated by the school of geosciences at Queen’s University Belfast and is approx. 5,600 years old.

The recipient, Geoffrey Wright completed his BSc Horticulture honours with ITB over the last four years, travelling from Longford through the week for classes. He was awarded his prize by Assumpta Meally (Westland Horticulture Ireland & UK Sales Manager) at the ITB graduation ceremony held on Friday 9th November. Geoff graduates with a first class honours degree and a 4.0 GPA (grade point average) and is currently working with Schram Plants, Moyvalley, Co. Westmeath.

GROW OBSERVATORY MOBILISES COMMUNITIES AROUND EUROPE ON WORLD SOIL DAY FOR CLIMATE ACTION In a changing climate, soil health matters. Communities across Europe involved in the GROW Observatory are highlighting

✽

CHRISTMASWORLD INTERNATIONAL TRADE FAIR FOR SEASONAL AND FESTIVE DECORATIONS

gathering data about soil and food growing, because

Christmasworld is the world’s biggest trend and order platform for the international seasonal and festive decoration sector – and therefore the perfect B2B trade fair for a great start to the new business season.

Christmasworld takes place in Frankfurt brings together manufacturers and retailers, as well as major commercial buyers from all over the world.

The event takes place from the 25 to 29 January 2019.

Healthy Soils are key to a Healthy Future. More info from Dee

More at christmasworld.messefrankfurt.com ✽

the importance of this precious resource - through a range of innovative events and activities - for World Soil Day 2018.

At the Visual Contemporary Arts Centre in Carlow town on Saturday, 1st December between 1300 and 1700 hours, a citizens workshop will be taking place that features theatre, talks and facilitated conversations, as part of a series of events on soil health and citizen science taking place in different European countries celebrating World Soil Day. World Soil Day is held annually on 5th December as a means to focus attention on soil and on advocating for the sustainable management of soil resources. This year’s theme is soil pollution.

Citizen Science plays an important role in understanding soil health. GROW works with citizens across Europe,

Sewell dee@greensideup.ie

✽

FLORALANDPLANTS INVESTS €200,000 IN TRUCK FLEET AND BRAND NEW WEBSHOP Increasing levels of business have allowed the business to invest in new software for their already leading webshop. It offers various forms of buying including direct from grower, auction and pre-auction, meaning that flower and plants buyers are always assured of getting the best value. Arjan Van Veen tells HC, “There are many online options out there, but how we differ is that our experienced staff are guardians of your flower and plants from the time of ordering right up to delivery at your retail shop or business premises. If there are issues with an order our staff are at hand and on the ground to assist you as we always

FloralandPlants Wholesale Suppliers to Florists & Garden Retailers

carry extra supplies on our trucks to supplement your online ordering."

w w w . fl o r a l a n d p l a n t s . i e

Allowing for efficient delivery of online orders is a new fleet of trucks that deliver throughout the north and south of Ireland.

The company also specialise’s in sourcing rare, unusual and specimen plants or flowers. Arjans describes the team and himself as “Logistical experts with a passion for flower and plants”. To set up an account contact Arjan at 087 2415091 or email sales@ floralandplants.ie. More at floralandplants.ie ✽

Autumn/Winter 2018 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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BORD BIA / 03

PLASTIC PACKAGING – THE HOT TOPIC The topic of plastic waste has come to the forefront of the minds of both businesses and consumers both in Ireland and abroad. An estimated 50% of all plastic produced is single-use, and research shows that if current habits continue there will be more plastic than fish in the ocean by 2050. Following demand from consumers, and further motivated by the EU’s proposed ban on single-use plastics, many businesses have put measures in place to reduce the amount of single-use plastic consumed, with Lidl the most recent to announce their ban on non-recyclable packaging on fruit and veg by Christmas 2018, on fresh fish by February 2019 and fresh and processed meat products by August 2019.

ORIGIN GREEN SUSTAINABLE PACKAGING SEMINAR Bord Bia’s Origin Green team and Repak recently co-hosted a sustainable packaging seminar for verified members of the Origin Green programme. Speakers from organisations including the EPA, 3Keel, and Musgrave Group as well as Bord Bia and Repak, addressed topics including packaging trends, innovation, challenges and legislation. The seminar also featured a panel discussion comprising of representatives from Origin Green member companies, government and packaging experts. As consumers grow more concerned about packaging waste, the seminar aimed to give members a deeper insight into sustainable packaging in the Irish food, drink and horticulture industry. Learn more at www.origingreen.ie.

PACKAGING PROSPECTS UNPACKING SUCCESS: 2018 AND BEYOND Bord Bia, in partnership with Touch Packaging Innovation Specialists recently launched our latest packaging report ‘Packaging Progress 2018+’, at a workshop in The Thinking House. The report provides first hand insights on the packaging trends which will influence businesses now and into the future.

A number of themes which are likely to shape future packaging developments were explored including: ● The role that technology is playing today ●N ew routes to market ● Responding to the circular economy and ways in which we need to consider future packaging life cycles ●F uture opportunities for innovation in consumer experience via packaging The report is designed to allow businesses to start questioning how they look at their packaging and consider the role it plays in their marketing strategy, business planning and supply chain models. ✽

GRANT OPPORTUNITIES FOR 2019 FROM BORD BIA Bord Bia provides financial support to Irish food, drink and horticulture companies through our Marketing Assistance and Step Change programmes.

Both initiatives can enhance the competitiveness of your business by helping you take the next step in your growth progression. The MAP assists you in establishing a foothold in new and emerging niche markets, while the SCP funds significant new projects which have the potential to impact strongly on your company’s growth levels.

In 2018 a total of €799,000 was approved for 160 MAP applicants with a further €165,000 approved for four companies under SCP. Activities eligible for support include participation at trade fairs and exhibitions, marketing, design, new product development, and quality measures.

Don’t miss the opportunity in 2019. Details of grant opportunities for 2019 will be made available in mid-November 2018, with applications ending 31 January 2019. Please note, for those wishing to exhibit or travel to trade fairs in mid to late January, your application must be received in advance of activities taking place. Please contact your sector manager to discuss a possible application, or see www.bordbiavantage.ie/business-development/map-step-change-fund for further information. ✽

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HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

03 / BORD BIA BREXIT – BE PREPARED WITH FREE WORKSHOPS BY BORD BIA The decision by the UK to exit the EU continues to represent a significant challenge to Ireland’s agriculture industry. In the two years since the Brexit referendum, despite the uncertain landscape for Irish exports to the UK, it remains our most important trading partner. Since the vote by the UK to leave the EU, Bord Bia has been playing a key role in monitoring and assisting Irish food, drink and horticulture companies to assess and prepare for the challenges ahead, implementing the Brexit Barometer in 2017.

In 2018, senior management from 117 Irish food, beverage and horticulture companies undertook the Brexit Barometer 2018 update, with the results depicting how prepared the sector is for Brexit, benchmarking against the following key risks: UK customer relationships, supply chain, customs and tariffs, financial resilience, market diversification, and emerging risks.

EMERGING RISKS As talks continue between the EU and the UK, companies need to be monitoring emerging risks and the possible impacts of these on their businesses.

FREE WORKSHOPS Bord Bia is providing practical supports to client companies including hosting FREE customs and tariffs training, and supply chain workshops in autumn 2018 and early 2019. Log on to www.bordbia.ie brexit for further information on upcoming events, press releases and market reports. The Brexit Barometer 2018 findings are available from www.bordbia.ie. ✽

FOOD DUDES PROGRAMME – TARGETS 100,000 SCHOOL CHILDREN IN THE CURRENT SCHOOL YEAR The Food Dudes programme is a school based behaviour changing programme which encourages school children to taste and consume fruit and vegetables as part of a healthy balanced diet. The programme which has been rolled out nationally over the last decade has to date positively impacted close to one million school children in developing and maintaining good healthy eating habits. The programme is funded by the EU Fruit & Vegetables Scheme and the Department of Agriculture, Food & the Marine. A new improved programme was launched in August 2018 to include new varieties of fruit and vegetables, additional tasting days, new eco-friendly rewards and new supporting materials including DVDs and multilingual website. In the 2018/19 school year, the ambitious programme aims to target 700 schools nationally with over 100,000 children taking part. ✽

MUSHROOMS COMPLEMENT EVERYTHING The €2,050,000 ‘Mushrooms Complement Everything’ campaign over three years commenced in April. It runs in the UK and Ireland, and is very heavily based on recipe videos, digital advertising, and social media. It is aimed at young women in the 25-45 year old bracket.

The activity highlighted the impact of video recipes, with over 413,000 views on organic social media, and 723,000 views on pay per click. After the initial burst of activity, the industry group got together and made plans for the remainder of the campaign. It was felt that while the results achieved were excellent, to give the campaign more longevity it was necessary to create a concept with a higher engagement.

Flexitarianism is a rising food trend where a variety of meals are eaten, and meat consumption is reduced – not cutting meat out of the diet but simply eating less. While the name may not be well known the trends are there to see and it is clear that the taste and health credentials of mushrooms make them ideal to take advantage of the trend.

After an intensive creative process, consumer focus groups were used to select the most compelling concept, ‘Bring on the Blend’. The aim of this concept is to show how easily chopped mushrooms can be blended with minced meat, to enhance the health and flavour of the meal, while at the same time reducing the cost. The campaign commenced in October, with a range of new videos and recipes, and early results are promising. ✽

INCREDIBLE EDIBLES PROGRAMME The Incredibles Edibles Schools programme ran for its 10th year in 2018 and continues to be very popular with pupils and teachers. This year over 1,220 primary schools (48,000 pupils) registered to take part with over 1,600 grow packs distributed. There was uptake from schools across 26 counties. An awards ceremony to present the overall winning prize took place in the winning school (St Patricks NS, Galway) in September, with guest appearances from well-known TV dietician Aoife Hearne and Shane Delahunt (Connaught/Irish rugby star) on the day. This educational programme informs school children about how fresh produce grows, its origin and the role it plays in a healthy balanced diet. It is supported

by Bord Bia and the fresh produce industry and implemented by Agri Aware. ✽

Autumn/Winter 2018 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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EVENTS / 02

EVENTSDIARY EVENT PROMOTION Promote your event to a wide network of Horticulture businesses and professionals Inprint, Online & Social. Find out more at www.horticultureconnected.ie/events

01 DECEMBER WORLD SOIL DAY - GROW CONSERVATORY Soil Health Matters – Join GROW Observatory’s Actions around Europe. From 1-5pm.

Venue: Visual Contemporary Arts Centre, Carlow town horticultureconnected.ie/events or email: dee@greensideup.ie ✽

04 DECEMBER OUTLOOK 2019 This year’s conference will include a review of 2018 and the short term outlook for the major farm sectors in 2019, contingent on an orderly or a disorderly Brexit.

Venue: The Alex Hotel, Fenian Street, Dublin 2 teagasc.ie/news--events ✽

Bord Bia’s Small Business Open Day is an important date in the diary for any small food or drinks business looking to grow, be this locally, nationally or internationally.

Venue: tbc bordbia.ie/industry/events ✽

22 - 25 JANUARY IPM ESSEN This 4 day event showcases products like greenhouses Technical equipment, irrigation, fertilization, plant protection Store construction, equipment Machines and tools for horticultural production in the Agriculture & Forestry industry.

Venue: Messe Essen, Germany ipm-essen.de ✽

22 - 24 JANUARY BTME

06 DECEMBER FOOD SUPPLY CHAIN INTEGRITY ON THE ISLAND OF IRELAND: THE POTENTIAL OF BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY

BIGGA Turf Management Exhibition is a 3 day event which showcases products like Europe's leading showcase for turf professionals and buyers.

Venue: Harrogate Convention Centre, Harrogate, UK btme.org.uk ✽

Seminar in conjunction with Cork University Business School and Safefood Ireland Venue: Teagasc Food Research Centre, Ashtown, Dublin 15 teagasc.ie/news--events ✽

25 - 29 JANUARY FLORADECORA

06 - 07 DECEMBER 47TH ANNUAL FOOD SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY CONFERENCE The conference focuses on providing opportunities to young scientists to present their research.

Venue: Devere Hall University College Cork, Cork teagasc.ie/news--events ✽

15 - 17 JANUARY DE GROENE SECTOR VAKBEURS Green Industry Exhibition of Hardenberg. Gardening and Landscaping Exhibition Venue: De Nieuwe Haven, Hardenberg (Netherlands) booking.evenementenhal.nl/nl/de-groene-sectorvakbeurs-hb-2019/hardenberg ✽

8

22 JANUARY BORD BIA SMALL BUSINESS OPEN DAY

The market place for fresh flowers and decorative plants, bouquets and ready-made floral arrangements. The innovative exhibition concept, which takes place at the same time as Christmasworld, creates a perfect link between fresh flowers and seasonal decoration.

Venue: Messe Frankfurt, Frankfurt, Germany floradecora.messefrankfurt.com ✽

25 - 29 JANUARY CHRISTMASWORLD FRANKFURT

DON’T MISS!

International Trade Fair for Seasonal & Festive Decorations which offers classic handicraft, impressive concept decorations, original florist supplies, unusual ideas for the garden, trendy gift ribbons and wrapping, superior candles and scents and brilliant light shows.

Venue: Messe Frankfurt, Frankfurt, Germany christmasworld.messefrankfurt.com ✽

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

DON’T MISS!

Irland-gb

Seasonal Decoration at its best 25 – 29. 1. 2019

23 FEBRUARY GLDA’S 22ND INTERNATIONAL GARDEN DESIGN SEMINAR

Gardening on the edge - Rewilding Green Spaces.

Speakers include Dusty Gedge, Kevin Solan (USA), Monique & Thierry Dronet (France).

Venue: The Crown Plaza Conference Centre Northwood, Santry, Dublin 9 glda.ie ✽

DON’T MISS!

17 – 18 FEBRUARY IRISH HARDWARE SHOW

all you wish

for

business

The Show kindly supported in 2019 by Intact Software has become the largest and most important event for the sector, both in Ireland and the wider UK/Ireland marketplace.

Venue: Citywest, Saggart, Dublin www.thehardwareshow.ie ✽

27 FEBRUARY IHNSA TROLLEY FAIR 1 Kildalton College will host the first of 2 annual Nursery Trolley Fairs in the Horticultural Unit. Nurseries from all over Ireland will display their new 2019 nursery stock.

Venue: Kildalton Agricultural College, Piltown,Kilkenny trolleyfairs.com ✽

01 MARCH TEAGASC KILDALTON COLLEGE OPEN DAY Kildalton is the largest agricultural college offering training in Machinery, Agriculture and Horticulture.

Venue: Kildalton Agriculture College, Pilltown, Kilkenny www.teagasc.ie ✽

07 MARCH TEAGASC COLLEGE OF AMENITY - BOTANIC GARDENS OPEN DAY Find out more about what the college offers to prospective students. From 2pm - 4pm.

Venue: National Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin, D9 www.teagasc.ie ✽

Christmasworld makes your wishes come true. Discover the new trade fair concept with an even more diverse offer of seasonal and festive decorations, florist supplies and garden decorations!

We look forward to seeing you here. christmasworld.messefrankfurt.com will delight you as a marketplace for fresh flowers and ornamental plants.

info@ireland.messefrankfurt.com Tel. +44 14 83 48 39 83

22 MARCH IHNSA TROLLEY FAIRS 2 A crop of special offers for your Garden Centre.

Venue: Yellow Furze Nurseries, Beauparc, Navan, Meath yellowfurze.com & trolleyfairs.com ✽

Autumn/Winter 2018 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

DU: 01.10.2018

Latest innovations from this Fresh produce event.

Venue: Berlin ExpoCenter, Berlin, Germany fruitlogistica.de ✽

67898-005_CW_Gruene_Branche_Horticulture_Connected_88x262_SSP • FOGRA 39 • CMYK • mr: 26.07.2018

06 - 08 FEBRUARY FRUIT LOGISTICA

9

TEAGASC ezine / 04

SOFT FRUIT SEASON UPDATE This year will be remembered as a challenging soft fruit season. Combined with structural damage for some from the snow in March and a very late growing season, things hadn’t started that well. When the summer arrived it came suddenly. Most of the early strawberry crops did well, but as the summer progressed crops suffered due to the intense heat. Yields were reduced and fruit quality was under pressure. Of all the cultivars grown ‘Malling Centenary’ seemed to tolerate the hot conditions better. Some of the everbearing cultivars went into what’s known as ‘thermo dormancy’. This is a physiological condition brought on by a combination of long summer days length and high temperatures. As a result, the plant produces very little fruit. All of this drama resulted in a shortage of strawberries, particularly from June. A similar trend was seen with raspberry crops with earlier crops doing very well and mid-summer crops struggling in the heat. The good news is that strawberry and raspberry sales were superb with very high demand all summer long. ✽

PICTURED AT THE SOFT FRUIT CONFERENCE IN TEAGASC ASHTOWN RECENTLY, L-R, EAMONN KEHOE, GARY MCCARTHY, MICHAEL GAFFNEY, LORCAN BOURKE, KEES VAN GIESSEN, JOHAN AELTERMAN, DERMOT CALLAGHAN

10

LABOUR SHORTAGES IN HORTICULTURE

arrangements for the 2019 season.

Following an initial survey in January 2018 on labour shortages in horticulture, Teagasc Horticulture Development Department commissioned a detailed report on the horticultural labour market during the summer. The focus of this survey was to surface facts about labour shortages in the various sub-sectors of horticulture production. Growers reported a significant tightening of the labour market over the past 18 months.

The survey was conducted before the announcement of the DBEI pilot work permit scheme in May, which provides for 500 horticulture work permits. It appears applications for the scheme were low due to severe weather conditions and that the scheme had come when growers were already into their busy season (scheme announced on May 14).

Following the main production season, interest in the scheme is growing and horticultural producers are currently applying to the scheme for current requirements and for

The main findings of the survey are; ●T here is a 14% vacancy rate across the horticulture industry ●6 7% of respondents stated that it was undermining their confidence to expand ●5 7% reported that they were finding it difficult to maintain current output ●9 0% of growers used “word of mouth” to recruit staff with most relying on this method ●G rowers cited accommodation as a challenging issue when employing new staff. 53% cited that the cost of accommodation was excessive with 43% reporting nothing suitable was available.

The HIF (horticulture Industry forum) is in the process of making recommendations and proposals on the survey findings. ✽

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

04 / TEAGASC ezine

MUSHROOM RESEARCH Eoin O’Connor is a Teagasc Walsh Fellow in the final year of his PhD studies, which are being done in collaboration with Teagasc’s Mushroom Research Group and Maynooth University.

Eoin recently won the Teagasc RDS Gold Medal at the 25th Anniversary Walsh Fellow Seminar at Johnstown Castle. This event showcases the great work being done by Walsh Fellows across the whole of Teagasc and it is a prestigious award for any PhD student. It is the first time a Walsh Fellow from Horticulture has won the medal so we are very proud of him indeed.

DR HELEN GROGAN WITH EOIN Eoin is working with Dr Helen Grogan in the Horticulture Development Department, O’CONNOR AFTER RECEIVING HIS TEAGASC RDS GOLD MEDAL Teagasc and Dr.David Fitzpatrick at Maynooth University on a mushroom research project that is characterising how mushrooms respond to the many viruses that can infect them.

Mushroom viruses reduce the quality of fresh mushrooms and result in the produce being downgraded or rejected and so they effectively reduce the profitability of the grower. Eoin’s work has identified that the viruses can be found in different locations within the cells of the mushroom mycelium and that different mushroom strains respond differently to virus infections. He hopes to identify some factors that could be used to produce virus-resistant strains for the future. We wish him every success in his career. ✽

DAFM SCHEME OF INVESTMENT AID FOR COMMERCIAL HORTICULTURE SECTOR 2019 As part of the recent October budget a provision was made for a horticultural grants scheme for 2019. This scheme is a significant support to growers and producers who are planning capital investments. There is a very much welcomed additional €1m in funding for the horticulture National Development Plan scheme in 2019, bringing the total provision for a sector particularly challenged by Brexit to €6 million. At time of writing, communication from DAFM is that the scheme will be launched shortly, with a probable closing date in midDecember 2018. Approved investments should be completed no later than 29 September 2019 for larger capital investments that need to be staggered over a longer period.

You are advised to avail of the additional year of approval period, which permits an extended period to carry out works up to September 2020. This option should be applied for at the time of application.

It is likely that the overall aims of the scheme will not differ from last year, but you should read the terms and conditions and application form when released to ensure your proposed investment fits the scheme. Please contact your Teagasc

adviser for assistance in completing the application process.

Some key points: ●R emember, planning permission is now a requirement for all building projects. Previously it was enough to have applied for permission. Now a grant of permission is a condition of approval so this should be in place at time of application, as was the case last year. ● I t is worth remembering that the scheme is a competitive scheme. All eligible items may not necessarily attract investment aid or may attract reduced aid in certain instances. ●Q uotations should be recent and need a signature (electronic signature is acceptable). ● Ensure that quotation has adequate information to describe the proposed investment and that VAT is clearly itemised. ●P lease consider the priority order of investments, if multiple items are being requested. ● Please ensure that the proposed investment or equipment is horticulture specific. ●U nder no circumstances will late applications be accepted by DAFM so contact your Teagasc adviser as early as possible if you require assistance. ✽

SSRH SUPPORT SCHEME FOR RENEWABLE HEAT The Support Scheme for Renewable Heat is a government funded initiative designed to increase the energy generated from renewable sources in the heat sector. The scheme is open to commercial, industrial, agricultural, district heating, public sector and other non-domestic heat users.

Teagasc horticulture development department in association with Farm Energy Centre (FEC) in the UK, Ebtech and WoodCO recently held a seminar ‘Transforming your business with renewable heat’ at Teagasc Ashtown. This one-day event set about demonstrating how biomass can benefit the horticultural industry and provide delegates with knowledge and experience gained by working within the RHI ABOVE: JONATHAN FROGETT, MICHAEL GAFFNEY, JON SWAIN, GER CROSSE, DERMOT CALLAGHAN, scheme of England, Scotland and Wales. The event was aimed at the horticulture LEO FINN PICTURED AT THE TEAGASC/FEC/EBTECH/ WOODCO SEMINAR industry and included a visit to a local grower, Kilmoon nurseries who by kind permission gave us a practical insight to biomass use during a site visit.

While the scheme has not opened yet for biomass applications, it is expected to do so before the end of the year. The scheme will provide ongoing operational support on a tiered basis to adopters of the renewable heat source. Seminar proceedings are available at: www.teagasc.ie/publications. ✽

Autumn 2018 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

11

Kildalton College

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info@thelawnmowerman.ie Cork - +353 21 4822465 Waterford - +353 58 55970

Open D ay 1st Marc h 2019

Kildalton College has an extensive horticultural unit for student training, including a commercial nursery, fruit and vegetable production unit, protected crops and sportsturf units, as well as 16 hectares of established gardens and woodlands.

For further information:

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Email: Kildalton.college@teagasc.ie Website: www.teagasc.ie/training/colleges/kildalton/ Facebook: Teagasc Kildalton College Telephone: 051 644400 or 051 644407 @kc_horticulture

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05 / RETAIL

BLACK DOGS ON THE SHOP FLOOR Independent retail consultant, Liam Kelly examines one of the most significant and least talked about issues in garden retailing

© KUDRYASHKA/123RF.COM

T

here’s a small book that sits on a shelf in my under-the-hall-stairs office sandwiched amongst all the others dealing with retail, marketing and gardening. This small volume could easily be missed, but it’s probably the most important book in my library.

Its title is ‘I Had a Black Dog’ and what it does better than anything else I have ever read is show what it is like to live with depression. It is not a self-help book.

It does not provide radical solutions. It does not claim it will banish that ‘Black Dog’ in the title. Many could find it childish and perhaps even glib, but for countless people it articulates, explains and exemplifies how they feel using perceptive illustrations and plain language.

‘Black Dog’ as a expression for depression, melancholy or whatever other label suits the condition, has been around for centuries and has been used by the likes of Samuel Johnson, Sir Walter Scott and Winston Churchill at various times, so it’s hardly a new term, but its longevity of use is probably because it’s a useful way of visualising that mood. Perhaps because it’s giving that feeling the shape and form of a physical entity it lends itself better to discussion and use by those who might not normally like to talk about something so personal, so stigmatised and so hidden.

Within retail in general and our sector in particular this Black Dog is rarely mentioned. Maybe our fragile egos don’t want to show weakness, or be judged or pitied, particularly on the shop floor. There is also the wellargued point that gardening (and by default, working with plants) is a therapeutic pastime, reinforced by customers constantly making comments like, “It must be lovely to work with all of these flowers” and “I’d love

to work here, my garden makes me so relaxed”. I think it’s fair to say that those who make these comments don’t realise the pressure of operating in such a busy environment or the mental strength required by those working at the coal-face of retail. Dealing with customers, other staff members, management and business owners plus the constant need for hitting targets and order deadlines can all take their toll. One rarely gets time to stop and smell the roses.

It’s not just the minions that can suffer from mental health problems. Business owners with financial issues can be affected too, with these extra issues adding another level of weight on to an already overloaded mind.

Certain people, whether by mental strength or perhaps a more simplistic thought-flow can deal with these issues easily, but there are many who simply cannot cope with these added burdens. But in retail and the businesses that surround and feed it (growers, wholesalers, agents, etc.) nobody talks about it, to anyone.

There might be the box-ticking exercise of a few lines in an employee handbook or an occasional forced bonding exercise but in reality nothing is really discussed and everything is hidden, often until it’s too late and the only words then spoken are, “Oh, I never knew….” And let’s be really clear here, there are many Black Dog owners in retail and therefore plenty within the gardening sector.

In reality, the reasons why someone has unwillingly adopted this mutt vary hugely from person to person. It can be the pain of the actual physical work, money worries, the constant barrage of questions from customers and management, or friction in your interaction with your colleagues that puts a mental strain on your psyche. Or all three, or a multitude of other

Autumn/Winter 2018 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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RETAIL / 05 reasons. Much of the time it is a combination of other nonwork related issues which can be triggered by something or someone in the workplace. Part of the problem is that even though you are constantly surrounded by people such as family, colleagues, friends and customers you can still feel utterly alone, with your own Black Dog pulling you closer to the abyss.

There is no time in your whole life that you will feel as hopeless, worthless and useless as when you are standing on the edge of that chasm waiting to be pulled helplessly forward into the comforting numbness of oblivion. It’s not easy to understand that all you need is to take one step back.

All may seem bleak but a vital step is recognising that there are solutions, and one of the key things is finding something, just the smallest thing to make you shuffle backwards, something - or perhaps someone - to help lessen your grip on The Dog or at least reduce its momentum.

SEEKING HELP These solutions are not simple or black and white but as with everything in life, business and specifically in retail, it starts with communication. Talk to someone, and perhaps talking to your GP is a good start, as they are honest, impartial and clinical in their assessment and can help you with medication, if needed. There are no quick fixes, indeed it can be a slow process and it’s important to rid yourself of negative influences and, as difficult as it may be, start doing small positive things like exercising more, enjoying family life, changing bad eating habits, reading more for pleasure and being creative – whether that’s writing, painting or crocheting, the actual process is more important than the end product. That’s an important point, as too many people just live for the business and have no hobbies.

Does everyone in your organisation take holidays and enjoy their daily work breaks? Some people find it almost impossible to switch off, but it’s that down time which is important, as it allows your brain to rest, reset and reform.

CREATING DISTANCE As difficult as it might be it’s important to rid yourself of any negative environments or personalities around you no matter how drastic that decision may be. Other people egos and their lack of empathy and understanding are unlikely to change so it is important to distance yourself physically and mentally from them. This is especially important for those in the higher echelons of a business; the whole ethos of mental wellbeing permeates from the top down.

As ruthless as one needs to be for business dealings it is important for staff morale and a healthy psyche to have a degree of the above mentioned empathy, a scarce thing in business it seems, as those who are mentally strong may lack that trait of understanding and compassion.

HEALTHY MINDS, HEALTHY SALES So what’s the point of all of this? Why should we all care a little more about each other? Well, a clinical - if perhaps cynical - view would be that it impacts on staff mood and morale, which impacts on actual sales, so if we want to appeal purely to a certain type of business owner’s

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mercenary side then healthy minds equal healthy sales...

But beyond that, surely there’s a need for nurturing a healthy, communicative environment within every store just for its own sake? Isn’t there a need to care for others while still looking after yourself? Is that a little simplistic, naïve and ‘snowflakey’? Too lovey-dovey? Possibly and probably.

But we should still just take a minute to look around, see if we can spot someone with a Black Dog in their lives and ask them if they are OK. Maybe it’s time for retail to deal with the Black Dogs on the shop floor. (‘I Had a Black Dog’ is written and illustrated by Matthew Johnstone and is available from the usual sources).

On a personal note, my own Black Dog first appeared around 13 years ago, although I suspect he has always been hanging around just waiting on the right moment to pounce.

Since then I have had to make some quite radical changes to my life to find a better space in the world. For me my writing, both here and elsewhere, is part of the ongoing creative and cathartic process that helps me keep my mutt malnourished and on a short, tight leash. For what it’s worth I’ve never been more content, strong, happy or free… although that’s not to say my Black Dog doesn’t occasionally return in certain circumstances or company.

It’s important for me to stress that this article isn’t about looking for sympathy, pity or compassion, and it’s something I’ve started and stopped writing many times. Perhaps finally doing so now is partly a reaction to those who have written ego-feeding ‘Poor Me’ pieces for publicity but who lack awareness of the condition or any real empathy for others.

My hope is purely to make at least one retailer seriously assess how it treats the mental health of the staff or make even one person acknowledge their own Black Dog and bring it to heel.

At the very least it might make people talk more. ✽

LIAM KELLY - Since establishing Retail Services & Solutions in 2007, Liam has become one of the most influential people within the retail side of Irish horticulture. His knowledge of the mindset and ethos of those in this sector, combined with his problem solving ability, experience and hands-on work ethic make him uniquely placed to offer advice and help to those who need it most.

Key to his success is his knowledge of purchasing, pricing and sales combined with his understanding of layout, signage and merchandising, and how the interaction of these can lead to increased sales and profits. His focus is on garden centres, nurseries, hardware and DIY stores, where discretion, honesty and unbiased opinion are crucial and appreciated by those who secure his services. Liam Kelly, Retail Services & Solutions, Garden Centre Design & Consultancy, 086 822 1494, 059 913 0176, lksolutions@eircom.net

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

06 / NURSERY

Box Moth Threat Teagasc Nursery Stock Advisor, Dónall Flanagan suggests vigilance and caution as the first incidence of box moth is identified in Ireland

B

ox (Buxus sempervirens) has suffered some bad press of late; already suffering from blight, now with the first reports of box moth caterpillar coming in, cultivation will need to be reviewed. In time box may well be treated like roses, requiring pest and disease control.

Box contradicts the term ‘common’. It’s everywhere, but is still a desirable plant. It’s a high status plant for landscaping and topiary. Estimates of imports of close to a million plants a year show it’s an important and economically valuable plant. The vast majority of box produced in Europe is grown by specialists in Belgium and Netherlands and they are very skilled at it. However, the last few years have not been so kind to them. Demand on the Continent has declined significantly, and by 75% on some nurseries. Pest and disease have tarnished its good name. Didier Hermans, owner of Herplant (one of the biggest producers of box in Europe) says, “The markets in Belgium and Holland have crashed because of the caterpillar and the very negative news in newspapers and on TV stations”. There are widespread reports from UK and the Continent of the dramatic damage caused - defoliation of plants over a weekend. It resulted in large amounts of the plant being replaced with alternative species.

BOX BLIGHT Two relatively new box diseases have caused much damage to the plants since first reported over 15 years ago.

Blackening or browning and death of foliage are caused by the fungal pathogens Calonectria pseudonaviculata (syn.Cylindrocladium buxicola) and Volutella buxi (syn.

Pseudonectria buxi). Both thrive on Buxus plants in warm, humid conditions. Warm, wet summers and transport conditions give the disease a chance to take hold. Box blight can be spread by wind and by contact, e.g. pruning and on footwear. Growers have been well able to manage the disease by addressing spacing and using good hygiene. Disease control using preventative treatments has been successful but is another new job on the nursery. US research in 2015

by LaMondia et al showed systemic and protectant fungicide

Autumn/Winter 2018 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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NURSERY / 06 applications “had significant efficacy” and were almost 100% successful. In Ireland there are good plant protections options available that have been proven to be effective over the last few years. In public planting, pruning once during the summer is now the norm, twice used to be recommended, and collecting clippings has helped to reduce the opportunities for the disease to take hold. Some foliar feeds are also well regarded. As you can imagine, the recent summer weather was good for the plants and not the disease.

Herplants have been working on resistance breeding programmes for over 10 years. Thousands of new hybrids have been assessed and this October at GrootGroenPlus, a major Dutch trade fair, they presented four new resistant cultivars. These plants are expected on the market by late 2019. In the meantime, there are some very good varieties that Teagasc has been growing: ‘Faulkner’, ‘John Baldwin’, ‘Rococo’ and 'Justin Brouwers’ have shown to be very good in ordinary growing conditions. Next the plants will be inoculated with different concentrations of blight spores to assess their levels of resistance. Didier Herman says, “There are good biosolutions to treat but a lot of garden owners in Belgium and Holland do nothing. We have a lot of information on our website www.buxuscare.com”.

BOX MOTH This September saw the first recorded incidence of box moth (Cydalima persimilis) in Ireland. Mature established hedgerows in Blackrock and Rathfarnham in Dublin had signs of feeding damage from caterpillars and defoliation.

Caterpillars and chrysalis from one site confirmed it was box moth caterpillar. As these were established hedges, not recent imports, they must have become colonised by laying adult moths. It can be assumed the pest is established at least in some pockets. The pest first arrived in Europe from Asia in 2007. Since then it has spread to most of Europe.

Severe damage is often seen with plants being stripped of foliage in just a few weeks. It has caused devastation in some areas where native Buxus forests grow, and many have been destroyed. The caterpillars overwinter in cocoons tightly wrapped between leaves, they begin to feed in spring and by mid-April they are on the wing as adults. The adult females seek new box plants to lay their eggs on. In warm weather the developing caterpillars grow quickly to produce another generation. The caterpillars feed only on the leaves of box plants. If they run out of leaves they can feed on the stems causing death of the plant. Only dormant protected caterpillars can survive winter, adult moths cannot. Their natural spread is about 7km a year. However, unintentional trade of infested plants will be the quickest route to spread them. Climate and natural population migration models suggest the pest will establish in Ireland in substantial population densities. It looks likely there will be two generations per year in parts of the country but there is much to learn about the moth’s survival in Ireland. Dr Melanie Tuffen, biosecurity coordinator for the RHS in UK and previously worked with Teagasc and DAFM says, “In Ireland, where summers are generally cooler than the Continent, the box tree moth is unlikely to have as many generations per year than is seen in Central and Southern to have as many generations

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seen per year than in Central and Southern France where it is highly damaging. This may help reduce the impacts of this pest compared to those seen in Europe”.

The Belgian horticulture research agency PCS and its partners have a very thorough website www.sosbuxusmot.be Their research carried out over four years identified the most effective professional IPM and plant protection products, many of which are available in Ireland and are very selective at controlling caterpillars only. RHS trials of home use products found that the nematode control was more effective than the chemical control options.

Growers and landscapers should take action in 2019. Effective IPM options should be used, monitoring plants regularly for caterpillars from April onwards and using pheromone traps to detect male moths. If adult caterpillars are found, follow up with the biological treatment Bacillus thuringiensis.

ALTERNATIVES It’s likely that box will always have a place in Ireland. Our relatively mild climate allows us to grow a good range of alternatives. Ronald Hautman, a Dutch plant consultant, said that there is no one plant that fills all the roles of box. There are many online recommendations, the most likely candidates to consider are: Euonymus fortunei (various cultivars), Ilex crenata, Lonicera nitida var. ‘Moss Green’ and ‘May Green’, Pittosporum tenuifolium var. ‘Golf Ball’, Sarcococca sp. Taxus baccata and Ugni molinae.

The coming year will tell a lot about how our plants will cope with the new challenges. For now, I urge caution and to give these valuable plants a little more attention than we have in the past. If you need advice on protection programmes, please visit the Teagasc website or contact me directly. ✽

DAMAGED HEDGE

ó

D NALL FLANAGAN has been teaching with Teagasc for a number of years. Before this he worked with Dun Laoghaire Rathdown Co Co Parks Department, landscaping and in protected crops. He is based with the Teagasc Horticulture Development Department in Ashtown, serving the nursery stock and ornamental sector.

Dónall Flanagan, Ashtown Food Research Centre Mobile: 087 703 5823; Tel: 076 111 4021 Email: donall.flanagan@teagasc.ie

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

06 / NURSERY

TIME FOR

CHANGE

Speaking at the recent Teagasc Nursery Stock conference, horticultural business consultant Neville Stein urged growers to focus on creativity and innovation. In this feature Neville expands on his presentation, arguing that upcoming challenges present an opportunity

V

ery probably like me, you have no clear understanding of what to expect when the UK leaves the European Union. If you do, then do please tell.

I’m sure your insights will help bring some much needed peace of mind to the nursery stock sector in Ireland and the UK, which currently seems characterised by uncertainty.

In reflecting on the uncertainty we all face, my mind was drawn to an acronym which adequately describes the times we live in. VUCA - short for volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous - certainly seems an apt description for our current joint predicament. But realistically haven’t we always lived in VUCA times? The great philosopher Herodotus wisely stated that “change is the only constant”, and as I look back over the last five decades of my life I can recall many national and global events that caused change and uncertainty. Events like the winter of discontent in 1973, the Falklands war, poll tax riots and four economic recessions have rocked recent decades along with global issues of climate change, regime changes, and terrorism. The only constant thing really is change.

Individually perhaps we have very little influence of those factors that cause a VUCA world. However, if we run a business we can survive, prosper and make a VUCA world work for us. How? Very simply by creating an innovation culture. When times are good and profits are rolling in I often find that businesses can get complacent; things can be easy, so why strive harder to make the business better? But when the business environment becomes extremely challenging, there is a need to find better ways to do things and those companies that have created an innovation culture will be those that not only survive but typically prosper. Because in difficult economic times your return on investment could be higher, your factors of production become cheaper, and you can gain market share. Typically, I also find that smaller enterprises are able to adapt to difficult times much quicker than larger organisations. Often in larger companies the

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decision making process is slower and getting things done can be pretty time consuming. On the other hand, the owners of smaller organisations can often take quick decisions enabling them to respond promptly to a dynamic business environment. If we believe that a VUCA world can enable us to prosper by being more innovative, how do we develop an innovation culture in our own organisations?

My advice first of all is to explore innovation in those areas that are not obvious. Most innovation in our sector is market facing. In other words, we do a great job at innovating new plants and packaging. For example, take the egg and chips plant from Thompson & Morgan, a unique combination of aubergine grafted to potato, but we don’t often look to innovate in our business processes or our business strategy – the overall approach that we take to running our businesses.

“These are going to be difficult times, but those are better faced with creativity and a constructive mindset”

Autumn 2018 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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2019 SCHEME OF INVESTMENT AID FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE COMMERCIAL HORTICULTURE SECTOR This Scheme is intended to assist in the development of the commercial horticulture sector, excluding potatoes, by grant aiding capital investments in specialised horticultural plant and equipment.

The Scheme is now open for applications for proposed investments.

As the funds available under the Scheme are limited, investments will be in competition for grant aid.

Grant aid will not be considered for works which commence before the issue of the respective letter of approval by the Department.

Application forms and further information may be obtained from: Horticulture Grants Section, Horticulture and Plant Health Division, Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Administration Building, Backweston Campus, Young’s Cross, Celbridge, Co. Kildare.

Tel: (01) 5058886 Application forms and conditions for the Scheme can be obtained on-line at: http://www.agriculture.gov.ie/ farmingsectors/horticulture/ horticultureschemes/ Completed applications must be received at the above address not later than 5pm Wednesday 19th December 2018. www.agriculture.gov.ie @agriculture_ie

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Secondly, be dissatisfied with the status quo. Challenge the way you do everything and make sure that nothing is off limits, challenge even those sacred cows that exist in every business. Likewise, look for what’s missing in your organisation. The best way to do this is to visit other producers. But don’t just stick to visiting those in the same area of production, for example visit those in the fresh produce area too. You can learn a lot from how they are using mechanisation, software and innovative practices to drive efficiencies.

Thirdly, if you really want to create an innovation culture in your business you need to develop a blame free culture.

In the course of operating your business you and your staff will make mistakes. Treat those mistakes as an opportunity to innovate. After all, a mistake might just lead you to a new way of doing things. Encourage your staff to be imaginative and take risks and let them fail because it’s through failure that we learn. But don’t just take my word here, read Matthew Syed’s excellent book, ‘Black Box Thinking’ which explores these concepts in more detail.

Of course, if your staff do innovate and they save you a fortune make sure you reward them well.

There are a variety of business tools available to you that will help facilitate the process of innovation within your organisation. Perhaps look at developing a lean production programme or indeed embrace continuous improvement as a method of developing a mindset that encourages continual innovation amongst your employees.

In encouraging you to embrace innovation I am not disregarding or diminishing the challenges we may all face ahead. These are going to be difficult times, but those are better faced with creativity and a constructive mindset. Think about the current culture and ‘mindset’ in your business – how many processes are years old and unchallenged? To avoid stagnation we should be constantly reviewing the ‘what, how, and why’ of everything we do, and be making full use of new products, systems and software. There will be upfront costs, but the rewards should far outweigh this.

It is at times of greatest challenge where we need creative thinking and that thinking should lead to new innovations.

To fully succeed in a VUCA world innovation will need to become a culture in your organisation, and one easy way to start this is by changing the language we automatically use. Change a ‘can’t’ to a ‘could’, a ‘no’ to a ‘maybe’, and a ‘why’ to a ‘why not’, then keep learning, keep challenging, and keep growing. ✽

NEVILLE STEIN is managing partner of Ovation, a UK company providing business health checks, strategy planning, business planning and marketing consultancy to retailers, wholesalers and distributors. He has been a consultant since 1994 and also operates his own specialist retail business. He can be contacted on 0044 1394 385 723 or coach@ovationbusiness.co.uk

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

IN PICTURES

GLAS

PHOTOS: KOARLEY NORTHEN

CITYWEST JULY 2018

ABOVE: RACHEL FREEMAN & MICHAEL HAGAN (ITB) RIGHT: AISLING DILLON (RADHARC NURSERIES) & NUALA YOUNG (YOUNG NURSERIES)

RONAN NANGLE (NANGLE & NIESEN)

MARTIN GOUCHER (PETER O'BRIEN & SONS LANDSCAPE CENTRE)

CONOR MOONEY; JAMES O'DWYER; EVELYN LEONARD; BRENDAN HOWELL (BORD NA MONA)

PAUL KUNKELS & GLENN WHITING (IRRITEC)

NOEL WALSH & JER DORAN (WHITE'S AMENITY)

GARY GRAHAM & GRACE BINCHY (BORD BIA)

CAROLINE O'DOWD (CENTRE) WITH MAKAYLA HEAVIN (ON LEFT) & NIAMH O'DOWD (O'DOWD NURSERIES)

COLM WARREN (COLM WARREN POLYHOUSES)

Autumn/Winter 2018 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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07 / JOBS

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CONSTRUCT / 07

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FIRST CHOICE WHEN IT COMES TO SOURCING TREES Quality - We pride ourselves on the quality of our trees and operate to the highest horticultural standards. We operate rigorous quality control systems throughout every stage of the growing process Range - Over 40,000 trees with more than 200 varieties to choose from including a large stock of mature and semi mature trees Experience - A history of over 40 years of growing and supplying trees provides a wealth of knowledge and experience unsurpassed in Ireland Reliability - Our proven track record means we can be trusted to give the best advise and service Plant Health & Biosecurity - Nangle and Niesen Ltd is committed to operating in a manner that promotes good plant health and biosecurity as far as it is reasonable and practicable to do so and will ensure that the Company’s suppliers are selected with

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HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

08 / DESIGN

The Road to Péronne Barry Lupton catches up with Peter Donegan, who is representing Ireland and Irish garden design with his Garden of Peace in Péronne, France

, m: 23, y: 90, k: 41

, m: 16, y: 90, k: 0

-Light

1 2

3

5

PHOTOS BY PETER DONEGAN 1. THE BLANK CANVAS...NINE METRES DOWN; 2. GETTING STARTED...WITH SOME LOGISTICAL CHALLENGES; 3. CONSTRUCTION STARTS IN EARNEST; 4. STARTING TO TAKE SHAPE; 5. WATCH OUT DOWN BELOW

Autumn/Winter 2018 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

23

Image © Vincent McMonagle

XXXXXXXXX / 08

DATE VENUE

Saturday, 23rd February 2019 The Crowne Plaza Conference Centre, Northwood, Santry, Dublin 9

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Dusty Gedge - UK | Kevin Sloan - USA Monique & Thierry Dronet - France

To make your booking or for more information, please visit www.glda.ie, email info@glda.ie or phone +353 (01) 294 0092

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HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

08 / DESIGN

“Most of the designers had level areas to work with. Not me, my garden is being created in a moat”

H

aving been involved in the creation of gardens for nearly 20 years, Peter Donegan has more than his fair share of stories to tell. Flamboyant, creative and outspoken, this North-Dublin based horticulturist and designer is perhaps best known for pink-boat show gardens, leading Patrick’s day parades in the US and his keenness to share plant knowledge. While he has devoted recent years pursuing online and radio activities, he is once again returning to the world of show gardens and this time he’s gone international.

“Helen Basson emailed about an international design competition and suggested I should go for it. So, I did”.

The competition in question was to design and construct a Garden of Peace to commemorate the centenary of World War 1 in Péronne, France. “I’ve always believed in giving things a go, so I got my CV and proposal together and sent them in.” Within the week, Peter had heard back from France. He was one of only 15 internationally renowned designers to be selected; “I was gobsmacked but delighted!

I felt that my years of hard work were starting to pay off. The judges loved my entry and loved what I’d achieved in the past. It was a game changer for me”.

Before he knew it, Peter found himself resident in France, attending meetings and staring down into the dried-up moat of a chateau. “Though all the sites are of huge historic importance, most of the designers had level areas to work with. Not me, my garden is being created in a moat. Yes, a moat.” He’s right, his garden sits nine meters below the surrounding landscape and is crossed by a bridge. “The garden is split into two key spaces and is reached by a bridge.

The bridge divides the garden into two spaces, one side is for family and friends to spend time together, while the other can be considered a little more formal”.

Peter’s path to being selected for such a prestigious project was by no means an easy one. He is a consummate creative, willing to put his neck and reputation on the line to try something different; “I’ve always been willing to try new things, to challenge perceptions and try to achieve the impossible. My approach has won me many friends, and memories to last a lifetime and presented me with challenges,” he says. The challenges Peter faced are shared by anyone striving to be original: the money and support to make things happen. “It’s not been easy. In my early days I really struggled to secure sponsorship for show gardens, but I had the self-belief to push on. I also received wise counsel from industry luminaries such as Jody Judge and Martin Tully, their words still ring in my years”.

Like many in the industry, Peter’s burgeoning career took a serious hit in the recession. “One day I was receiving awards for restoring historic gardens and the next I was looking to the future and how I might pay the bills: if I could pay the bills. They’re were tough times. We all had them, but I didn't let it get me down”.

Now Peter is back in the world of garden creation with all guns blazing. “I was just speaking at the Landscape Show in

the UK alongside Andrew Fisher Tomlin. There was a great buzz there and apparently, I'm the first Irish designer to be invited to speak at it. That said, there has been great support from the Irish Ambassadors office in Paris and presenting the garden to the Mayor of Péronne and the media in France is not something that comes with a usual garden design”.

No doubt Peter’s ability to take on such challenges without being fazed was something that appealed to the judges as the garden he is creating represents the challenge of a lifetime. “As you can imagine, constructing a garden in another country, nine metres below ground on an historic site of world importance presents one or two obstacles,” he says. “It was vital we engaged local contractors for the build and materials had to be sourced locally too. This obviously presented language and translation issues, but the people of Péronne have been fantastic. They made it possible. They’ve made it a joy”.

The concept underpinning Peter’s garden centres on peace but goes beyond it. One of the briefs of his garden was to acknowledge the sites past, the centenary, but also with an eye to the future - in a way that allowed visitors to feel happy; “I remember one of the first visits to the site, feeling the stone work of the Chateau, absorbing its history and wanting to breathe some smiles in to it. To bring a little moment to visitors. I wanted to find a way to make people sit longer together, to get the sound of those smiles to bounce off the stones and out into the street”.

Formulating a planting scheme for his design presented a number of difficulties, not least of which was the ninemetre drop; “The garden is viewed from above at first and the tower, well, it towers over the space! I had to give great consideration to the use of trees”. Peter was keen use the planting to connect to the adjacent streets. He spoke with media and restaurateurs about using flowers from the garden to decorate tables and to local schools about children taking fruit from the trees. “Moats are created to keep people out.

I wanted this to turn this on its head by creating a beautiful, inviting space with flowering herbaceous, fruit trees and scented plants”. Surprisingly, the sourcing of plants did not present as much of a challenge as Peter had initially thought; “I spent seven weeks in France over four visits. Nursery owners and contractors were fantastic. I don't speak French and most of them didn't speak English, but we all understood botanical Latin, so we got on fine”.

Despite Peter realising the project under his own steam, he is quick to acknowledge that the project would not have been possible without the help and support of a number colleagues and his French counterparts; “There are a lot of people I’d like to thanks, not least are Art et Jardins Hauts de France, the Irish Embassy in Paris and French Embassy in Dublin, Niamh Vaughan of the Irish in France association, The Commonwealth War Graves Commission and of course the People of Péronne for their kindness and generosity”.

The garden will opened on November 11, the centenary of the end of World War 1. ✽

Autumn/Winter 2018 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

25

GARDEN SECRETS

PHOTO: NICK BRADSHAW

SHOW

FEATURES AND ELEMENTS PROVIDE FOCUS AND INTEREST - JANE MCCORKELL GARDEN FOR SAVILLS WITH THE WELL POSITIONED SCULPTURE

STRONG STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS HAVE HIGH IMPACT KEVIN DENNIS' GARDEN AT BLOOM 2018

Kerrie Gardener, show garden organiser for Bloom in the Park shares her personal insights on how you can improve your chances of a gold medal at Bloom 2019

2019

will see my fourth outing as show garden manager for Bloom. Every year I watch between 20-25 show gardens evolve from seed to beautiful living installations and honestly, it’s a joy to behold. I am privileged to observe the development of the gardens from a unique perspective and thought it might be helpful to provide some insight into the process. I can’t offer a formula on how to win a gold medal, but I can share a few of my thoughts on how designers might make the most of their experience, maximise results, minimise stress and set themselves up for as smooth and enjoyable a journey as possible.

Depending on who you speak to, success at Bloom can be defined in various ways: Public perception, the views of other designers or critique from one’s self; I guess the measure often held closest to the designers’ heart is the colour of the medal they are awarded on the opening day of the festival.

Seeing as so many factors decided upon during the planning process influence the results of the judging I feel it makes sense to start at the beginning and to discuss different aspects in turn.

It all starts with the designers’ decision to participate in Bloom.

The significance of this step shouldn’t be underestimated!

Taking a garden from conception to completion is a big commitment. Whether the applicant is a first time bloomer or a veteran show garden designer, more often than not the process can be stressful (at times) and challenging. The rewards however, in my opinion are tremendous!

Once a designer has decided they want to bring a garden to Bloom, the application process provides an opportunity to lay the foundations for the project and set out goals for the months ahead.

GETTING THE BRIEF RIGHT Formulating a brief is an important part of the application process and needs to be considered carefully from the outset.

26

Designers write their own brief against which their gardens are judged so it’s really important that the two match up. If a designer has a great idea for a garden, they shouldn’t be put off if they initially lack funding - The Bloom team will do their best to support them seeking sponsorship. However, in this situation the designer should be prepared to adapt their proposals (including their brief) to align with their sponsor’s requirements if necessary. On the other hand, if a sponsor is looking for something specific and the designer comes on board later, the designer needs to use their skills to create a specific brief that revolves around the sponsor’s message.

Either way, it is crucial that the finished garden reflects the objectives set out in the final brief so the garden can be judged objectively. It is worth noting that garden briefs nearly always develop during the process. We understand that things change and that there are many factors that might cause a brief to evolve. For example, last year the season was late due to the long winter, so many designers needed to adapt their planting schemes (and in turn their briefs) to reflect this.

CLARITY OF INTENTION When it comes to design, the brief should always be at the forefront of the designers’ thoughts. If there is a message to convey, the design should act as an efficient vehicle for delivery. Be it abstract or literal, the public should be able to understand what the garden is about. As well as getting the point across, applicants should think through the many practical aspects of designing a well conceived show garden.

Aside from the fundamentals of spatial planning, proportion, refinement, materiality and detailing, designers should give consideration to the aspects particularly important and unique to show gardens: How will the public view the garden?

How will the judges, guests and media circulate the space?

Which viewpoints might press shots be taken from? How are all of the various boundaries treated? These are just a few examples. The message is, that designers should give proper consideration to the various anomalies that make a show

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

PHOTO: CHRIS BELLEW/ FENNELL PHOTOGRAPHY

DESIGN / 08

CREATE A SENSE OF PLACE TUNDE SZENTESI, BLOOM 2018

PHOTO: NICK BRADSHAW

PHOTO: IAIN WHITE - FENNELL PHOTOGRAPHY

08 / DESIGN

ATTEND TO THE SMALL DETAILS BARRY KAVANAGH'S ACROSS BOUNDARIES GARDEN BLOOM 2016

GOOD CONTRACTORS ARE WORTH THEIR WEIGHT IN GOLD SILVERSTREAM LANDSCAPES BUILDING THE 12 TONNE PIER WALL FOR ANDREW CHRISTOPHER DUNNE'S 'THE SUSTAINABLE SEAFOOD GARDEN'

ALLOWING VISITORS TO GO ON JOURNEYS CAN HAVE A POWERFUL EFFECT OLIVER + LIAT SCHURMANN'S 'TRANSITION' GARDEN

garden different to a regular garden.

It is more than likely a slightly different design approach is required.

LEGIBILITY Staying on the subject of design; whether applying with a garden concept, a fully conceived design, or in response to a garden canvass; by the time a designer applies to take on a Bloom show garden, they should have some idea of what they want their garden to look like; Form, materials, details, features, planting concepts and so on. When submitting proposals (for the first time and throughout the review process), I can’t stress enough how important it is for designers to make drawings legible and provide a good level of annotation. The Garden Advisory Group (GAG) are tasked with reviewing all of the designs and providing feedback to help designers make the most of their ideas. Seeing as the GAG is made up of the same people that judge the gardens it really makes sense to seek as much feedback as possible, and this can only happen if the GAG are able to understand the

proposals. Once feedback is received, designers should make full use of it to move their design closer to resolution.

At the end of the review process the design should be the best, most refined version of the original concept and the designer should be proud and excited to bring it to life.

When it comes to planning for construction, it pays to start discussions with the contractor early. A good show garden contractor is worth their weight in gold. They might be able to advise on practical aspects looking at the design from a different point of view, and allowing time for quality dialogue could potentially assist in the development of the design. Designers should decide on their planting schemes early enough to allow them time to source good quality stock. They should also consider logistics to ensure that plants arrive to site in perfect condition.

All the months of planning culminate in the construction stage. It is the designer’s opportunity to put their best foot forward, showcase their talents and bring their design to fruition. As so much is resting on this relatively short

phase, it is imperative that designers plan their build properly. They should use the expertise of their contractors to form a schedule and factor in a contingency for delays; Bad weather being the main offender!

First time Bloomer, or veteran show garden designer, the planning and execution of a Bloom garden should be a positive process and the end result a celebration of life and our profession.

There is no simple formula, but if a designer plans well, communicates their ideas clearly, pays attention to the details and builds what they’ve proposed, they won’t go far wrong! ✽

KERRIE GARDINER Kerrie Gardiner CMLI BA (Hons) is a Galway based Chartered Landscape Architect who has worked on the design of commercial, public and private landscapes for over 14 years. She now divides her time between her successful design practice and her role as Bloom Show Garden Manager. Contact Kerrie on +353 86 130 4170 or by email kerrie.gardiner@ bloominthepark.com

Autumn/Winter 2018 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

27

INTERVIEW / 09

BARRY LUPTON INTERVIEWS CAROLINE KEELING

A LOVE TO GROW From humble beginnings growing rhubarb on their farm in North County Dublin and selling it in the Smithfield market, the Keeling family have grown their business to become a household name: both home and abroad. Employing 2000 staff, that small patch of rhubarb has grown to include 40 acres under glass and 100 acres of polytunnels. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

At the helm of the business is CEO Caroline Keeling, who along with brother’s William and David now run a business with an annual turnover in excess of 300 million and employing over 2000 staff across Ireland, the UK, Holland, Spain and China. Through joint ventures, the business also extends to Brazil and Costa Rica. I was lucky enough to catch up with Caroline recently to capture her insight into running one of Ireland’s most successful edible horticulture businesses.

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HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

09 / INTERVIEW

C

AN YOU OUTLINE YOUR TYPICAL WORKING DAY? There's no typical working day. I could get up any time from four in the morning to seven in the morning, depending on what's happening in the day and where I'm going. I could get home any time from six in the evening to twelve at night to not getting home at all. Days are extremely varied, which I enjoy but will usually involve multiple meetings with customers and colleagues. It’s a busy and very well-planned life. I am usually booked ahead for three months!

It presents challenges of course. The main one ensuring that I have time with my son. Once I have that everything else is fine.

WAS IT ALWAYS YOUR PLAN TO BECOME CEO? IF NOT, WHAT DID YOU ENVISAGE DOING GROWING UP? No, I didn’t plan to be a CEO. When I was a kid, I probably didn't even know what that was and back then there weren’t too many women running businesses. I think I wanted to be - for no good reason - an historian, a PE teacher and a nun.

I recall my mum saying that I wouldn't enjoy being a nun because I couldn't start as mother superior. She spotted it when I didn't.

YOUR BUSINESS MOTO IS ‘BELIEVE, SUPPORT, INSPIRE’. HOW DO YOU ARTICULATE THIS IN DAY TO DAY ACTIVITIES? I think it's important in the business to believe in what you're doing, and what you're trying to do. I'm lucky to be working in a business that I love. I love our company culture of trying to get better at them all the time. So, we never sit back and relax. I think the belief is in what we do, and we have a vision of what we do. I'd put the inspire next. Inspiration is about making sure the team around us to deliver, that they understand us, believe in us and share our vision. If you inspire someone you also must support them. Modern business can be difficult, and it is vital that we have the right supports in place. To achieve potential, people need the right training, the right tools and the right information at the right time.

WHAT MOTIVATES AND INSPIRES YOU TO WORK AS HARD AS YOU DO? I think something in me really hates doing a bad job, and it convinces me to push on to do the best I can. On a day to day basis, the main thing that motivates me is the people within our business. They inspire me to do better and to strive for more. We drive each other forward.

Oftentimes the CEO is singled out for achieving success but success in business is always about the team. We have done amazing things in the company and they are down to our amazing people. I’m proud of our products but much prouder of our team.

IT’S BEEN SAID THAT FAILURE IS AN IMPORTANT COMPONENT OF SUCCESS. CAN YOU GIVE SOME EXAMPLES OF THINGS THAT DIDN’T WORK FOR THE BUSINESS? I would agree with that and we’ve certainly had a few failures along the way. In the past, we had occasions where we failed to listen carefully enough or not identifying exactly what we needed to be doing. We learned at some cost about not working with the right people. We had the right plans but the wrong people. We believe in never wasting a good crisis and use our failures to become stronger. We’ve learned to listen, to plan, to act and to move forward. We’ve learned to invest in relationships and build partnerships. I never beat myself up for hiring the wrong person, but I would if I didn’t deal with it.

YOU GROW A HUGE VOLUME OF FRESH PRODUCE. DO YOU ALSO IMPORT, AND IF SO, HOW MUCH OF YOUR TOTAL COMES FROM OTHER COUNTRIES? Of everything we sell in Ireland, we grow about 15 to 16% of it. That's partly because we sell a whole range of fruit such as bananas, and oranges which are currently not grown in Ireland. We are doing everything to extend growing seasons for Irish products, particularly berries and cherries.

I HAVE LISTENED TO DEBATES ON WHETHER WE SHOULD BE EATING SEASONALLY OR IF IT’S OKAY TO BE BUYING YEAR-ROUND PRODUCE FLOWN IN FROM AROUND THE WORLD. I STILL CAN’T DECIDE. WHAT IS YOUR OPINION ON THE DEBATE? I think if you can grow it locally it's great, but I also feel that growing it at certain times is just not feasible. Berries, for instance, have become an important part of the Irish diet and it’s simply not possible to have fresh Irish product available all year round. There is a lot of research and innovation taking place in transport and I think we will see dramatic changes over the next ten years which reduce the impact of yearround supply.

HOW DO YOU MANAGE YOUR WORK LIFE BALANCE? I have a two-year-old son, so I have a real focus outside work. He’s obsessed with my iPhone so when I’m with him it’s not with me. Hopefully, I keep this habit as he grows, I think it’s good for us both.

IRISH HORTICULTURAL BUSINESSES ARE IN THE LARGE PART, FAMILY OWNED AND OPERATED. WHILE A FAMILY STRUCTURE CAN CONFER BENEFITS, OFTENTIMES IT HAMPERS CHANGE AND DEVELOPMENT. WHAT IS THE KEELING FAMILY SECRET TO BUSINESS SUCCESS? We are very much a family business and we all love the business we're in; we're very passionate about it. That said, our success rests on our team which comprises of experts brought in from the outside but who share our passion. Our secret is our people.

WHAT DO YOU VIEW AS BEING YOUR MOST SIGNIFICANT BUSINESS SUCCESS? To be honest, I'm not good at looking at the past, but from where I sit right now, it's creating the Keeling team.

MANY IRISH HORTICULTURAL COMPANIES ARE REPORTING REAL CHALLENGES IN FINDING SUITABLY SKILLED EMPLOYEES. ARE YOU FACING SIMILAR CHALLENGES, AND IF SO, HOW ARE YOU TACKLING THEM?

Autumn/Winter 2018 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

29

INTERVIEW / 09

Yeah, it's a huge challenge. It is something HR and our operational teams work on a lot. It's something we measure ourselves on, particularly with seasonal workers. Frequently we get a very high level or returning workers, which is crucial to us. And the reason they return is because they are treated well. We work hard at trying to make sure that the people who come to work with us have a good experience and that they want to come back. We hold regular employee forums to make sure our staff are happy. Oftentimes it’s the small things that are important, providing the occasional special breakfast or having an ice cream van on hot days. Treating people well is very much part of our culture.

ENERGY CONSUMPTION, WATER USE, PLASTICS AND CHEMICALS ARE HOT BUTTON ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES. FROM THE OUTSIDE, YOUR BUSINESS COULD APPEAR TO HAVE NEGATIVE IMPACTS IN THESE AREAS. WHAT IS YOUR PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY ON SUSTAINABLE BUSINESS PRACTICE AND HOW DOES IT ARTICULATE IN KEELING’S? We're members of Origin Green, which we view as very important. We’ve used it to help us in our drive for sustainability. The reality is a sustainability makes good economic sense. There are challenges with taking a sustainable approach but there are quite a few supports in Ireland. One thing I am very proud of is our switch from peat to coir which we use for our berry crops. We are the first large scale company to achieve this globally. We have also made significant inroads in replacing chemicals with natural predators. We are constantly exploring new ways to reduce environmental impacts.

WHAT ARE THE MOST SIGNIFICANT CHALLENGES KEELING’S FACES OVER THE NEXT DECADE? I suppose there are several of them. I would say how we adapt, introduce and integrate technology is the most significant factor for the next decade. This is the same for most businesses. Planning for technology is very difficult.

Picking the right technology at the right time is an art and a science. On the other hand, we face a battle for people.

It's a tough work environment. The produce food industry is very fast-moving. There are a lot of changes. There is a lot of pressure on people to deliver and keep delivering. We must create a sustainable, profitable and enjoyable business for people to work in. That’s no easy task.

IN RECENT YEARS YOU HAVE DEVELOPED A TECHNOLOGY BUSINESS AND HAVE HAD GREAT SUCCESS SELLING IN HOUSE DEVELOPED SOFTWARE IN CHINA AND EUROPE. WHAT WAS THE CATALYST FOR DEVELOPING THIS BUSINESS? It was using it in our own business and seeing how successful it was. We had used other, bought in systems and they just didn't deliver. We created something that worked for us, providing our decision makers with the right information at

30

the right time. It worked for us, so it would work for others.

That said, it was not easy to break into another business, but we did it. As I said, technology is going to be increasingly important, being part of that sector will help us.

AUTOMATION, ALGORITHMS AND AI ARE JUST THREE TECHNOLOGIES SHAPING MODERN BUSINESSES. HOW DO YOU SEE TECHNOLOGY SHAPING YOUR BUSINESS IN THE FUTURE? I think there's going to be loads of different things. We're testing out and looking at AI for matching invoices and for other administrative duties. We are also looking at AI in terms of assisting with long term forecasting and decision making. If it can help us make better decision or provide us with better information we’ll be using it. AI is going to be very relevant in the next five to 10 years. In terms of automation there are real opportunities in warehouse related work.

Picking is more challenging, but it is being looked at. We’re very open to new ways of working.

WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR EXPERIENCE OF BEING A FEMALE CEO IN WHAT HAS BEEN A TRADITIONALLY MALE DOMINATED MARKET? It wasn't something I thought about a lot until I got involved in initiatives supporting women coming through. And I probably did have some challenges and benefits. In terms of challenges I think some people may have thought I wasn't up to the job. They may have underestimated me. That didn't last long, once I started working with people directly they judged me on my actions and saw what I was capable of. I’m very comfortable in my own skin but I do understand how a woman might feel intimidated being the only woman at a meeting. The same of course could be said for a man being the only male at a meeting. It cuts both ways.

That said, the workplace was designed for men, because men did it, until relatively recently. And we do have to give pause, as to the reason why there's only about five percent of CEOs that are women. And it's not capability. So, we need to get under the skin a little bit more or the next generation will be blocked in whatever way the current is. And there's numerous reasons why there's only five percent, but it's most certainly not capability.

IF YOU COULD WAVE A MAGIC WAND AND CHANGE SOMETHING ABOUT YOUR BUSINESS, WHAT WOULD IT BE? I’d programme the weather. I’m fine with everything else!

WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO SOMEONE WISHING TO PURSUE A CAREER IN EDIBLE HORTICULTURE? I'd advise them to do it. It's a great industry and we sell things that are good for people. The more we sell the healthier people will be! If you are entering the industry, make sure you have a good knowledge of edible horticulture, agricultural practice, computing and technology. ✽

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

10 / TREES

A Treew i t h o u t

Flies?

Terry O’Regan continues his feature series on issues relating to landscape design with trees

©JAGER / 123RF

O

n a family holiday in the Algarve, Portugal in the early 1990s we took a ‘safari’ trip up into the wooded hills. I was struck by the contrast between the birdlife evident in the native oak groves as against the lack of birds in the new alien eucalyptus forests.

However, I cannot remember if flies were also missing, but I do remember the unsettling discordant noise of the eucalyptus leaves moving against each other in the warm breeze.

In recent days I specified some tree planting for a new project in compliance with a planning condition. Nothing too fancy – lime, hornbeam, oak, mountain ash, birch, etc. I spaced the trees reasonably well apart and well out from walls, kerbs and buildings. It was an almost unconscious exercise informed by experience and observation as much as by training and study; but I was conscious that if they all grew to maturity there would be too many trees. (I always caution clients that selective thinning will be required in time.) As is so often the case, I was trying to strike the difficult balance between some immediate impact and the natural imperative of living trees to grow and more than fill their allocated space. The consulting engineer for the project did ask for assurance that the tree roots would not in time damage the service roads and kerbs. I advised him that, within reason, I had made allowance for same, but I also remarked that the increasing early

“Increasing early obsolescence of buildings nowadays was such that the site would probably be recycled for a different project well before the trees reached that possible stage”

Autumn/Winter 2018 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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TREES / 10

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HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

10 / TREES its guidance in my last article. There is a reasonably good section (5.6) on new planting design which provides guidance rather than prescriptive recommendations. But there is a questionable table in Annex A of the standard, setting out the minimum distance between new planting and structures to avoid direct damage from future tree growth. This table just does not make sense for me. For example, it recommends that a tree with an ultimate trunk diameter of between 300 and 600mm may be planted 0.7m from a lightly loaded structure such as a garage. I would anticipate problems there within 10 years. I am of the view that most if not all of the distances in that table are far too close.

They do make the point in the text that roots do not try to go through structures, but rather adopt a lateral approach and grow around obstacles. But that surely is too simplistic a justification for very short minimum distances. The expanding trunk diameter and root mass heave will cause problems in time, not to mention the loss of light over the dark winter months and the leaves clogging the gutters.

I even checked the RHS site for their advice on trees near buildings and again, it left me feeling distinctly uneasy. It seems to me that those of us who believe we should plant as many trees as possible are in denial about buildings and structures, and those of us who believe we should concrete over the planet are in denial about trees and the lives they lead.

The musical ‘Oklahoma’ features a lively song urging the farmers and the cowboys to be friends. Maybe we need a new version urging the builders and the gardeners to get together to produce agreed guidelines that must then morph into the long overdue regulations.

And to do so we will not need to re-invent the wooden wheel – just download from the Leeds City Council ‘Guideline Distances from Development to Trees’ from the internet and you will see what I mean. Though I have to admit that it does not tell me how to ensure that my trees come without flies. ✽

© PAKTAOTIK2/123RF.COM

obsolescence of buildings nowadays was such that the site would probably be recycled for a different project well before the trees reached that possible stage.

A few weeks later I had a call from the same consultant about my landscape scheme. “The client wants to know will the trees give rise to flies on the site as they may pose a problem for the manufacturing process.” I had met this concern on previous sites, but the answer then was to exclude trees in the vicinity of air intake vents. I had not come across a general request for all trees to come without flies.

The constraints involved with this project highlight the demanding assessment process involved today in landscape design with trees. On the one hand there is the pressure from the planning process to have as many trees as possible and indeed there is a wide range of valid vital reasons to plant trees on project sites, be they manufacturing, service or residential. Then the design team minimises the areas available for planting. After that, you may have to exclude the water-loving trees like alder and willow. Factor in the growing lists of exclusions due to pests and diseases. And now do a risk assessment on which trees will fall and kill someone in 30 years’ time, which trees will trip up pedestrians, which trees will drop too many wet leaves giving rise to slips and falls, and which trees will cause structural damage to something at some future date. And what about the flies that just might close down a manufacturing plant?

You have professional indemnity insurance, I hope. Joking aside, this is a serious matter. If there is a future problem or incident you may be involved in litigation and compensation scenarios. So in taking our decisions do we have the backup of regulatory standards and guidelines for landscape design and construction in Ireland? The simple answer would appear to be ‘no’. For example, check out the building regulations on the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government website and you will find everything but a tree. There is a long list of technical guidance documents, but nothing on landscape design and construction. You might think there are clear consistent official guidelines out there somewhere, but I suggest that if you go looking you will end up confused, frustrated and probably angry.

Take the question of the recommended distance of new trees from buildings and structures. There would appear to be a dearth of current clear guidance in Ireland. I checked back to the excellent in its time ‘Manual of Urban Trees’ by John McCullen and Richard Webb, published by the long defunct Foras Forbartha back in 1982. It had a comprehensive chapter on designing with trees, but it does leave the final decision on distances from building and structures up to the designer. I would have to ask if that flexibility leaves the designer far too exposed in today’s nasty litigation game of ‘find the fall guy’.

I came across a department of Agriculture, Food & Forestry publication (S135 2008 - Minimum Specification for Screening Belts and Shelter Belts for Farmyards and Buildings) which recommends that to avoid “possible root damage to structures trees should be set about 20 metres or more from buildings, yards, concrete tanks, silos, etc”.

Then there is the more recent BS 5837:2012, which whilst not an Irish publication is the current default source and ‘tree bible’ for many. I mentioned my reservations about

TERRY O’REGAN, B Agr Sc Hort(Hons), FILI, MIoH, founder of Landscape Alliance Ireland, has served the landscape industry in Ireland for some 45 years and advanced the intent and aims of the European Landscape Convention for some 20 years.

He now divides his time between providing landscape consultancy services in Munster and working as a Council of Europe international landscape and heritage expert in Kosovo.

He continues to promote and refine his ‘jargon free’ landscape circle methodology and is currently leading a pilot study on its use at local and regional administrative levels in Kosovo.

The LAI website will shortly be relaunched as www.lai-ireland.com. Contact Terry at terryjoregan@ gmail.com or 021 487 1460.

Autumn/Winter 2018 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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TREES / 10

TREE NURSERIES & CLIMATE CHANGE:

THE IMPACTS

Keith Sacre, Sales Director at Barcham Trees shares his thoughts on the impact of climate change on Trees

A

and specific way. ‘The Impact of Climate Change on American Forests', 'Why Forests? Why Now, The Science, Economics and Politics of Tropical Forests and Climate Change’, and ‘Boreal Forest and Climate Change’ are just a few of the titles focusing on the impact of climate change on natural and plantation forests to hit the bookshelves in recent years.

So, what are the implications of the above, surrounded with its veil of uncertainty, for the nursery industry?

One of the most likely outcomes is the demand for a more resilient urban forest – one which can cope with the challenges of unpredictable weather and the likely increase in the spread of imported pest and disease. The UK has already been badly affected by Ash Die Back and Oak Processionary Moth; and Plane Wilt, Emerald Ash Borer and Asian Long Horned Beetle are on the horizon. Many professionals suggest that the most effective method of proofing against serious problems is by increasing tree diversity within the urban tree population.

This calls into question the resilience of current urban tree populations. At the conference referred to above, a speaker from Shanghai reported that there are over 1.2 million street trees in the city represented by 30 species, yet only two species accounted for 75% of the total. In Barcelona three species account for 79% of the tree population; in Pittsburgh USA

©LILKAR/123RF.COM

number of weeks ago, I attended the Landscape Below Ground Conference at the Morton Arboretum in Illinois, USA. The conference was a great success, including a frequentlyrepeated joke amongst the locals: ‘We are OK: we don’t have climate change’. This was obviously all ‘tongue in cheek’ referring to their current President’s denial that such a thing even exists. There is a reality to this though in that the real implications of climate change are unknown with speculative forecasts fuelling debate. However, some of the emerging certainties include: sea level rise affecting coastal zones, increased winter precipitation in north western Europe, temperature rises much larger than the global average for northern Europe and an increase in warm temperature extremes in central and eastern Europe.

Rainfall across the British Isles and Ireland is predicted to fall by between 5% and 15%. On top of this there is the unpredictability of extreme weather events, which it is suggested will increase in frequency.

The concept of climate change, together with the problems it poses for the future, are taken seriously across the world, (except for the ‘White House’ perhaps), with many international reports having been published in recent years discussing and laying out the implications in both a general

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HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

10 / TREES

1. CELTIS AUSTRALIS PROVIDING SHADE IN A VENETIAN SQUARE, 2. GLEDITISIA PHOTOGRAPHED IN USA. POOR CROWN FORM, 3. STYPHNOLOBIUM JAPONICUM PHOTOGRAPHED IN COLUMBUS OHIO

three species account for 45% of the total population; and in the London Borough of Camden six species account for 61% of the population. These figures are taken from a few of the many i-tree studies carried out both in the USA and mainland Europe.

If tree population resilience is to be achieved through species diversity, then it would seem that none of the populations referred to above are going to be resilient into the future.

It is likely then that the nursery industry is going to be asked to produce a wider range of species, some of which it is going to be unfamiliar with. Already in the UK there is increased demand for Celtis australis and C. orientalis, Styphnolobium japonicum, Ostrya capinifolia, Koelruetaria paniculata and Carrya illinoiensis to name but a few. The production of these species is presenting challenges to a nursery industry unused to propagating them, where this is possible, and growing them to a standard in which they will survive in the urban environments of the future.

Then there is the question of provenance. At this moment in time most tree nurseries would be unable to state with any confidence where the selection of a species they produce originated from. The natural range of a species can vary enormously. For example, the natural range of Liriodendron tulipifera extends from New England to Florida in the Eastern USA. Climatic conditions between the northerly and southerly extremes of the range are obvious, and this has implications, with regard to the genotype being offered by the nursery and the ability of that genotype to thrive as the predicted impacts of climate change begin to emerge into reality. So, the identification of provenance is likely to become increasingly important as the environmental conditions of the city are matched with the natural environment in which trees grow.

The question of imported pest and disease has already been mentioned but the demand for an increasing number of species to be available from the nursery can actually fuel the demand for imported tree stock. This is particularly true where a species cannot be propagated or produced economically by a home nursery – with the only way of supplying the tree in question through importing it. Inevitably this increases the risk associated with imported pest and disease.

The demand for high quality tree stock is also likely to increase. I have recently been lucky enough to travel in the UK, and to Canada, USA, Australia, Holland and Russia. There would appear to be a general consensus that the quality of tree stock offered in general by the nursery industry is not good enough. I cannot verify this, but I have seen some real horrors, not only supplied by the nursery industry but also planted out into the landscape by unquestioning contractors.

One of the likely impacts of climate change is that our cities will become warmer, and the provision of shade and

cooling will become increasingly important. It is already apparent that many municipalities are looking at trees to mitigate some of the more extreme effects. Many cities are now beginning to set targets for increased tree canopy cover and have set ambitious tree planting programmes in place.

If this trend continues, and the evidence suggests that it will, then the demand for trees from the nursery industry is likely to increase proportionately. However, these trees will have to be fit for purpose if continued investment is to be made in tree planting. Investment is fuelled by success, and rows of dead trees through poor quality tree stock from the nursery, poor planting and poor maintenance is unlikely to stimulate repeated investment.

Has the nursery industry the skills it needs to capitalise on what would appear to be a golden opportunity? Again, the indications are not good. It would appear to be increasingly difficult to attract young people to work on the land, and many of the old craft skills associated with high class nursery practice appear to be slowly disappearing. In the UK many of the growers currently producing trees are the same folk who were in place 20 or so years ago.

I think it safe to say that climate change is real. Some of the realities of that change have been outlined above together with some of the implications of those changes for the nursery industry. These are only the immediate implications of climate change, and there are many more which need detailed discussion.

However, the one thing I am certain of is that the tree nursery has an important role to play in the development and resilience of the urban forest in face of climate change. It has the opportunity to become central to the debate rather than remain peripheral. It will be interesting to see how many are capable of rising to the challenge. ✽

KEITH SACRE is Sales Director with Barcham Trees, the largest container tree nursery in Europe.

Keith is also a member of the Institute of Chartered Foresters and a Chartered Arboriculturist. He has a MSc in Arboriculture and Urban Forestry, a BSc in Social Science and a BSc in Arboriculture. Keith is currently a trustee of the Arboricultural Association and the Trees and Design Action Group (TDAG).

Autumn/Winter 2018 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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RESEARCH / 11

FULL COLOUR In a continuing series of articles on the agronomy and screening work on innovative novel plant material for use in the floristry trade, Andy Whelton, specialist in ornamental cut foliage crops at the Teagasc Horticultural Development Unit, describes what’s emerging for autumn use from the Kildalton trial plots

A PHOTOS BY ANDY WHELTON 5. THE HEAVILY DEMANDED TWIGS OF WILD MYRICA GALE (BOG MYRTLE) ON WHICH TEAGASC ARE CONDUCTING TRIALS TO EVALUATE THE FEASIBILITY OF CULTIVATION ON A FIELD SCALE.

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lbert Camus once said, “Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower” and certainly the cut foliage trial plot in Kildalton is a blaze of color this time of year and a mecca for anyone in the floristry business looking for something different to whet the appetite of a discerning market. Innovation is critical to success amongst key players in the business such as supermarkets and high street florists, particularly given the regular changes in colour trends and designs in product development. Florists in particular are now looking to differentiate their offer from supermarkets and are paying premium prices to growers who are investing in innovative new species. Growers who invest in developing a strong brand in the marketplace, backed up with quality and reliability, will win as the market shifts from physical wholesalers to internet based platforms.

Florists are now sourcing material more and more via on-line platforms such as Instagram, which is opening up new opportunities for growers to connect directly with customers. One such technology company, Florismart, has developed internet platforms which allow growers to present their products directly to florists in an open marketplace and they supply a marketing and distribution service to link the grower with the florist.

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

11 / RESEARCH However you source your product and whether it’s a seasonal bouquet, a floral gift for a special occasion or something that provides the wow factor at weddings or other events, novel foliages can often play a key role in providing something different to buyers and customers. Late summer/ autumn coloured foliages and berries are ideal for filling that niche market gap at this time of the year by providing a major focal point in a floral product. The range of plant material in Kildalton was viewed recently at a field event hosted by Teagasc. The large gathering by the industry, which included representatives from the florist trade and growers, generated some lively discussion on the day and interesting views about some species on display.

1.

HYPERICUM, SNOWBERRY AND ROSE HIPS – NOT JUST PRETTY FLOWERS Hypericum is a common garden plant that provides a spectacular show of yellow flowers in midsummer followed by an even bigger show of berries in late summer/autumn.

Specially bred cultivars which give longer stem length for the cut flower trade provide a range of colours with versatility and use in several floral products. Recent trial work in Kildalton focused on evaluating a range of cultivars with different coloured berries (see table below). Red is still the most popular colour in the trade and this view was echoed by the visitors to Kildalton in August.

Extending the period of availability is also a key objective of the trials work in the college, and by side shooting stems in early June and cutting back the species at monthly intervals from April through to June continuity of supply can be provided from mid-July to late October. This makes the species useful to both the volume supermarket bouquet business and also the floristry trade well into the autumn. Most of the Dutch breeders’ Kolster Bros ‘Magical’ series of cultivars being trialled are rust-free, but well-timed pesticide applications for control of botrytis, aphid and tortrix caterpillar are required to deliver high quality stems in our mild Irish climate.

1. A TRIAL PLOT OF HYPERICUM WHERE PRUNING REGIMES HAVE HELPED EXTEND THE PERIOD OF AVAILABILITY FROM JULY THROUGH TO THE END OF OCTOBER.

RANGE OF HYPERICUM CULTIVARS IN KILDALTON

CULTIVAR

BERRY COLOUR

‘Magical Pumpkin’

Pink

‘Magical Greenfall’

Green

‘Magical Ivory’

Ivory

‘Magical Tropical Fall’

Red

2. ROSA ‘MAGICAL PEARLS’ – ONE OF THE NEW ROSE HIP CULTIVARS WITH MULTIPLE USES IN THE FLORIST TRADE.

3. A NEW ‘WEIGELA’ CULTIVAR ON TRIAL IN KILDALTON WITH VIBRANT AUTUMN COLOUR AND DISTINCTIVE LEAF SHAPE AND TEXTURE.

4. SEDUM ‘MATRONA’ – SPECIALLY BRED FOR AUTUMN FOLIAGE AND FLOWER AND AN IDEAL FILLER FOR THE BOUQUET MARKET.

Autumn/Winter 2018 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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RESEARCH / 12

"Florismart has developed internet platforms which allow growers to present their products directly to florists in an open marketplace" Cultivar evaluation and techniques to extend the availability of supply is also the aim of the work on snowberry or Symphoricarpos, which is a common hedgerow plant familiar to many in the early autumn, noted for its white flowers followed by pearly white berries which are its abiding feature.

Cultivars from the Kolster stable with both white and pink berries have featured in the screening work in Kildalton and of the five evaluated, Symphoricarpos ‘Magical Melody’ which is white and the pink berried ‘Charming Fantasy’ came out tops in terms of stem yield and having well furnished stems with an abundance of berries. Available as a ‘new’ mono bunched product in some supermarket shelves for the first time this autumn, it’s an example of the innovation taking place in the fast moving floristry trade. As with Hypericum, the availability period can be extended through well-timed pruning management. Maintaining the quality and shelf life of berried products after harvest can be challenging and therefore trials on using post-harvest treatments are currently the focus of further work at the college to determine the best practice.

Looking to later in the autumn and the early winter period in the run up to Christmas, rose hips were amongst the most popular species judging by the reaction of the gathering in Kildalton. From a showy display of bright pink colour in midsummer emerges a bounty of autumn hips ranging from tiny light reds to bold dark rouges and oranges. Several cultivars are on trial. A trailing type ‘Magical Pearls’ has use in the wedding and event market while some of the shrub types with red to orange hips are best suited to the growing mixed bouquet trade. The species cannot be used until the leaves have fallen from the stems which usually occurs following the first frosts. Given the uncertainty as to when this occurs, harvest can be delayed so a trial looking at ways of defoliating the rose hips gets underway shortly to find a more accurate harvest date and extend the period of availability.

VIBRANT PURPLES OF SEDUM, WEIGELA AND VIBURNUM The common herbaceous plant Sedum is also used as filler in the trade and is the subject of a variety trial in the college plot with stem yield data and quality being evaluated. Cultivars bred for stem length make super flower type fillers in the bouquet trade and while there are interesting new cultivars available showing promise, older cultivars such as ‘Spectabile Brilliant’ and 'Herbstfreude' while shorter stemmed are holding their own and offer a stunning display in centre piece product arrangements.

Some purple toned cultivars of Weigela with good stem length and leaf shape are creating excitement and versatility in the autumn range of floral offerings.

Weigela ‘Shining Fantasy’ is a new high yielding cultivar from Kolster Bros and is at its peak for approximately four

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to five weeks from mid-September to late October. Whilst some deciduous Viburnums have outstanding autumn leaf colour, unfortunately they do not provide the minimum 10 days shelf life guarantee when cut which is necessary for the market. However, Viburnum opulus displays a fine show of red berries and can stand for at least two weeks which makes it a relevant player.

TAMING SOME OF OUR WILD SPECIES Myrica gale (bog myrtle) is a native wild bog plant species that is widespread across much of the bogland in the midlands and west. A deciduous species, it is important for its distinctive tiny bronze coloured catkins which form on the twigs during the growing season and appear in a blaze of autumn colour once the leaves have dropped, usually in November. Sought after by the trade in vast quantities, it is extremely versatile and can be used fresh or painted, glittered or snowed and is widely used in many flower products particularly in the winter period and also all year round as it can be dried and stored for long periods. Trials on this plant species are aimed at capturing it from its wild habitat, developing a suitable propagation method and bringing it into cultivation on a field scale where quality and yield are being evaluated through tailored pruning regimes and other agronomy practices.

SALIX (WILLOW) is another native species that thrives in our mild, damp climate and tolerates a wide range of soil types. While the common native Salix (often referred to as ‘Sallys’) is considered by many as a weed scourge, cultivars have been bred as ornamental garden plants with a number of others cultivated for biomass. A trial on five different coloured cultivars that have been bred specifically for the cut flower trade are being assessed in Kildalton to evaluate their suitability and ultimate place in the expanding cut foliage industry.

For information on any of the species discussed in this article or on the trials work at Kildalton, contact Andy Whelton at andy.whelton@teagasc.ie or check the Teagasc horticulture website at www.teagasc.ie/crops/horticulture/cutfoliage. ✽

Andy Whelton M Sc Ag Sc is a horticultural development officer in the Teagasc Horticultural Development Department based in Teagasc Clonakilty College and is specialist adviser on ornamental cut foliage. He has spearheaded the developments in cut foliage as a new sector in commercial horticulture. He also works closely with outdoor vegetable and protected crop businesses in Munster and south Leinster. You can contact Andy via andy.whelton@teagasc.ie.

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

13 / EDIBLES

MORE THAN A BIT ON THE SIDE

I

rish people are famed for their reputed love of spuds, so one would think that getting Irish people to eat potatoes is a relatively easy task. But, Ireland is a much changed place in the past few decades. In particular the situation where potatoes, which were the only main meal carbohydrate available back then, are now viewed as just another carb option on the plate. Irish people tell us they still love their spuds and they continue to be Ireland’s most popular vegetable and household purchasing penetration reflects this, in that 99% of Irish homes buy potatoes. The real trend is that potatoes have not been eaten as often with Irish households not purchasing them as frequently. In 2012 the retail sales of potatoes in Ireland recorded their lowest volume according to Kantar World Panel research. This has had obvious consequences for Irish potato growers and packers.

The challenge potatoes have had to face up to, has been fitting them in seamlessly in busy modern lifestyles with increasingly fractured meal occasions. The reduced frequency of formal family dining/meal occasions in homes is a trend running counter current to their traditional preparation and use. In Ireland, traditionally we boil, bake, roast and chip potatoes, so the big challenge has been to flag their natural health benefits, while showing people how to use them as a low fat food ingredient in a myriad of convenient international recipe dishes. Bord Bia research over the years has established that people have large gaps in their knowledge around potatoes, whether it’s their positive nutritional value or their simple most basic preparation or their knowledge of their versatility of use in international recipe dishes. An ‘anti-carb’ movement and various dieting fad’ left potatoes health credentials undefended, in the past decades, which needed to be corrected.

Such was this challenge that in 2014, the Irish and British potato industries got together to seek funding towards a promotional campaign for potatoes from the EU. The campaign was called 'Potatoes: More Than a Bit on the Side’ as this was where Bord Bia wanted to position potatoes in the publics minds. They deserved to be given a centre plate focus and attention.

The joint campaign saw the launch of the cool looking potato character Bud the Spud (as the voice of potatoes) and the launch of a dedicated international recipe website www.potato.ie. Across the three years of the EU funded campaign this website has become the bank for 142 healthy and international potato recipes and 32 How to cook videos.

We know when people visit this website, they are thrilled with the new recipes they find there. In the campaign monitoring survey polls, 60-65% of respondents who had recently visited www.potato.ie said they would likely do so again with 65% of people saying they would try a new recipe for potatoes from it.

Lorcan Bourke of Bord Bia shares some positive results from a recent marketing campaign aimed at repositioning the traditional spud for modern consumers

Autumn/Winter 2018 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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EDIBLES / 13 The campaign was fully integrated focusing on out of home poster ads (via rail and bus ” . lucky You just got transport), press advertising, digital advertising, PR events/coverage and a huge focus on social media channels (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram). All focus of the campaign was to change attitudes of our target For lots of healthy meal ideas: POTATOES audience (22-44 MORE THAN potato.ie A BIT ON THE SIDE year old females) to potatoes, assuring them of their fat-free and gluten-free status, while directing them to www.potato.ie to find exciting and tasty recipes. All the campaign evaluations to date have

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12/09/2018 15:03

“In 2012 the retail sales of potatoes in Ireland recorded their lowest” been very positive with the key measure of the retail sale of potatoes showing year on year volume increases over the course of the campaign and now standing at 210,000 tons.

Campaign ambassador’s dietician Aoife Hearne and chef/restaurant owner Pádraic Óg Gallagher were appointed LORCAN BOURKE potato ambassadors to give reof Bord Bia. For assurances on the healthy status more details visit and versatile/tasty virtues of www.bordbia.ie potatoes. Whilst to amplify the impact of the broader campaign, Bord Bia ran supplementary potato promotions around St. Patricks Day, Bloom, the launch of the new season Queens and National Potato Day each year. ✽

NATIONAL POTATO DAY

2018

Bord Bia’s annual National Potato Day was held on Friday 5 October. The celebration honours Ireland’s most loved crop and encourages consumers to recognise its nutritional value while experimenting with new and exciting recipes from our dedicated potato recipe website www.potato.ie.

This year Bord Bia asked people to imagine a world without potatoes, tying in with a global campaign theme (originated by and tying in with the International LEFT TO RIGHT; AOIFE HEARNE, PADRAIG ÓG GALLAGHER, LORCAN BOURKE, BORD BIA AND Potato Centre in Peru), which NORA SHEEHAN, IFA (CORK) highlights the importance and value of the world’s third most important food crop to the human diet (after rice and wheat). On the day, a range of events, talks and promotional activity took place around the country to celebrate Ireland’s most popular vegetable. Two short slots on Virgin 3 TV were secured featuring dietitian Aoife Hearne and chef Pádraic Óg Gallagher. The events supported by Bord Bia included the Teagasc/ Carlow Chamber of Commerce’s first ever ‘Carlow Rooster Festival’ held in Oak Park Carlow, ‘Féile an Phráta’ at the Dingle Food Festival, and Keogh’s/Country Crest ‘Spud Fest’ in Newbridge House, Co Dublin, while the IFA potato growers hosted local/regional events for schools. Also, the Irish Independent carried a special 12 page potato supplement, while promotional activity included TV, print and online promotional activity. Bord Bia bought a four page advertorial in Easy Food magazine while also running a children’s colouring competition with Agri Aware via Incredible Edible linkage to national schools. ✽

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HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

13 / EDIBLES

THE ROBOTS

AGROBOT ROBOT HARVESTING STRAWBERRIES FROM TABLETOPS

Dr Eamonn Kehoe, Teagasc soft fruit specialist, gives an update on the most recent developments in the area of robotics developments in the European soft fruit industry

T

he recent recession impacted on every part of our economy and the landscape sector had no immunity card to play. Despite hopeful discussions and predictions that many Irish people had built up big reserves in savings and that they would spend a lot of this on renovating their houses and more importantly would splurge huge amounts on their gardens (in lieu of going on that second and third holiday and being less vulgar than upgrading to the new car). It never happened.

Contraction in the economy was mirrored in the contraction of size of landscape companies. Ironically, the number of landscape contractors (individuals or companies offering ‘landscape’ services’) increased, tax compliant or otherwise, incrementally in ratio to the continuation of the recession.

LABOUR CRISIS HISTORY When I started working for Teagasc in Wexford back in the autumn of 2000, I walked straight into a labour crisis. There

“This machine alone has led to a 60% reduction in the picking staff” was a big shortage of labour in the soft fruit industry. In Wexford alone, there was a severe shortage of strawberry pickers. These were mostly needed to work for those who were growing strawberries for the processing industry (e.g. Chivers).

A scheme had been developed to allow Polish students to come to Wexford to work for local strawberry growers.

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EDIBLES / 13 The scheme worked very well. When this scheme ended, growers started to apply for non-EU workers through a government work permit scheme. Shortly after this, Poland and Romania joined the EU and therefore growers generally didn't need to apply for work permits anymore. There was a good supply of foreign labour willing to work on fruit farms.

THE LABOUR CRISIS RETURNS Today the labour crisis has returned with a vengeance. We are back to a similar situation as seen in 2000. There is now a serious shortage of labour and growers once again have to apply for work permits from non-EU accession states. So we have come full circle with regard to labour supply. The process of finding good foreign workers and applying for work permits is tedious and expensive.

As Winston Churchill once said, "Never let a good crisis go to waste". This saying is so true. Crises like these force people to innovate much more quickly. Never underestimate people's ability to face up to challenges when they have no choice.

The alternative is having no staff to pick the fruit. While there has always been a drive towards greater productivity and efficiency on fruit farms, there have been no major advances in ways to increase the efficiency of strawberry picking.

SMART TECHNOLOGY FOR STRAWBERRY PICKING? For years I have been told that strawberries would always have to picked by hand. A machine to do so would never be developed. Never say the word ‘never' because currently there are a number of strawberry picking robots in development in Europe and the United States.

A number of robotic harvesters are currently being developed by the Spanish company Agrobot, based in Huelva in the southwest of Spain. Huelva is the largest strawberry production area in Europe, and many Irish growers have visited the area over the years.

One of the machines was originally developed for harvesting field strawberries grown in raised beds. This machine alone has led to a 60% reduction in the picking staff. What previously took 10 people to pick one acre of strawberries now takes no more than four. Two people stay working in the strawberry field and two remain sitting on the machine packing the strawberries that have come up the harvesting belt.

The biggest cost for the strawberry grower is that of labour, a cost which always keeps increasing. With the use of the Agrobot robot, the labour cost is drastically reduced. Another more recent robot from Agrobot is specifically designed for tabletop strawberry production. The labour requirement is cut by up to 80 per cent with this robot. The robot has been trialled successfully with a number of commercial growers in Belgium and the Netherlands.

The robot also has a very adaptable configuration. The platform can fit into almost any tabletop layout. The machine uses 24 robotic arms which work together tirelessly as a team. Imagine the benefits of this. Not alone are labour costs drastically reduced but there will be no staff bickering in the fields and nobody dodging work.

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HOW ARE THE STRAWBERRIES HARVESTED? The robot has a sophisticated harvesting system. It uses a number of short-range integrated 3D colour and infrared depth sensors. These sensors are used by an artificial intelligence (AI) system to determine the stage of fruit ripeness. When the system determines a strawberry is ripe, a robotic arm reaches out to the individual fruit. The strawberry can be harvested with the stem attached, with the stem removed, or with both the calyx and stem removed.

The robotic harvester does not touch the fruit. The robotic arms grip and cut the strawberry stem and then place the strawberry into a strawberry punnet.

MORE ADVANTAGES FROM ROBOTIC HARVESTING There is another huge benefit apart from the huge savings in labour costs. The robot can work any time of the day or night. It can keep working and doesn't need to take tea or lunch breaks or any other type of breaks. It won't need to take holidays and won't cause staff disputes.

The advantages of robotically harvesting fruit at night are equally immense. Strawberries are harvested at much cooler temperatures compared to those during the daytime. This greatly reduces the risk of damaging the strawberries and will greatly increase the shelf life.

OTHER ROBOTS? Another company which is currently developing a strawberry picking robot is the Belgian company Octinion.

This robot is also designed for harvesting strawberries grown on tabletops. The robot is a prototype and is also fully autonomous. It also uses a 3D vision system to detect the stage of strawberry ripeness. In this case, however, the robot touches the strawberry. It uses a soft touch gripper to harvest the strawberry. The robot currently has the capacity to pick one strawberry every three seconds.

Again many of the advantages seen already with the Agrobot robot come into play, the number one being a huge reduction in labour costs. As time moves forward all of these robots will be modified and improved. Of course, there will be bumps in the road using any new technology on the farm, but this won’t be enough to stop technological change. ✽

EAMONN KEHOE is a soft fruit specialist based at Johnstown Castle, Co Wexford and whose research is conducted at Ashtown Research Centre, Co Dublin. His primary focus is on providing a technical and business advisory service to Ireland's soft fruit growers and conducting an applied research programme for the industry. He can be contacted at eamonn.kehoe@teagasc.ie

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

14 / EDUCATION

ASHTOWN INVESTMENT

P U T TO T H E T E S T John Mulhern explains how students and staff had to take extreme action to save the significant landscape investment made at Ashtown

O

ver the last 18 months the landscape of Ashtown campus has been transformed with the planting of over 170 trees, complemented by drifts of perennials, shrubs, grasses and seasonal bulbs. Students from level 5 to level 7 were at the forefront of this great work, where they got to combine the knowledge learned in the classroom with practical skills training.

Their hard work was tested when Mother Nature decided to show us who’s in control by providing one of the worst spring seasons on record, coupled with a summer of prolonged drought. These conditions are anything but favourable to young vulnerable plants trying to establish.

Watering was carried out only when required and kept to a minimum. The effects from these adverse conditions were minimised by ensuring that best planting practices were implemented. While planting the larger trees throughout Ashtown, perforated pipe was placed under and around the

rootball of each tree with an inlet located just above ground level. This allowed for water to make direct contact with the rootball in a more efficient and effective manner, providing deep watering over the entire root system as opposed to surface watering. As the soil moisture levels were extremely low, surface watering would have resulted in runoff, with water penetration being minimal and insignificant to the trees. Drip irrigation systems were installed on the smaller trees to ensure water was applied efficiently when required. A thick layer of mulch was also placed around the trees to retain moisture by reducing evaporation.

Having implemented and demonstrated these best practices to our students, 170 trees are now displaying amazing autumn colour.

Reseeding of new lawn areas took place in early summer and as Sod’s law would have it, the drought followed. There was no major inconvenience as the seed just lay there until the conditions were favourable and eventually when the rain did fall, the seed germinated and lawns appeared. Over 10,000 Nepeta racemosa 'Walker's Low' and Molinia ‘Edith Dudszus’ were planted by students along the main avenue of the campus which was an enormous task. A thick layer of bark mulch was applied over the entire planted area in early spring to a depth of approximately 15cm which undoubtedly saved the plants as they were not watered throughout the prolonged dry period or indeed at any stage since planting. Nepeta is a very forgiving plant in an array of conditions so our choice of planting worked well in terms of coping with what was thrown at it. By carrying out

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EDUCATION / 14 fundamental maintenance tasks such as mulching we provided the plants with the best chance of establishing which is paramount for any young plants. It also permitted us to be prudent with our time management, ensuring our time was not spent weeding or watering during a very demanding and busy period.

MANAGING THE TEAGASC TURFGRASS TRAINING ACADEMY IN STRESSFUL CLIMATIC CONDITIONS The extremes of the various weather features experienced in 2018 presented many challenges in the management of our recently constructed turfgrass academy in Teagasc Ashtown. Firstly we had the wet and very cold weather which dominated the first three months of this year, culminating in the heavy snows of February and March. This resulted in a very late start to the grass growing season, causing us to revise both our nutritional programme and our cultural management practices.

But nothing could prepare us for the high temperatures and drought experienced from the end of May until early August. The problem was compounded by the overall shortage of water on the campus and because our new automatic irrigation system was not installed until the end of June. By that time we had a lot of very brown grass in the turf academy, but thankfully the fine fescue grasses which dominate the three golf greens showed their great tolerance of drought and remained fairly green throughout. In keeping with our approach to the sustainable management of the facility, our activity in recent weeks has been geared to

JOHN MULHERN has worked with Teagasc for more than 17 years, primarily in an educational capacity. He is the current principal of the College of Amenity Horticulture, National Botanic Gardens, Dublin.

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setting down a good foundation for the winter and next year. Our nutritional programme is based on liquid fertilisers and biostimulants with potassium, magnesium, iron, manganese and small amounts of nitrogen being applied on a regular basis. In recent days, greens have been hollow cored and top-dressed with sand and we have begun to mow less frequently and less intensively. It is good to see both staff and students on the Ashtown campus using this new facility. Two very important industry events were held on the turf academy in the autumn.

ICL / Syngenta hosted a Turf Science Lite event in September, and in early October Reel Tech Ltd launched their new range of Baroness Turf equipment.

TRAINING The new term has started very positively here in the College of Horticulture with numbers up in all courses both full and part time. Our part time courses complement the full time courses across the certificate and advanced certificate level with both groups mixing seamlessly. We continue to work on the forthcoming apprenticeship programme with our stakeholder groups in applied horticulture and sportsturf. It is the intention of Teagasc to be able to launch these two apprenticeships with the relevant sectors in autumn 2019.

This training model in apprenticeship will greatly enhance the flow of well qualified people into the industry which is eagerly awaited. Recently the college has run successful industry training days for stakeholders from the turfgrass sector and the amenity landscape sector in both Teagasc Ashtown and the Teagasc education centre in the National Botanic Gardens.

We have also held two tailored training days with staff from Peter O’Brien and Sons Landscaping LTD. The days are part of an ongoing initiative between us to assist contractors with building plant knowledge. The college embraces this training also as a pathway of engagement with current practitioners in the industry and our own staff.

Any further queries on full time, part time or industry short course based training in Horticulture should be directed to John.Mulhern @teagasc.ie or the college office at 01 804 0201. ✽

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Autumn/Winter 2018

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