Horticulture Connected Summer 2020 Volume 7 issue 2

HORTICULTURE CONNECTED

SUMMER 2020

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

LIVING AND WORKING THROUGH A PANDEMIC HOW HORTICULTURE HAS RESPONDED TO COVID-19 THE CLIMATE CHANGE SOLUTION UNDERFOOT THE ROLE HORTICULTURE CAN PLAY TO LOCK IN CARBON SUPPORTING HORTICULTURE CAROL MARKS ON BORD BIA’S COVID-19 RESPONSE A BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO REWILDING FEIDHLIM HARTY TALKS ON ‘REWILDING’

Volume 7 Issue 2

Oak Processionary Moth We are asking the public and horticulture industry to remain vigilant after the first sighting of the oak processionary moth (OPM) tree pest in Ireland.

OPM was first identified in June 2020 after it was spotted on an oak tree by a member of the public in Dublin’s Dargle Park.

Swift action was taken to eradicate the pest traced to a recent import of oak trees from Belgium, including the removal and destruction of the single nest found on the solitary tree, as well as all associated trees linked to the imported consignment. Oak trees and plants are a host for this pest and it is unlikely to be found on any other tree than oak.

Suspected sightings should be notified immediately to us by emailing plantandpests@agriculture.gov.ie or by calling (01) 5058885.

You can also use our All Ireland TreeCheck app or visit www.treecheck.net to check and report suspect findings.

agriculture.gov.ie

01 / EDITORIAL

A BRAVE “NEW NORMAL”

I

t’s like we’ve been inserted into a time machine and

not the problem, your attitude to the problem is the problem.

someone hit the fast forward button. We already lived

While I lean toward the cynical, I consciously choose to

in a technologically advanced age, but the recent

view the future as positive. For me, we are entering the

COVID-19 crisis has definitely accelerated the process.

age of horticulture, or perhaps more correctly, the age of

Desktops, laptops, tablets and smartphones; social

natural capital. An age defined by an understanding and

media, video, Zoom, Skype and Microsoft Teams; the digital

appreciation of the interconnectedness and importance of

age is here and now.

all living things. The scattered jigsaw of ecology, biology, horticulture, geography, environmental science, conservation

Horticulture businesses that were quick to pivot and adapt to the online landscape have benefitted, either through

and botany is coming together with a growing appreciation

online sales growth or by clinging on to pre-pandemic orders

for the physical, psychological and aesthetic benefits of

by managing projects and clients via video conference calls.

green space: a new picture is forming and we are at the centre. The future is bright if you choose to believe so.

Of course, everyone misses the human interaction of face-

Read on to discover Andy Campbell and Rory O’Connor’s

to-face client contact, but even technophobes concede - you gotta eat. If that means learning some keyboard skills then

garden retail articles on how to help your business survive,

even they’re ready to ‘byte’ the bullet.

even thrive, through the pandemic and beyond.

In this issue, we hear from members of various horticulture

Personally and professionally, we all have our own COVID story to tell of surviving, or indeed, thriving during this global

sectors who share their personal and professional lessons

pandemic. Most designers and contractors have their order

from lockdown. Bord Bia, Teagasc and DAFM outline how

books filled to the brim for the season. Garden retailers are

they’ve been supporting horticulture during these changing

making up lost ground rapidly and suppliers are reporting that

and challenging times.

Also … read how Brexit will affect your CITES-listed plant

lost sales in the B2B market are being supplanted by gains in the B2C sector. In general, the horticulture sector is showing

imports and exports and how growers, landscapers and

itself to be diligent in putting the safety of both customers

gardeners can all help with a different kind of lockdown - this

and staff first, by adhering to the government’s COVID

time of Carbon ... plus much more.

We all face an uncertain future, with small businesses like

guidelines to reduce the risks of transmission.

our own heavily reliant on your continued financial support.

This will be important for the sector to document, highlight

That is why we want to take this opportunity to say THANK-

and present if any future lockdown closures become a reality.

YOU to each and every advertiser for enabling Horticulture

If you choose to believe the future is dire, you are most

Connected to carry on providing a voice for the industry.

certainly right. If you believe the future is bright and full

Sincere thanks to everyone who contributed to this issue.

of potential, you are also most certainly right. The future

Your valuable insights are very much appreciated.

is largely shaped by factors beyond our control, but it is

HC TEAM ✽

defined by perspective. As the saying goes; the problem is

HORTICULTURE CONNECTED

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

HorticultureConnected.ie for daily news updates

HORTICULTURE CONNECTED

SUMMER 2020

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

LIVING AND WORKING THROUGH A PANDEMIC HOW HORTICULTURE HAS RESPONDED TO COVID-19 THE CLIMATE CHANGE SOLUTION UNDERFOOT THE ROLE HORTICULTURE CAN PLAY TO LOCK IN CARBON SUPPORTING HORTICULTURE CAROL MARKS ON BORD BIA’S COVID-19 RESPONSE A BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO REWILDING FEIDHLIM HARTY TALKS ON ‘REWILDING’

Volume 7 Issue 2

Fumbally Exchange Argus House, Blackpitts, Dublin 8, Ireland +353 (087)921 2044

HORTICULTURE CONNECTED

AUTUMN/WINTER 2019

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

HORTICULTURE CONNECTED

Summer 2019

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

MAKING THE PHOENIX BLOOM BARRY LUPTON INTERVIEWS GARY GRAHAM

WHY ARE YOU IN BUSINESS?

TERRY O’REGAN REACHES RETIREMENT AND ASKS THAT VITAL QUESTION?

THE THERAPEUTIC USE OF HORTICULTURE IN IRELAND RACHEL FREEMAN REVIEWS THE INAUGURAL SYMPOSIUM ON SOCIAL AND THERAPEUTIC HORTICULTURE

CHANGING THE RETAIL CLIMATE LIAM KELLY EXPLORES A GREENER SHOP FLOOR

WE’RE WINNING THE RACE TO THE BOTTOM COLM KENNY THROWS A SPOTLIGHT ON PROCUREMENT ISSUES

MEADOW MYTHBUSTER

SANDRO CAFOLLA TACKLES MYTHS AROUND MEADOW CREATION AND MAINTENANCE

MITTELSTAND LESSONS FROM GERMANY

DÓNALL FLANAGAN SHARES INSIGHTS FROM GERMAN NURSERIES STUDY TOUR

HORTICULTURE CONNECTED

HORTICULTURE CONNECTED Spring 2019

Due to the current Covid 19 Public Health Emergency, we are giving free access to the Digital version of the magazine. it at www.horticultureconnected.ie/horticulture-connected-magazine News, AnalysisAccess and Trends News, analysis and trends in landscape, garden retail & edible horticulture

AVOIDING THE PITFALLS

COLM KENNY DIGS DEEP ON URBAN TREES

GARDENING ON A THE EDGE

PATRICIA TYRELL REVIEWS THE RECENT GLDA SEMINAR

ALCI AWARDS 2019

In Landscape, Garden Retail & Edible Horticulture IRELAND'S LEADING CONTRACTORS ANNOUNCED

Volume 6 Issue 3

Volume 6 Issue 2

Volume 6 Issue 1

Editor: Heather Campbell editor@horticulture.ie Consulting Editor: Barry Lupton consultingeditor@horticulture.ie Creative Director: Tanya Gilsenan tanya@horticulture.ie Editorial Layout - Compton Sheldon Sales & Subscriptions: sales@horticulture.ie Cover Photo: Vincent McMonagle Printers: Azure Communations

Print Run: 3,000 copies Distribution: Readership of 10,000 across Ireland to businesses and professionals in the following sectors: Landscape Architects / Garden Retail / Florists / Nurseries / Greenkeepers / Sports Surfaces / Local Authorities & Parks Departments / Machinery / Education / Edible Horticulture Publishers: Horticulture Connected Ltd www.HorticultureConnected.ie

Summer 2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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CONTENTS

CONTENTS NEWS 03

Horticulture News

P25

OPINION

BORD BIA

RETAIL

25 KNOWING IS UNDERSTANDING Andy Campbell highlights the importance of fully understanding all the participants in the supply chain during these unprecedented times

08 All the latest news from Bord Bia

EVENTS 11

Horticulture trade events

TEAGASC 12

All the latest news from Teagasc

29 5 STEPS TO GROW YOUR BUSINESS ONLINE Rory O’Connor explains how going digital can help your garden retail business thrive, despite the pandemic

COVID-19

15 CORONATIME AND ECOLOGICAL RECOVERY Writing during the lockdown, Feidhlim Harty asks, has the pandemic been all bad for the planet or society?

16 SUPPORTING HORTICULTURE Carol Marks, Sector Manager Horticulture, outlines Bord Bia’s COVID-19 response

18 WELCOME TO THE UPSIDE DOWN John Paul Prior shares his reflections on life during the lockdown

DEPARTMENT O AGRICULTURE, FOOD AND THE MARINE 20

All the latest news from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM)

JOBS 26

Latest Horticulture jobs from Horticulture.jobs

INSIGHT

31 CITES AND BREXIT Noelene Smyth describes how Brexit will impact the import and export of rare plants between the UK and Ireland

RESEARCH

41 TAKING STOCK Andy Whelton outlines the main actions in the production of the popular scented cut flower, Stock, following recent trial work

44 EURO-TRIAL REPORT: HIBISCUS Paul Fitters reports on the results of a three-year Euro-trial that compared 56 Hibiscus syriacus cultivars for general performance

48 SHOTHOLE STUDY MAKES NEW DISCOVERIES Helen Grogan shares Teagasc/UCD research findings into one of the most visible Cherry Laurel diseases

P31

35 THE CLIMATE CHANGE SOLUTION UNDERFOOT Dr Brian Murphy discusses how gardeners, landscapers and growers all have a part to play in locking up carbon

P15

DESIGN

22 DESIGN LESSONS FROM A PANDEMIC Patricia Tyrell speaks to fellow GLDA members on their thoughts during the lockdown and on the future of horticulture post-COVID 19

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38 A BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO REWILDING Feidhlim Harty explains how ‘rewilding’ can produce landscapes with an abundance of plant and wildlife with opportunities for people to thrive socially and economically

07 THE ART OF DIGGING HOLES Retired landscape horticulturist, Terry O’Regan continues his series of articles reflecting on his adventures in the landscape sector

LANDSCAPE

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2020

P44

02 / NEWS OFFSET YOUR CARBON FOOTPRINT USING ENRICH COMPOST Composting is the circular economy in action. Organic materials are recovered at source from parks and gardens.

Without this segregation, these organic materials may go to landfill where they would produce greenhouse gases (GHGs) such as methane. As a GHG, methane is 28 times more potent than carbon dioxide. Enrich compost is a sustainable soil improver, it offsets the use of finite artificial fertilisers and peat. So, the act of composting is, in itself, reducing the release of GHGs. During the composting process bacteria and fungi in the compost pile transform the organic matter into complex stable organic matter, often referred to as humus. Biologically stable compost contains approximately 200kg of stable organic matter per tonne. Carbon makes up 58% of this organic matter.

Therefore, every tonne of Enrich compost used in your project sequesters up to 400 kg (0.4 tonnes) of carbon dioxide (CO2) equivalents. The average carbon footprint of an Irish person is 13t of CO2 per year. Visit www.enrich.ie. ✽

VEGETABLE PATCH USING ENRICH COMPOST

BLENDED LEARNING PLANT PROPAGATION COURSE AT TEAGASC The COVID 19 pandemic situation is driving new ways of doing things in education.

June saw the commencement of blended learning modules for Teagasc College with the start of their Level 5 Plant Propagation Summer Course. This involves delivery through live Zoom

and recorded lectures, which are made available to the class through their virtual learning environment MOODLE. There are 30 students taking two modules this summer in Plant Propagation and Garden Design.

The college’s recruitment is taking place in earnest at the moment and September numbers look strong. The training delivery will be blended and the college hopes to have theory classes replaced by online options. The practical aspects of Horticulture will be done in small, targeted, socially-distanced groups with relevant PPE in widespread use in both The Botanics and Teagasc Ashtown. ✽

A NEW HORIZON FOR HORTICULTURE AT UCD As the incidence of Covid-19 disease in the country continues to diminish the number of track and trace centres required have been reduced. As a consequence horticulture students from UCD who had been involved in contact tracing and processing samples for Covid-19 testing have finished these duties. Students have now taken up professional work experience placements in the horticulture food sector and in the amenity sector, in garden centres and in the landscape construction/maintenance industry, under

strict social distancing and hygiene guidelines. Horticulture academic staff have completed assessment and grading, and plans are underway for September, to ensure that students have as close to a traditional university education experience as possible. Our students will have a blended educational experience with some lectures online with face-to-face tutorials and practicals. Those students who are considering attending university in September should continue with their plans. ✽

WILD WETLAND WORK AT FH WETLAND SYSTEMS FH Wetland Systems started out designing reed beds and treatment wetlands in 1996, but have evolved to become involved in a whole variety of new wetland habitat projects.

These include the Living River Project designs for Tullamore; the new management plan for Westfields Wetland in Limerick; and smaller projects for community groups from Cork to Cavan and many counties in between.

Each new protected habitat space is part of a growing

corridor for bees, bats and a host of native wildlife. Wetlands and wild spaces have long been shoved aside for housing developments, agriculture, roads and almost any other project that comes along - at great cost to these valuable habitats and the wildlife living there. In recent years, however, things seem to be changing for the better. Interest and funding are growing for rewilding, wetland protection and management projects. See www.wetlandsystems.ie for more info. ✽

Summer 2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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NEWS / 02 FARMONY SIGNS EUROPEAN DISTRIBUTION AGREEMENT WITH SANANBIO RODRIGO ANDRADE, DAN O'BRIEN AND JOHN PAUL PRIOR, FARMONY

Irish Agtech company, Farmony, has signed a European distribution deal with Sananbio for their vertical farming Radix systems. The Dublin-based startup, established in 2018, will incorporate Sananbio’s technology into their controlled

environment vertical farming solutions.

“As our climate continues to change and populations across the globe expand, food production must evolve in order to keep pace with these unprecedented changes,” says John Paul Prior, Strategy and Sales Director, Farmony “We are delighted to announce our partnership with Sananbio; global leaders in cutting-edge vertical farming technology developed to empower the modern farmer and spur sustainable local food production. Sananbio is the ideal technology partner to complement our own customised, automated controlled environment software and hardware solution.”

“In Farmony we have a partner that adds significant value to our product offering through exceptional sales and marketing, IOT focus and new product development," says Michael Yates, Vice President Sales, Sananbio. ✽

LOCKDOWN BOOSTS SMALL TUNNEL SALES ONLINE With everyone confined to their homes and gardens during lockdown, Colm Warren Polyhouses saw an upserge in web sales from homeowners keen to start growing their own produce.

“Since the start of lockdown we have had a huge increase in sales through our web shop,” says Deirdre Warren. “Customers have been purchasing small tunnels and also repair sheeting for

their old tunnels, ‘rediscovered’ during lockdown.

“Having a web shop has been hugely important to us through this period. We’ve also been very active on Instagram and Facebook, which has also helped keep our sales brisk. We’ve also spent the last few months working on a new web shop which we will launch during the next few months.” ✽

RISING TO COVID-19 CHALLENGE As lockdown took hold of the country on March 27, Irritec Irrigation Technology was slap bang in the middle of their busiest March in living memory. Owner, Paul Kunkels, shares his COVID-19 experience.

“The month started dry and after a week of no rain, I knew we would be busy, my phone was ringing constantly with requests for servicing and ‘when can you start?’” says Paul.

“We had an installation lined up for Saturday, March 28, the only day that week that I could dedicate all five team members to be on site together. The install was for new raspberry plants - 4,000m of drip irrigation and all the associated pumps, piping and control system. At a push, we would have it done on the day, with maybe a small bit to do on the following Monday.

“When the lockdown came into effect from midnight on the 27, my only option was to tell everyone to stay at home for at least two weeks. The plants were already on route to the grower, so the installation had to go ahead, so it was up to me

and a helper supplied by the grower to complete the whole installation.” “I started on Saturday, then worked Sunday and every evening that week. The plants were planted Thursday and by the time the last plants went in on Friday, the irrigation was complete.”✽

NEW SAFETY GUIDELINES ONSITE Design by Nature has successfully conveyed to sectors of the infrastructure industry and some of the main contractors they work with that all sites where seed sowing is carried out can be deregulated from construction to horticulture zones.

That means a zone where no construction workers or machinery are allowed for the duration of sowing and plant establishment.

A horticulture zone means no hard hats, no steel toe-capped boots, gloves or long sleeves for seed sowers and planters.

Sandro Cafolla, owner of Design by Nature says, “We argued

4

if we need hard hats, then we need full body armour because flying objects are just as likely to hit the body as objects falling on the head.

“Instead, we need to isolate our sowers and planters; exchange the hard hat with a cap, the work boot for tough soled double-stitched waterproof and breathable walking boots. With those changes to our workwear we find the strain caused by hard hats as we stooped to sow or plant has disappeared. The sweat from our boots went too, and we work and walk faster.” ✽

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2020

02 / NEWS SUMMER LAWN CARE FROM GOLDCROP Mid-summer is now upon us and lawns should be at their best. The early spring work of weed and moss control with weed, feed and moss control products should all now be completed. If still required, then this should be carried out as soon as possible.

The dry weather in many parts of the country has left lawns looking stemmy with patchy growth apparent in many places.

Barry Murray, Chief Agronomist, Goldcrop Limited has this advice, “These lawns require urgent remedial action by the application of a good quality slow-release fertiliser such as Landscaper Pro Spring and Summer to feed the grass and

encourage tillering (thickening of the lawn).

“Regular mowing is essential to keep the lawn nice and leafy and to prevent the plants from becoming stemmy. Raking out of thatch with a metal rake will also help keep your back garden looking its best. Patching with a high-quality lawn seed containing a minimum of 60% dwarf perennial ryegrass, 35% creeping red fescue and chewings fescue would be ideal provided moisture was present.”

Barry adds, “Going into the autumn regular mowing should continue and an application of a lawn feed containing phosphate for rooting should be applied.” ✽

HYGEIA’S NATURE SAFE RANGE AND BIOGOLD VIGOR After recent rainfall, now is the ideal time to put goodness back in soils and also provide plants with all the nutrient requirements needed for vibrant summer flowers and bumper harvests. Hygeia has a range of products that are ideally suited for the gardener at this time.

BioGold Vigor is an exciting new tomato and plant food, formulated with Hygeia’s nutrients and Alltech’s 100%

natural fermented blend. This liquid feed is simple to use and provides higher root development, greater quantities of fruit and vegetables with more succulent fruit and tastier vegetables.

The Nature Safe range contains no animal by-products, providing organic and vegan-friendly solutions for gardens.

The unique formulations are specifically designed to put goodness back into the earth, while also providing the ideal environment for healthy plants. Hygeia’s Nature Safe range provides plants with immediate feed requirements in forms easily absorbed by plants, while also helping to maintain healthy, disease-free plants. ✽

BAYER LAUNCH BRINGS TURF BENEFITS FOR GREENKEEPERS Bayer’s latest new fungicide to be launched in “This new active ingredient fosetyl-Al combined Ireland introduces a radical preventative approach with Stressgard® Formulation Technology has been to disease management, offering a new active engineered to optimise the product’s performance ingredient and new chemical group to the and to tackle two of the most prevalent golf course turf industry. diseases, Microdochium Patch and Anthracnose.”

Greg Collins, Bayer national account manager Signature® Xtra Stressgard® is the first true systemic for Ireland, says Signature® Xtra Stressgard® is fungicide to offer shoot to root protection.

Bayer’s most advanced turf formulation to date “This fully systemic solution allows the fungicide and has been scientifically proven to maintain to move up the plant’s xylem, and also down into the overall plant health, providing consistency phloem. This means plants are healthier and of playing surfaces and increasing better equipped to combat disease and GREG COLLINS, BAYER NATIONAL golfer satisfaction. mitigate stress,” explains Greg. ✽ ACCOUNT MANAGER FOR IRELAND

POSITIVE RESULTS FROM NANGLE & NIESEN'S TWO-YEAR SOIL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM Hils Murphy, the South African born soil guru based in London, carried out a soil analysis for Nangle & Niesen recommending a two-year program of work and treatments.

“We began by clearing the land,” says Ronan Nangle.

“At the end of the first year, we removed tree stumps and treated the fields with locally-sourced cow manure, followed by locally-quarried lime.

“We sourced fine basalt from Scotland that was high in the minerals and trace elements in which we were deficient and spread it on the prepared ground. We then seeded

with a special mix which contained eight grass seeds, four clover seeds, chicory and plantain. The resulting green crop grew fantastically well through the summer and autumn of 2019, visibly improving the structure of the soil.

“We mulched and spread another layer of cow manure then ploughed, power harrowed, subsoiled and planted.

“The soil was the best we have planted into, in many years, with a very rich humic content. The trees have coped well with the stress of the long drought during April and May and the growth, despite the cold weather in June and July, has been well above expectations.” ✽

Summer 2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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02 / BAYER ADVERTORIAL

SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT ON GLYPHOSATE

There is no doubt there has been controversy around glyphosate, and its use in the public sector. Bayer’s Mark Buckingham says it is time to set the record straight on the active “Glyphosate, like all chemical pesticides, has been glyphosate should remain part of an integrated through a rigorous registration process, which weed control strategy.” involves a careful scientific assessment of the evidence around the product. This is carried out Impacts from the loss of the product by independent scientists, who are funded by Mark explains that the loss of this product the government,” says Mark. could lead to a significant increase in costs for “Because glyphosate, the chemical active groundskeepers. found in Roundup branded products, has been “Typically, the costs of larger scale weed around since 1974, it’s been extensively tested, control on pathways and in parkland, for example, often with studies being repeated several times. can be up to 10 times more expensive without the MARK BUCKINGHAM, “Because of this wealth of data, our confidence in COMMUNICATIONS use of chemical controls.

AND what we know about the active is high,” says Mark. GOVERNMENT RELATIONS “Add to this that non-chemical methods MANAGER AT BAYER Why the controversy? typically require more visits, so more travelling to “One of the questions you’re probably thinking is and on the site. This would not only increase fuel – if it is so safe then why am I reading about it everywhere?” and labour costs but also increases greenhouse gas emissions.”

Mark explains that in 2015, a research group called IARC, Mark adds that in some situations, such as control of invasive linked to the World Health Organisation (WHO) published species, weed control in the absence of glyphosate would be a paper stating that they thought glyphosate was ‘probably nigh on impossible. carcinogenic’ and this kicked off the controversy.

“For example, high-risk weeds giant hogweed and Japanese “However, since 2015 many government regulators have knotweed are most effectively managed by programs based looked carefully at what this research group said, as well on glyphosate,” he says. as all the other available evidence, and concluded that “With the vast investment in herbicide research over many glyphosate is not carcinogenic. years it’s rare to find such a combination of effectiveness and “Bearing this in mind we can be confident that safety, so it is worth looking after,” concludes Mark. ✽

YEAR ROUND USE FOR VALDOR FLEX GRANTED Residual herbicide, Valdor Flex®, has received a label update, extending usage periods and application areas, providing contractors with an opportunity to adopt a flexible approach to weed control.

Greg Collins, Bayer national account manager for Ireland, says this updated authorisation will allow contractors to adapt their approach depending on weather conditions and weed growth.

“Valdor Flex® can now be used around amenity vegetation, permitting applications to be made around the base of trees, shrubs and other plants in amenity areas, allowing this herbicide to be used in a wider range of situations,” he adds.

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In addition, this product could previously only be used from March to June, however, the application window extension permits it to be used year-round allowing users to take a different approach to weed control.

“This herbicide prevents the emergence of a broad spectrum of weeds for up to four months, reducing the frequency of traditional applications. It provides residual control of the hardest to manage weeds on a wide range of surfaces, allowing contractors to keep public spaces weedfree,” Greg explains.

“Valdor Flex® can be used as a pre- or post- emergence application. It can be applied alone on bare ground before weeds emerge or if weeds are already present. It can be mixed with Roundup®, which provides the initial knockdown.”

To benefit from these extensions of use, contractors must be using the new product with the updated label. ✽

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2020

03 / OPINION

THE ART OF DIGGING HOLES Retired landscape horticulturist, Terry O’Regan, continues his series of articles reflecting on his adventures in the landscape sector

I

cleared out the office belonging to our business enterprise last year.

Emptying filing cabinets and storage boxes and trying to decide what must be destroyed or what could be recycled. It felt like I was speedscanning the intestines of our erstwhile enterprise.

I asked myself again and again, “How did we manage it all?” When lumped together, the multitude of demands involved in operating our small landscape services operation seemed unsurmountable; and yet we survived.

The answer to my question was doublebarrelled. Each morning, there were clients waiting for work to be done and employees, vehicles and machinery waiting to go to work. So regardless of any crisis that may have landed on my desk, the show had to go on. Or to borrow from Samuel Beckett writing at the end of his novel The Unnameable, it was a case of “You must go on. I can’t go on. I’ll go on.” You do not really have a choice.

So, as you face the fallout of COVID 19, I am not trying to enrage you in suggesting that you too “must go on.” I will not tell you what to do. I will, however, tell you what I did when facing impending crises, when I may briefly have been frozen like a rabbit caught in headlights. I invariably shook myself like a wet dog and silently said, “I’ll go on!” Sometimes I went on alone, but more often it was a team response. None of my frozen moments could match the enormity of the COVID 19 tsunami, but a crisis is a crisis and crisismanagement is the name of the game.

Everyone involved in horticulture digs holes. We know all about holes; we could

sing about holes. That said, when you are in a hole there are times when you should stop digging and there are times when you need to dig faster.

Every few years when we hit contract commitment overload, around the end of April or early May, we’d be running around like headless chickens trying to finish up the planting jobs that had been held up by a wet March; trying to get on top of the first flush of grass growth on maintenance contracts and trying to make a start on the grassing jobs that we had blithely promised for April back in January. We were in a rapidly expanding hole and had to stop digging. I made a fresh list of what was feasible and began to call the clients whose jobs were getting deferred start dates. We may have lost a few contracts along the way, but we saved our sanity and probably our bank balance.

In contrast, in 2012, we faced the possibility of the collapse of our business as bad debts mounted up and both turnover and profit margins plummeted.

We could not afford to stop digging as we had a substantial term loan with years to run, plus lease agreements and our own creditors, so, we dug faster. Along with running the business on a day-to-day basis, in our “free” time we worked out a three-year business plan with tentative candlelight at the end of a long tunnel. We prepared daily and monthly monitoring systems and pulled like dogs for five years until we exited the tunnel in 2018. That three-year plan was rewritten and revised many times over. There were still times when the ice underfoot was thin and cracking, but we dug our way through that hole.

The critical elements in that plan were

tight cost-control, cash-flow management and early intervention. We kept to a comprehensive annual budget, a very detailed costing template, diligent recordkeeping, minimal personal drawings, daily monitoring/management of our bank balance and a monthly report on total outstanding debt.

But now it is you who must go on. You will devise a plan that works for you and hopefully, it will be with your current enterprise. But your three-year plan could also be about extricating yourself from one career path and embarking on another. To go on you must know how you got where you are, where you would like to be and what your options are; then decide your road-map for the next three years. A degree of luck will not go astray and I wish you same, but more importantly, you need hard facts, accurate figures, determination, realism and stamina.

They tell us this is the “new normal,” but we can only work with the proven tools and skills acquired in the “old normal.” ✽ TERRY O’REGAN pursued a career in the Irish landscape sector for some 50 years as contractor and consultant before retiring recently. For much of that time, he was also an active advocate for the bigger picture perspective and thinking outside the landscape box. He can be contacted at 087 240 7618 and terryjoregan@gmail.com.

Summer 2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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BORD BIA ezine / 04

MIX IT UP WITH MUSHROOMS FROM EUROPE An application for more EU co-funded mushroom promotion in the UK, Ireland and (for the first time), Germany was made on June 3. The €3.18 million “Mix it up with Mushrooms from Europe” campaign, will start in 2021 and last for three years. The spend split is approximately 80% in the UK and 10% each in Ireland and Germany.

The three-year programme aims to broaden the role of mushrooms in the UK, Irish and German diets by reinforcing health benefits and increasing understanding of their versatility and quality credentials.

Consumers in the UK, Germany and Ireland are all trying to eat more healthily and the interest is highest in younger consumers, so it makes sense to lead with a health message.

Mushrooms are extremely versatile and can accompany a broad spectrum of meals, ranging from favourite dishes in the UK, Ireland and Germany, to exotic recipes from around the world.

A cornerstone of the new campaign will be promoting the concept of blending mushrooms and meat to make meals healthier, tastier and less expensive. ✽

#BLOOMATHOME In response to the cancellation of Bord Bia Bloom 2020, Bord Bia launched an alternative, virtual celebration #BloomAtHome.

We encouraged the public to join us for a series of online events, including gardening panels and cookery demonstrations and also to share images and videos of their own gardens at home.

Since the announcement on May 12, our website, BordBiaBloom.com, gained 70,000 page views. Over 70 food and drink companies who normally participate at Bloom ran offers or competitions, or took part in our Virtual Food Village online in the lead into and over the Bloom weekend.

RTE’s Countrywide special featured Gary Graham and Aine Lawlor, as well as some food producers who have traditionally taken part in the Food Village at the festival.

The culmination of the #BloomAtHome activities proved a great success. It received over 2 million impressions across our social channels over the June bank holiday weekend and the following two weeks. There were over 6,000 uses of the hashtag as exhibitors and visitors alike joined the campaign. #BloomAtHome was featured in the media over 60

times and the public’s gardening efforts were celebrated online through our competition with RTE, which gained over 5,000 entries. Check out BordBiaBloom.com to view all of the broadcasts of the campaign.

Bord Bia/ Healthy Ireland Show Garden Bloom 2020 would have marked the second year Bord Bia partnered with Healthy Ireland on a show garden. While it wasn’t to be this year, we wanted to keep the conversation alive and get their message out there.

The theme of this year’s show garden was never more fitting for the times we live in now – how being out in nature, spending time outdoors especially in green spaces and being physically active (gardening) can help your mental health and wellbeing.

So to keep the spirit of Bloom and our conversation alive, we worked with Jack Caffrey from The Pimlico Project to produce a wonderful piece featuring our show garden designer, James Purdy, which captured our message in a beautifully creative way. The video formed part of the Government’s ‘In This Together’ campaign and was aired as part of our Bloom Day event on Sunday, May 31.

Follow this link to view the video: https://vimeo.com/423955136/a203237521. ✽ JAMES PURDY

CELEBRATE STRAWBERRY SEASON ‘Celebrate Strawberry Season’ launched w/c May 18, and will run right through to September 2020. A revised COVID-19 response means that this year the campaign features enhanced digital activity including fun visual elements, stop-motion videos and new content targeting children at home with parents. Other activities targeting millennials and main household shoppers will include influencer activity, recipe collaborations and an online cookery competitions, print advertorials and grower profile activity, with continuous social media supporting each element of the campaign. ✽

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HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2020

04 /BORD BIA ezine GARDENING TV ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN To further support the amenity horticulture industry during this time, Bord Bia developed our first above the line gardening advertising campaign ‘Let’s Get Growing’ which was fully supported with a social media campaign and a revamped gardening section on the Bord Bia website. This aired on May 17, for the first time across TV, radio and online and ran until the middle of June. The objectives for the campaign were to support the amenity sector and promote and drive plant sales. With so many people based at home there was the opportunity to encourage consumers to spend more time in the garden and engage in a range of activities.

Coyne Research carried out a full evaluation of the campaign, and overall the campaign performed very well at delivering key messages. Almost unanimous agreement that the campaign clearly communicates that the garden is a great family space and that the garden can help with people’s physical and mental wellbeing. Also communicating that Bord Bia supports plant growers and outlets selling plants. Overall, it encouraged two-in-five ‘non’ gardeners, with over one-in-10 claiming to have bought plants on at least one occasion, when they wouldn’t have otherwise. ✽

FOOD DUDES PROGRAMME

Prior to school closures, the Food Dudes Programme successfully completed its four-block intervention for the 2019/2020 school year, with a total of 700 schools and 112,962 pupils taking part. In response to school closures, a revised Phase 3 Food Dudes Week programme was developed and launched on April 15. For nine weeks (to June 10), new weekly themed activities and online digital content was made available to the general public on the new Fun at Home section of www.fooddudes.ie via social media channels. To date, over 1 million online impressions and almost 10,000 new visits to the website have been recorded. ✽

INCREDIBLE EDIBLES The Incredible Edibles growing challenge launched in schools in February 2020. One thousand grow packs containing peat-free compost, turnip, carrot, lettuce, chive and spinach seeds and strawberry and potato plants were delivered to 550 schools (25,000 pupils) across Ireland, with the first 250 registered schools receiving a free trowel. In response to COVID-19 and school closures, a revised programme of online activity was developed in line with the five core tasks and launched on April 6, running for five weeks (to May 10, 2020). Over 1,340 families and 3,900 children took part with over 9,000 views to the website (+483%) during the campaign. Keeping the traditional programme alive, dedicated ‘School of the week’ posts also proved popular, with Instagram stories viewed by 700 people daily. ✽

GROMOR AND SUPERGARDEN GroMor 2020 was launched in April, after a good deal of changes brought on by the COVID 19 situation and considerable alteration of the website.

The initial campaign message started out as ‘Get Out, Get Healthy, Get Growing’ to reflect the closure of garden centres. This changed back to ‘Visit Your Local Garden Centre’ on May 18.

The highlight of the campaign activities is ‘Gary’s Gardening Tips’ which are based on interviews carried out by campaign champion Gary Graham with garden centre and nursery owners; this has been well received on Facebook and Instagram and Gary was interviewed in the Sunday Business Post with good regional pick up. The series has a reach of over 20,000 per episode on social media.

With most of the country being at home during the lockdown, there has been an increased interest in gardening in general - visits to the GroMor website are up 100% from this time last year, with visitors also spending more time per visit.

The GroMor promotion is scheduled to continue until the end of August to aid the gardening sector hit hard by garden centre closures and no doubt the hosepipe ban as well. A gardening promotion started on June 1 on The Ray D’Arcy Show on RTE 1 sponsored

by GroMor and featuring Gerry Daly started on June 1, and is garnering a lot of attention. It will run until late August.

Supergarden is now an integral part of the gardening promotion strategy.

This year it was a one-hour show (up from 30-minutes previously), and had a greatly increased focus on horticultural content as a result of Bord Bia’s plant budgets. The audience for the show this year was 400,000 - double the average in previous years. ✽

Summer 2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

9

Kildalton College

Piltown, Co. Kilkenny

Helping people grow careers in horticulture for 49 years

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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: 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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TEAGASC ezine / 04

ORNAMENTAL INDUSTRY – ANOTHER TURBULENT SEASON TO NAVIGATE The recent travel restrictions of COVID 19 greatly limited our activities but did not limit the desire to maintain quality of life. For this reason, many people have turned to their outdoor space, and a significant increase in gardening has been seen.

Teagasc reported in the Farming Independent (May 5) of the grave challenges that faced many sectors of horticulture since mid-March.

Cut flowers, bedding and shrub sales collapsed, resulting in a massive loss of revenue and plant wastage.

With little certainty of what the future would hold, growers and retailers across Europe cancelled orders. The subsequent consumer demand and sales through supermarkets, garage forecourts and other “non-standard” plant retailers alleviated some of the pressure on producers. It was heartening to see the support for Irish plants with nurseries buying locally.

Demand surged once gardens centres opened on May 18 and a shortage of plant stock has resulted due to reduced planting capacity in March.

The COVID 19 travel and shopping restrictions have created online sales opportunities for plants that would not have been considered by the public previously. Those businesses

that delivered a positive service will have developed a new customer base to serve and grow in the future. The online sale of plants is not something new, several Irish companies such as Johnstown Garden Centre, Future Forest etc., have been in the business for many years. Specialist nurseries like Mike Keeps’ Shady Plants have become the go-to place for ferns, bulbs and other uncommon plants.

The types of plants that can be sold and dispatched online are different; they are generally smaller, sturdier and higher value. The mail-order staple of seed and bare-root plants are still there but lack of experience and the need to get your hands dirty will discourage some customers. Up to this year, sales of seed had seen a year-on-year decline for some time. In part due to busy lifestyles and lack of confidence with propagation. When buying bareroot the lack of foliage and colour is a definite turnoff for gardeners.

The majority of plants suited to online sales are plugs, 9cm and 13cm pot size, with shipping in bespoke, breathable boxes. This limits choice for some plant species to those plants that must be robust. The most tolerant and forgiving plants for packaging and sales are the likes of alpines that naturally grow in

challenging locations.

Grant aid for establishing online retailing has been made available through Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs) and this has been useful to some nurseries and garden centres in establishing an online platform.

Additionally, the trading online voucher scheme has been expanded at time of print and will be a welcome resource to those who still want to develop an online presence.

Nursery plant sales have been very strong since garden centres reopened to the public. Disruptions in the supply chain have left some major gaps in plant supplies across Europe.

Growers will need to be innovative and creative to meet the potential demand over the summer with shrubs - especially pollinator-friendly ones - in the hope of seeing out of season sales. Innovations in production that see limited waste, systems for increased uniformity, for example, will always help with bottom-line figures.

With each year throwing up significant challenges, the learning from the pandemic must be that growers need to build up personal relationships, environments and finances to sustain themselves during difficult times. ✽

SEASONAL WORKERS RECRUITMENT CAMPAIGN A national seasonal recruitment campaign led by Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection (DEASP) started in April with the aim of recruiting a large number of temporary workers for the horticulture sector from the Live Register within Ireland. DAFM and Teagasc, with the support of horticultural producers represented by the IFA, have partnered with DEASP to support this development. Teagasc HDD is allowing horticultural producers to input details of available open positions for seasonal workers through the online form at https://www.teagasc.ie/crops/horticulture/ seasonal-workers.

The Teagasc portal has attracted the majority of horticultural businesses who have inputted over 750 open positions over the period, which have in turn been notified to DEASP. The Employer Relations team in DEASP have been working to attract willing and able workers to the roles and to notify candidates to horticultural businesses. ✽

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HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2020

04 /TEAGASC ezine MANAGING FOLIAGE DISEASE POST CHLOROTHALONIL Irish weather and protected environments are highly favourable for foliar diseases of fruit, vegetable and ornamental crops. The financial impacts of a loss of quality and reduction in yield are considerable.

The widely used and effective plant protection product Chlorothalonil was withdrawn from sale in 2019 and had its last use-by date in May 2020. Its popularity was in part due to its effectiveness and relative lowcost c.€7.50/ha. Chlorothalonil is a broad-spectrum fungicide and was the cornerstone of powdery mildew control for ornamental plants, Alliums and Brassicas. Familiar brand names included Bravo, Folio Gold, Fielder and Daconil.

The product was especially useful as it has multisite activity that helps to prevent a build-up of fungal resistance to other fungicides. Resistance has developed to commonly used morpholine and SDHI fungicides, especially in tillage crops.

It is important for growers to

consider resistance when planning crop protection programmes. As part of integrated management plans, growers should select, where possible, the most favourable conditions for the plants, select resistant varieties and alternate modes of action of fungicides.

While Chlorothalonil was the most effective of the multisite actives available, other options still available are worth using as part of a resistance prevention strategy. These include; Copper, Sulphur, Mancozeb and Folpet.

However, specific crop approval is not available for all these products.

Mancozeb has numerous trade names and has approval for use in many field vegetables and ornamental crops, while Folpet is not approved for use on vegetables. Arizona, Phoenix and Mirror are trade names of Folpet, which is regarded as a relatively lowcost product with a cost of c. €11/ha.

Growers are advised not to rely solely on limited fungicide active ingredients, for example, triazoles or strobilurins. In the on-going review of registration of

POWDERY MILDEW IS COMMONLY SEEN ON LUPINS AND MANY OTHER CROPS.

plant protection products there will be a clear need for alternative products for horticultural use in an effort to prevent fungicide resistance.

For more information about appropriate products and strategies to prevent foliar disease this season, contact Dónall Flanagan at Teagasc. ✽

COVID 19 ROUND-UP In order to assist growers and producers to act to reduce the impacts of COVID 19 and the associated national mitigation measures on their business, Teagasc Horticulture Development Department has gathered information across the subsectors of horticulture to support the sector.

We have developed a single COVID 19 information point, with important publications and links to enable the horticultural producer to find all relevant information in one place. One of the most significant publications is Guidelines and Recommendations for Safeguarding Staff on Horticultural Facilities. For the latest information and advice on COVID 19 and updates on Teagasc events please visit www. teagasc.ie/crops/ horticulture/news ✽ PPE FOR PICKING AND HANDING FRUIT FOR SAFE CONSUMPTION

Summer 2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2020

05 / COVID-19

CORONA TIME AND ECOLOGICAL RECOVERY

Writing during the lockdown, Féidhlim Harty asks, has the pandemic been all bad for the planet or society?

L

ast year, both British and Irish governments declared a climate and biodiversity emergency in response to public pressure and a growing international scientific consensus. Yet despite the declarations, politicians have dragged their feet with unbridled enthusiasm, clearly more concerned with bolstering economic growth and meeting the many demands of industry than addressing these pressing issues. Crisis exists. Emergency declared.

Essentially, no action is taken.

Meanwhile, events in Wuhan have created a parallel emergency. The response of global governments between these two emergencies has been dramatically different. In a matter of weeks and months, the whole world introduced new rules, changed social norms, cancelled “non-essential” work and introduced a raft of restrictions on movement and activity that would have been unimaginable as we entered 2020.

Unemployment has soared, GDP has plummeted and economic activity has taken a back seat.

However, despite the restrictions, limitations and economic downturn, is it all bad for the planet or society; or has it brought with it a raft of benefits for the world as well?

Polluted air over China and Europe has cleared. The canals in Venice are flowing clear and clean. Distant views of the sacred mountains of the Himalayas are present in parts of India for the first time in living memory. Stories of wildlife sightings in places where they haven't been seen in many years abound. Whether it is because they are reappearing or because we have time to notice is not as clear as the value of either.

Our living planet home seems to be taking a deep breath, a long sigh of relief, taking a respite from the pause in our endless activity.

THE RARE GREEN-WINGED ORCHID (ANACAMPTIS MORIO) APPEARED IN A PORTLAOISE HOUSING ESTATE LAWN WHEN MAINTENANCE PERSONNEL WERE KEPT OUT BY LOCKDOWN RESTRICTIONS. CLASSED AS ‘VULNERABLE’ IN IRELAND’S 2016 RED DATA LIST OF VASCULAR PLANTS, THIS MEANS IT HAS DECLINED BY AS MUCH AS 49% IN ITS AREA OF OCCUPANCY. PHOTO: DR FIONA MACGOWAN, CONSULTANT ECOLOGIST AND BOTANIST.

What if this is a dry run for something better; something saner in our society?

What if this Corona Time is a giant reset?

Many of us are enjoying the quieter roads; the space to bake or garden; or sit watching the sun move along its arc by the shadows on the lawn. Children are learning the things they have prioritised for themselves rather than a standardised curriculum; the birdsong has never been sweeter or more diverse outside my window. Is that because it is, or because I have the time to listen? Children are cycling on the roads again. Families are out walking. Neighbours stop in the street (at the required distances) and chat. It's safe to do so. It's quiet enough to hear. Less traffic. More time.

There are a thousand fewer cuts to the Earth as we ease off on petrol, on flights, on commuting to “non-essential” jobs.

Putting fast fashion to one side, getting

another day out of those jeans before washing them; even though they’re grubby from gardening. It won’t be noticeable in tomorrow morning’s online meeting, anyway.

Perhaps we’ll learn to ease off on the throttle of endless rushing and doing.

Will we look up briefly at the close of lockdown and then return happily to hoeing between the onions? Imagine a quieter, calmer society. Imagine space for people and for nature. Imagine all the planetary indicators for health returning to safe levels, like a great steady pulse and a calm rhythmic breath once more.

Corona lockdown has shown us that we can make sweeping changes to deal with an emergency if we want to.

There is no doubt in the international scientific community that life on Earth is threatened at the moment, but COVID 19 is not the cause. That’s only a sideshow.

We need to put resources, energy and dedication into ecological recovery.

We have seen from both the banking crash in 2008 and now Coronavirus, that public resources can be invested at a moment’s notice. We have an opportunity now, to invest in the things that will create an ecological recovery and not just an economic one.

The resources are there for the taking.

Let’s grasp this opportunity to create real change. Let’s use this time as a springboard for action, flatten the curve on fossil fuel extraction and make this ecological recovery permanent. ✽

FÉIDHLIM HARTY is director of FH Wetland Systems and author of Towards Zero Waste and Permaculture Guide to Reed Beds. See www.wetlandsystems.ie

Summer 2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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COVID-19 / 05

SUPPORTING HORTICULTURE

I

In March, the country’s very necessary COVID-19 response impacted all sectors of the Irish food, drink and horticulture industry. Bord Bia responded with a crisis management plan, pivoting to support and assist client companies across as many areas as possible. A series of supports and services were implemented, the first being a review of the Marketing Assistance Programme (MAP) and Step Change Programme (SCP) grant supports.

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© LIGHTWISE / 123RF.COM

Carol Marks, Sector Manager Horticulture, outlines Bord Bia’s COVID-19 response

MAP/SCP AND COVID SUPPORT PACKAGES In addition to the annual MAP and SCP grants, Bord Bia introduced a COVID Special Response Support Package to further augment the available grant packages.

The overall budget for supporting clients financially was increased from €950,000 to €2m, enabling Bord Bia to reimburse up to 70% of costs involved with eligible activities for those who had already applied for the MAP/SCP grants,

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2020

05 / COVID-19 in addition to inviting new applications from companies with a turnover between €100,000 and €25 million (upper limit for MAP ordinarily is €3.5m) who would also receive 70% of incurred costs.

In the original round of MAP/SCP, 12 amenity and 11 edible horticulture businesses were approved, with an additional nine amenity and 11 edible applying for the special COVID grant. This resulted in a total of 43 horticulture businesses grant-aided, to a total combined of €369 thousand euro.

BUSINESS CONTINUITY PROGRAMME FOR HORTICULTURE PRODUCERS In response to the sudden and potentially catastrophic disruptions caused in the horticulture sector by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Horticulture Division’s Lean programme was used to offer help with business continuity.

Primarily for amenity nurseries which were in the frontline of disruptions caused by the lockdown and the closure of garden centres. Growers benefited from one-to-one mentoring to help them deal with the situation as it evolved rapidly. Typical interventions included help with retail negotiation, advice on the rescheduling of loans, accessing the information on state aids available and help with cash flow plans and business plans for the remainder of 2020.

The scheme was also made available to bulb/daffodil growers who had their season severely affected by lockdowns all over Europe. To date, 11 companies have been assisted through the programme. In addition, the Prepared Consumer Foods Division launched a new Small Business Mentoring Service to support small businesses in adapting business and marketing plans post COVID-19.

FOODSERVICE Looking to foodservice, the findings from Bord Bia’s White Paper on the impact of COVID-19 on the Irish Foodservice market was launched in national media. The paper found that foodservice will certainly see contractions in 2020 and may fall to as low as 45% of pre-pandemic spend levels by the end of 2020. However, there is positivity around the longer-term viability and resurgence of the industry as the economy recovers. The findings were disseminated in a webinar, which can be watched on the COVID-19 Hub on the Bord Bia website.

FUTURE PROOFING FOR A POST-COVID WORLD The COVID-19 crisis has already produced dramatic changes in consumer and shopper behaviour. As part of their work on ‘Future Proofing for a Post-COVID World,’ Bord Bia’s Thinking House has been tracking and tracing these behavioural shifts to provide our client companies and their customers with a rich reservoir of insight and identify behaviours that are ‘sticky’ and new behaviours that will be ‘sticky’ in a post-COVID world.

Early indicators were categorised under three key areas: • Macro Behaviour • Shopper Behaviour • Consumption Behaviour This work has been validated in each market and has fed a series of future-proofing toolkits. The toolkits are now completed and available for download on the Bord Bia COVID Hub. Also available is our Business Continuity webinar series which has proven very relevant to clients including a series on Key Customer Management Best

Practice, focusing on how to create trusted partnerships and preparing to engage with your customers.

The COVID-19 Hub on the Bord Bia website is updated on a weekly bases with the most up-to-date, relevant and useful insights, supports and services for your business. All previous podcasts and webinars are available to view.

BREXIT Despite the current COVID-19 challenges, Brexit developments continue to put our sectors at risk. We continue to provide practical advice to companies on the basic principles and requirements of the new UK duties, customs compliance and Brexit. For example, the webinar, ‘Preparing for Brexit – Overview of the New UK Global Tariff Schedule,’ has a particular focus on the Northern Ireland Protocol. This is now available to view on the Bord Bia Brexit Hub, along with details of all Brexit relevant information and guidance.

BORD BIA’S READINESS RADAR As Ireland and many of our export markets begin to emerge from lockdown and face into a different post-COVID-19 world, existing risks have not gone away. In March 2020, Bord Bia launched the Bord Bia Readiness Radar, a new risk diagnostic tool assessing industry challenges across six key areas: COVID-19, Brexit, Challenges to Market Diversification, Sustainability Pressures, Consumer Insights and Innovation and Talent Management.

The findings of the Readiness Radar were launched at a virtual event on Thursday, July 2.

The Readiness Radar aims to help businesses to examine their preparedness and setting of priorities to ensure the continued success of their business in this volatile world.

As in previous years with the Brexit ‘Readiness Radar’, companies were invited to complete the Risk Readiness survey, and all who participated receive an individual, bespoke Risk Readiness Gap Analysis report focusing specifically on the results for their business.

The report highlights the relationship between the level of preparedness and impact on the six key risks and includes specific guidance on how to become more mature at managing these key risks and closing gaps where they exist.

It also provides recommendations on how the company can access and engage with Bord Bia’s services in a more strategic way to develop its Risk Management strategy. ✽

CAROL MARKS, Sector Manager for Horticulture at Bord Bia, is a graduate of the National Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin, with a background in business management, publishing and PR, before returning to study horticulture as a mature student.

Followed by a number of years working in private gardens and contributing monthly to a number of gardening publications, before joining Bord Bia 15 years ago, Carol works across the whole of the horticulture supply chain.

Summer 2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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COVID-19 / 05

WELCOME TO THE UPSIDE DOWN John Paul Prior shares his reflections on life during the lockdown

A

s I sit in the latest incarnation of my home office; my back against a great old oak, laptop on my lap and birds singing around me, I wonder if my world being turned upside down is all that bad?

Perhaps for many of us, what we have perceived as the ‘upside’ has always been the ‘downside’ in disguise? The busy commute, the deadlines, the stress.

It takes a good dose of nature to refocus the mind and bring you back to the moment. I began writing this article in Corkagh Park, 120 hectares of parkland beside the Naas ‘rat race’ road, just a 20-minute off-road cycle from my Lucan home near Finnstown. I’m embarrassed to say it’s taken 15 years for me to realise it’s beauty and accessibility. This is one of a multitude of such awakenings I’ve experienced during this lockdown.

Would you believe a woodland just five minutes from my house, and now a daily home-brewed coffee retreat, also went without notice up to now? Imagine the hipsters queuing for this remote fallen tree - a naturally formed bench - for their 11am coffee break. #stayawayhipsters Not all have been positive awakenings, however. My fancy new weighing scales give way more information than I had bargained for. That’s why I’m running

18

frantically around Griffeen Valley Park each morning at 7:30 am, trying to lose all those pounds gained while focusing on all the “more important stuff.” Another gem of a park in West Dublin covering 200 acres; a series of public open spaces, each of which has its own charming character. Certainly, unsung heroes of this crisis are the park rangers who are doing an exceptional job maintaining these public parks, and for many people, their mental health.

I genuinely feel like this has been some form of intervention, some Spring/ Summer edition of A Christmas Carol, whereby new enlightenment on the beauty of local and the importance of communities supporting each other comes to the fore.

So where to now? In a previous article on vertical farming, I mentioned that horticulture could have its day in the sun.

I’m finishing this piece on the Sunday

evening before Phase 1 when garden centres and our farmers’ markets open and it really does feel like Christmas Eve for this horticultural enthusiast. I’m confident that we will have many more budding horticulturalists born out of this crisis. Raised beds are raising the roof with their associated sales online. You wouldn’t get a raised bed for love nor money these days.

Never before has there been such a focus on local; and it’s clear that people are embracing it. This movement to support local is tangible when you look at the dramatic increase in demand for home delivery veg boxes; wholesalers pivoting and opening their doors with social distanced queues for the freshest of local produce. The times they are a changing and if we change and adapt with them, opportunities are there for an energised local horticultural sector to bloom.

I’ve seen how the lockdown has brought some much-needed awareness and gratitude for my own surroundings, the same must now happen in our support of local jobs and businesses.

Now is the time. ✽

JOHN PAUL PRIOR, is Strategy Director at Farmony, Dublin.

Farmony provides an operating system for vertical farms through a combination of software and hardware. Their partnership with Sananbio, provides year-round, pesticide-free growth of leafy greens, microgreens and herbs from a footprint of 55m2, producing the output equivalent of five acres of traditional farmland. Contact John Paul: 086 8116708. Visit: www.farmony.ie.

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2020

00 / XXXXXXX

'Protecting Plants, Protecting Life' Plants are essential for life. They make up 80% of the food we eat and 98% of the oxygen we breath.

Keep plants healthy while protecting the environment.

Buy from reputable and trusted sources.

Know the risks of bringing uncertified plants or without a plant passport into Ireland and onto your premises.

Make trading in plants and plant products safe by complying with international plant health standards.

Protect your environment by promoting IYPH 2020 in your community.

If you trade in or produce plants or plant products you must be registered with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.

www.agriculture.gov.ie IYPH2020@agriculture.gov.ie (01) 5058885

Summer 2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

19

DAFM eZINE / 06

OUR GARDEN – THE GREAT ESCAPE OF COVID-19 The Covid-19 pandemic has been an immensely difficult time for people living in Ireland and around the world. The Government made the difficult decision to put the country into lockdown to protect the country and its people. The lockdown of the country, although necessary, has had a huge impact on Ireland’s economy, with many people out of work and businesses having to close their doors. This was also the case for the horticulture industry with most garden centres, nurseries and landscapers closed during what should be one of the busiest times of year.

With the easing of restrictions on businesses and people, most garden centres, nurseries and landscapers are back operating albeit in a limited capacity. This is also the case for DAFM, having been focused on protecting the necessary supply chains for Irish businesses and consumers, normal duties are beginning to step up again.

People have been spending more time at home and in their gardens and with garden centres and nurseries open and landscapers back in operation, there are some positive signs for the horticulture industry in Ireland. The industry is

commended for making the switch to online sales, when the normal engagement was not possible which will no doubt become one of the emergent opportunities of Covid-19.

Remember any business selling plants online must be registered with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and all plants for planting sold online must have a Plant Passport.

Bloom which is the main showcase event for the amenity sector also became a casualty of Covid-19. With so much preparations already in place by Bord Bia and many of Bloom participants, it was celebrated with Bloom at Home 2020.

The Bloom at Home campaign encouraged the public to come together and celebrate Bloom from their own homes and gardens. Social media played a central part of the campaign, with national competitions where people could share their gardening efforts online.

Gardening has benefits that are scientifically proven to create a sense of calm, to reduce stress levels, to speed up recovery time for those that are ill and certainly brings a sense of community and pride. ✽

DON’T RISK IT! Plant pests do not respect borders or carry passports when moving from one country to another. With globalisation and the resulting increase in international travel and trade, plant pests and diseases of different kinds are more likely to be moved across borders with consignments and travellers and then spread unintentionally. DAFM’s Don’t Risk It campaign highlights the dangers of bringing plants and plant products home from abroad and encourages everyone to purchase their plants from a garden centre or nursery in Ireland.

The recent interception of Oak Processionary Moth (OPM) in Dublin highlights how pests can move across borders.

OPM is a plant pest, primarily of oak (Quercus) trees. The adult moths and juvenile caterpillars can cause defoliation of oak trees. More importantly the juvenile caterpillars can be injurious to human health as they release microscopic hairs when disturbed, which can cause skin irritation and breathing difficulties. The OPM found on an oak tree in Dublin was eradicated immediately and the trees which had been planted were destroyed. As a result of the threat this pest poses, the Government introduced new legislation in January 2020 to prevent its introduction into Ireland. This Order requires any person bringing Quercus plants or trees

20

into the State to notify the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine in writing at least two days in advance at the following email address: plantandpests@agriculture.gov.ie

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2020

06 / DAFM eZINE IMPORTANCE OF PLANTS Plants are a primary source of income for nearly half of the global population and make up 80% of the food we eat and create 98% of the oxygen we breathe. One of the potential consequences of this global emergency was the possibility of disrupted trade and compromised access to a safe and stable supply of food. Ensuring a safe supply of fresh food and protecting plants from pests is now more important than ever. This was DAFM’s main focus during the crisis and is one of DAFM’s primary objectives on a continuing basis.

While COVID-19 is affecting human health worldwide,

plant pests and diseases continue to pose a threat to sustainable food production and the horticulture industry as a whole.

It is particularly important at this time to remember that a threat to plant health is a threat to the health and prosperity of people and Ireland’s biodiversity. Protecting plant health is vital for our country, our economy, our biodiversity and our wellbeing.

This is the noble goal for which 2020 was nominated as the International Year of Plant Health. The importance of plants is summarised by the IYPH slogan: “protecting plants, protecting life”. ✽

PREVENTATIVE MEASURES The COVID-19 global outbreak is showing the world how adopting preventive measures is essential to secure countries from the introduction and spread of devastating human diseases. These preventative measures can also be used to secure countries from the introduction and spread of devastating plant diseases. These preventative measures are a cornerstone of DAFM’s Plant Health and Biosecurity Strategy.

DAFM regularly conducts inspections and surveys of garden centres, nurseries, parks, roadways and private gardens to monitor and maintain Ireland’s plant health and prevent outbreaks of plant pests. DAFM also inspects plants and plant products being imported from outside of the EU. All plants for planting, moving within the EU, are now required to carry a Plant Passport.

This allows for traceability of all plants and allows for timely response in the event of an outbreak. Under the new Plant Health Regulation (EU) (2016/2031) garden centres, nurseries, landscapers and internet sellers are required to register with DAFM. This registration is required as it allows for the traceability of all plants within the EU and Ireland. Registration is free of charge and the registration forms can be accessed from the Dept. of Agriculture website: https://www.agriculture.gov.ie/farmingsectors/ planthealthtrade/registeringasaprofessionaloperator Registration of Professional Operators and the introduction of a harmonised Plant Passport system across the EU will lead to a more robust system of

traceable plants and plant products in not only Ireland but all over the EU. Plant and plant products which are from an area where a protected zone exists, have a further protection in that the Plant Passport is required to the end user. A protected zone is an area of the EU which is free from a quarantine organism despite favourable conditions for them to establish themselves. The affect of such organisms are also measured in terms of economic, social and environmental impact should the organism become established.

Ireland has 22 of these protected zones which play a major role in protecting our high plant health status.

The information on the Plant Passport is set out under four letters A,B,C,D A: Plant Botanical name B: Plant Health Registration number of supplier C: Traceability code of product D: Origin country of the plant The Plant Passport is standardised throughout the EU, where these letters indicate the same information throughout the EU. As we enter the final phase of lockdown, we hope the industry can build on the work and commitment of a challenging spring and above all for our families and loved ones to be safe in the new normal. ✽

Summer 2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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DESIGN / 07

Patricia Tyrell speaks to fellow GLDA members on their thoughts during the lockdown and on the future of horticulture post-COVID 19

Š GAJUS / 123RF.COM

A

s lockdown came into force, Eamonn Ryan, leader of the Green Party, stood up in the Dail and begged for the garden centres to remain open so people could garden and perhaps produce some of their own food. It may have seemed a little frivolous in the face of a pandemic, but it turned out that he had a closer handle than most on what people would need at this time. People locked down, looked to their own gardens and houses to see what they could do to occupy their time and improve their immediate surroundings; but the tools and materials were not available. Who would have predicted that a business usually fairly low-key would be mentioned most nights on the national news, significant by its absence.

Perhaps it could have been different if it had rained but mother nature gave us the best weather we could possibly have hoped for. Confined to the house, those of us lucky enough to have a garden escaped there whenever possible and took solace in nature. The long dry spell allowed for evenings spent cooking and eating outdoors. Those who had, up to now, considered the garden low on their priority list, were dragging the kitchen furniture out onto the motheaten lawn and averting their eyes from the block walls or broken-down fence in an attempt to escape the house and dine al fresco. With more time to hand they trawled the internet, Houzz and Pinterest for those delicious garden images and dreamed of a garden makeover.

The garden has become the new holiday destination for many this year and holiday budgets are now being redirected. There were a few weeks at the beginning of lockdown when people paused to take stock but what started out as a trickle of new design enquiries has turned into a flood.

Will this sudden and wonderful appreciation of our outdoor space be sustained or will it disappear with the virus? Many will continue to work from home for the foreseeable future. The need for a green and meditative space is unlikely to go away. As a garden designer, I feel that people are now starting to really appreciate the service we provide. The creation of a space that is beautiful and everchanging. A gift that keeps on giving.

LIVING AND WORKING THROUGH A PANDEMIC During this period I have carried out some work remotely. Clients sent me measurements and I sent back the designs. I felt a gaping hole in the way that I worked. From the perspective of efficiency, not leaving the house illustrated how much time is

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DESIGN LESSON A PAND

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2020

07 / DESIGN consumed with client interaction, but conversely how important that interaction is with the client and the site.

The recent rush of enquiries has made me realise the value of what I do each day and the difference it can make to people's lives particularly now. The pandemic has influenced trends. I’ve noticed that people want greener and wilder gardens; bringing them closer to the natural world. What was once taken for granted is now less than certain.

I asked GLDA full members Gary Foran, Lisa Murphy, Kinta Oakes, Elizabeth O’Connell and Marion Keogh how they have fared through the crisis.

HOW HAVE YOU ADAPTED TO THE 'NEW NORMAL' IN TERMS OF DOING BUSINESS? GF: Thankfully working from home is not new to me, so this time of lockdown hasn't been a big culture shock. Equally, a portion of my work has always operated remotely and online. So overall I would say I feel lucky to have been in the right headspace somewhat from the beginning of this pandemic experience.

LM: I have a good list of clients with work on going so finding new work has not been an issue.

I am actually surprised that I have had a few new enquiries during this time.

Being forced to stay in the home office has meant I’ve had time to catch up with a heavy workload. I am working Monday to Friday approximately seven hours a day at an even pace.

Before the pandemic, I had to really manage my time so that I had office time so I am finding that I am producing work at an even pace.

KO: The use of the internet has enabled us to hold meetings with several people at once from our homes. People who didn’t want to know about computer technology have been forced to adapt to this new way of working to keep in contact with colleagues etc.

S FROM EMIC

EO’C: I’ve had time to plan ahead, to take stock of the direction I am going and if I wish to head in another direction. Who knows if I will, but it has given me the time to think. I’ve had time to concentrate on my studies in Social and Therapeutic Horticulture, which I’ve enjoyed and it is making me so aware of how beneficial our profession can be for so many less fortunate than us.

MK: I was lucky that I had a few design jobs to start on just as the lockdown kicked in, so I concentrated on designing all the details and getting the projects ready for delivery once construction was permitted. Technology has been

Summer 2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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DESIGN / 07 the key for effective communication - WhatsApp and Zoom for meetings and sharing files through my Google Drive.

I am also a gardener, so all that work completely stopped until May 18 when I was able to get back to garden maintenance and planting projects. Side passages in clients’ gardens are now crucial to keep a distance rather than coming through a house.

Garden suppliers closed doors but remained virtually open, delivering plants, soil etc - that was a huge bonus.

HOW DO YOU IMAGINE THE PANDEMIC WILL ALTER THE INDUSTRY IN THE YEARS TO COME? GF: A longing to return to what was before will be a natural reaction for many in the horticultural industry.

However, I anticipate changes in how we do business are inevitable as this unprecedented situation continues to unfold. First and foremost, public health and safety is a paramount driving force for this change, which needs to continue to curb the ever-present threat of a 'second wave' of the virus and any potential future pandemics.

LM: There will be less face-to-face meetings, which is good for the environment - less driving. Zoom is the new meeting room for clients and professionals alike and will enable more time for design work in the office.

Until a vaccine is found and the need for social distancing remains, there will be fewer industry gettogethers in large numbers i.e. shows, seminars. We will miss the informal chats with our peers where we learn so much.

Supplies will be slower with the nurseries and building supplies giving longer lead-in times. On-site, times and programmes will be longer and expenses will rise and more PPE will be required: masks, hand gel, flasks of hot water, soap and towel for own use.

KO: As garden designers, I think we should look at the most sustainable way to construct our gardens from hard landscaping to planting. I currently have the opportunity to turn a small town garden into a green oasis of vertical planting, green walls and roof gardens. Underpinning our garden designs should be a theme of sustainability. I have recently completed a planting plan for a business park in the Wicklow Countryside with boundary planting of only native trees and shrubs to increase biodiversity. This is an opportune time to advise and educate our clients about adopting a more sustainable approach to garden design.

Our relationship to nature and its benefits to our health is fresh in all our minds.

EO’C: People have had time to rediscover their gardens and realise how therapeutic it is to garden especially in times of trouble. The only problem is a lot of them don’t really know what they are doing as this is all new to them.

So from a garden designer’s point of view, I feel people will be seeking out professional services to advise and to design their gardens for them.

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MK: Online shopping has been a great help with suppliers who have good websites. Most of my suppliers email me weekly updated availability lists. I have shared this retail information on social media to keep the word-of-mouth going, as I’m not meeting clients face-to-face. The future of the horticultural industry is safe once suppliers and designers have good technological connectivity.

WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNED FROM LIVING AND WORKING THROUGH A PANDEMIC? GF: Over the last couple of months of being somewhat 'cocooned' I've found having fewer distractions tends to focus the mind. Getting to grips with those tasks that were on the long-finger for long enough have now largely been completed such as, software self-training and home office re-organisation. More personal goals have included upping my fitness game and of course getting our own garden up to show garden standard; well, someday! Along with clients, it's been great staying connected with my GLDA colleagues via online meetings and more generally to offer our mutual support as we continue to navigate our collective way through this 'new normal'.

LM: The general public during lockdown have realised that their gardens are an important piece of the home fabric and they are looking to do something about it. It is encouraging that their first point-of-call is the garden and landscape designer and many have found my name through the GLDA website.

Zoom meetings are handy for discussing the design and the finer points, but the initial client meeting and viewing of the garden is so important to feel the essence of the garden and to imagine its potential. It’s uplifting to travel around again to existing client gardens and new gardens of potential clients.

KO: The most positive element of the lockdown was the quieter world; the birds were far more apparent and I enjoyed not racing around. I suppose this is where technology and the likes of Zoom meetings have proved their importance. I also find it interesting with the Green Party initiatives to reduce our carbon footprint by 7%; this should be easier to achieve after re-emerging from lockdown.

EO’C: I’ve learnt my health is my wealth and that of my family. Life does not have to be so stressful.

What makes God laugh is people making plans (never a truer word spoken.) Pandemics are not for the faint-hearted!

MK: An important lesson I have learnt is about my creativity; it can’t just be switched on. It can be difficult to create a garden design when you’re worried about a deadly disease, trying to motivate kids doing school and college exams, extended family members’ illnesses and just not being allowed out to see people. My biggest ‘take-home’ from this weird time is to be kind to me and not put too much pressure on myself to deliver the workload I usually do. ✽

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2020

07 / INTERVIEW 08 /RETAIL

KNOWING IS UNDERSTANDING In today’s unprecedented and uncertain times, it is vitally important to fully understand all the participants in the supply chain; where they are now and where they are heading.

Andy Campbell explains why

T

he last few months have changed garden centre retail forever. Exactly how it will change remains unclear and this will only become clearer over the months ahead. The starting point is to gain clarity on how all the supply chain players are placed.

If you know yourself, your employees, customers, competitors and suppliers then you will understand your business in the widest context and ensure it is highly successful in a rapidly changing world. Let’s explore each one of these elements in turn to understand more about how they contribute to the whole.

KNOW YOURSELF It is important to know, and be clear in your own mind, exactly why you are in business and what you want from it.

This might sound like a statement of the obvious, but it is surprising the number of times this is not the case. This can

result in a lack of clarity and sense of purpose throughout an organisation. Do you have a strategy for growth; are you simply seeking to maximise the return from your existing investment or do you want to get the business in the best shape for an onward sale or transfer to the next generation?

Businesses that do have clarity of purpose tend to be the more successful ones. Invariably, they find it beneficial to write it down. They use it to gain involvement and commitment within the company and adopt it when it comes to external communication. It can also be beneficial to refer to and remind yourself of during those times when you get bogged down in the detail and lose sight of the “bigger picture.”

KNOW YOUR EMPLOYEES Do all your employees know and understand what you are seeking to achieve and how you wish to achieve it? If they do, great; if they don’t, now might be

Summer 2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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RETAIL / 08 a good time to share your thoughts the war that is important not each and with them. A clear and concise aim every battle.

CUSTOMERS or objective that individuals can relate to and get behind helps KNOW YOUR build a tight cohesive team SUPPLIERS all pulling in the same Just like yourselves and direction. It also enables your competitors, the everyone to be clear on suppliers to this indushis or her own role and try will have their own EMPLOYEES RETAILER COMPETITORS objectives and ways of how their contribution adds to the overall busirealising them. It makes ness objective. sense to know what THE DIAGRAM Similarly, do you know these are, on the basis REPRESENTS THE INTERthe motivation of each of that by doing business toRELATIONSHIP your employees to come to gether both parties can help BETWEEN EACH PARTY IN THE work each day? What is their and support each other achieve SUPPLY CHAIN. SUPPLIERS particular mix of needs: reward, their respective business aims. It is security, social interaction, recognition also important to gain an understandor self-esteem? Only by understanding ing of their intentions for developing this do you stand a chance of managing the business, to enable you to select them and their expectations appropricompatible suppliers that view the retail arena but, in my book, fundaately; allowing them to become the emfuture very much as you do. mental. Some garden centre locations ployees you want them to be and to beIn addition, the supply base can be may consider that they have little or no have accordingly, whilst retaining their a highly valuable source of knowledge competition because the location they individuality. With this combination, and information. This might be along serve has no other comparable retail they will be uniquely placed to make a the lines of consumer research, supoutlets for similar products. However, significant contribution to the ongoing ply chain efficiency improvements or there is no room for complacency. sustainable success of the business and general market intelligence to name but Other players can come in, extend their support you in your achievement of the three examples. So it makes good busiown reach and selectively take volume business goals. ness sense to learn as much as you can or compete via alternative channels from them. You can be sure they will be such as mail order and online retailing.

KNOW YOUR CUSTOMERS learning all they can from you.

It is a fact that the last few months have In an ideal world, you would know extaught consumers the importance of actly who they are, where they live, deFINAL THOUGHTS e-commerce in their lives. The mindset tails about their garden, what they have In conclusion, what does all this of being aware but not paranoid about bought from you, what they haven’t and current and future potential competi‘knowing’ add up to? It puts your why. All this requires a lot of research, business into a context and highlights tors is healthy. data capture, storage and managethe interdependency between all the We have already looked at the imment as well as a great deal of time, participants. With a good understandportance of a clear and unambiguous effort and money invested in computer ing of your business objectives; how set of objectives for a business and a systems and hardware, that simply isn’t your employees can help or hinder the strategy for how to achieve them. It is available right now. So at the very least achievement of these; whether your equally important to understand your a drive around your catchment area customers’ needs are being met; the competitors’ ambitions and strateassessing housing stock and garden impact of your competitors on your gies. Not just their actions, but also the characteristics. This, coupled with own business; and how your suppliers reasons behind these actions. Why did some simple entry and exit research of can support you in this endeavour, your they make that promotional decision, customers visiting your centre will give business can only be successful and for example? Are they using it to lead you a good basic understanding of their with in advertising, enhance price pergo from strength to strength in these needs and how they are changing. rapidly changing times. ✽ ception or are they simply overstocked?

Right now, it is vital to start thinking It is quite likely that competitors will about how their shopping habits and have different goals, strategies or have ANDY CAMPBELL behaviours are likely to change in the assessed the customer base differently. is an independent light of lockdown and social distancing Therefore, the right response might not business and what they are likely to expect from simply be to follow suit. An alternative, development garden retailers such as yourself in the more creative approach could be the future. By knowing and understandbest solution. consultant ing your customer base inside-out, it is One thing is for certain, there is little specialising possible to present them with the right point trying to win battles you can’t win in the garden offer in terms of choice, quality, service because you are less well prepared than centre industry with over 35 years’ and value to meet their changing exyour competitor, or they have the upper experience. He can be contacted by pectations and requirements. hand due to a stronger armoury. In the phone: 0044 (0)7788 567011 or email: case of head-on price competitiveness, andy@andycampbellconsulting.co.uk.

KNOW YOUR COMPETITORS deeper pockets count for a lot. Conwww.andycampbellconsulting.co.uk An often-overlooked element in the tinuing with the military analogy, it is

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HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2020

08 /RETAIL

Rory O’Connor explains how going digital can help your garden retail business thrive, despite the pandemic

D

opportunities for many of us. In recent months, many retailers have been fasttracking their digitalisation plans. Getting themselves online to offset some of the damage caused by social restrictions, but also as a realisation that online shopping -

even among the older generation – is fast becoming the norm. Many customers are still wary of venturing out of their front doors, so their first point of differentiation will be a garden retailer whose products are online and can deliver

Many customers are still wary of venturing out of their front doors, so their first point of differentiation will be a garden retailer whose products are online and can deliver.”

© VISIVASNC / 123RF.COM

igitalisation has never been more relevant to businesses within the horticulture sector, thanks to the COVID 19 lockdown. Few areas of the economy have been as transformed as much as garden retail. Even when things have returned to “normal” post lockdown, there are many ways in which retail will probably be changed completely and forever.

The social and economic hiatus caused by the coronavirus pandemic is a major crisis, but it is one that generates new

5 STEPS TO GROW YOUR BUSINESS ONLINE

Summer 2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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RETAIL / 08 Since March, I have witnessed a growth multiple digital channels, so if you have Step 4: See if you can get your of +262% in “Home and Garden” online the time and resources why not try bricks-and-mortar and online sales. With a significant rise of lawnmowusing several selling platforms to move stores to work together ers, garden furniture, barbeques and your bricks-and-mortar store online.

Having both a bricks-and-mortar and an hedge trimmers in online searches.

Doing so will not only allow you to online store is good, but making those Forty-one per cent of shoptest each platform, but you channels work together is even better. pers have received a will get in front of more Modern customers love it when retailers al“Home and Garden” people and potentially low them to shop across multiple channels, parcel during this make more sales. so linking your physical and digital stores pandemic. will result in better shopping experiences People have seen Step 2: Design and happier customers. the benefits of onyour online line shopping and store Step 5: Analyse your store’s “click and collect” One thing to keep performance and make services. There are in mind when improvements accordingly efficiency gains designing a digital Once you have successfully moved your for both sides; the shop is consistency. bricks-and-mortar store online, you then consumer can avoid You want your cusneed to ensure your store performs well. shopping in peak hours tomers to have a similar Therefore, you need to keep a close eye on and shops can plan their experience whether they’re metrics such as your sales and conversion work more efficiently. browsing products in your "CLICK AND COLLECT” rate. These numbers can help you gauge SERVICES OFFERS EFFICIENCY On top of that, setting bricks-and-mortar shop or the performance of your store, so you can GAINS FOR BOTH SIDES © MOMIUS / 123RF.COM up a shop online allows your online store. react quickly. businesses to reach wider So have a look around The metrics available to you depends audiences, be open 24/7, and have more your existing shop and pay attention to on your selling channel. If you have an sales opportunities. any themes or design elements that you e-commerce site and are running Google can bring online. Admittedly, impleAnalytics you have access to a host of data MOVING ONLINE menting certain elements would be a that paint a clear picture of how your store Fortunately, moving your bricks-andlittle harder in marketplaces and social is doing. If you are selling through social or mortar store online isn’t as difficult as you networks, but there are still steps you can online marketplaces, then your metrics will might think. But it does take a measured, take to incorporate your brand into these be limited to what they allow you to see. well thought-out approach that encomselling channels. passes the following five steps: Whichever marketplace you decide to CONCLUSION sell on, be sure to explore their customiSetting up a shop online may take some Step 1: Decide which online sation features, and take full advantage time and work, but when implemented corchannel or platform to use of them. rectly the sales and customer satisfaction To move your bricks-and-mortar store will be well worth it. If you have not set one online, you first need to decide which Step 3: Build and optimise your up yet, now is the time to start exploring e-commerce platform is right for you. De- product pages and researching different ways to move pending on what you’re selling (and who Your product pages are crucial to closing your bricks-and-mortar store online. you’re selling to), you can opt for a fullysales online. Customers often make their It is important for the local horticulture fledged e-commerce store, get a seller’s purchase decisions right on these pages, sector that customers keep buying plants account through an online marketplace, so make them great. The main challenge online and enjoying them in their home or sell via social media. here is making people feel at ease about and garden. By shopping online it allows As a business owner, you should think buying your products online. Unlike in a customers - old or young - to self-isolate about your goals and purposes for selling bricks-and-mortar store, where shopand social distance and have their items online. Is it the simple goal of wanting pers can touch and feel merchandise, delivered, so they can spend more time in to sell more merchandise or building online customers rely on product photos, their gardens. relationships with customers? Is there descriptions and reviews to determine if It would be a pity if small companies disenough time to build and maintain a they should buy an item. appear because huge online platforms take fully-fledged e-commerce site or would it This is why you should go the extra mile over. Shopping local is therefore – along be best to hand over the reins to a third to ensure that your product pages are atwith digitisation - an important contribuparty? These are just some of the questractive, easy to navigate, and compelling. tion after this pandemic. tions every business owner should ask when making the decision.

Another important aspect is to research RORY O' CONNOR is founder and CEO of Scurri, a Wexford-based your customers. Do they shop at online software company that connects and optimises the e-commerce marketplaces? Are they following your ordering, shipping and delivery process. Scurri adds value at business on social media? It is important multiple stages along the e-commerce journey: from helping get to strike up a conversation in-store or chat the purchase over the line in the basket, to selecting the most them up at the checkout counter and see effective delivery option for each package, creating accurate labels, if insights can be gained into their online tracking the packages, and running analytics to deliver insight to shopping habits. support process improvement. Visit: www.scurri.com.

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30

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2020

09 / INSIGHT

BREXIT AND CITES

Noeleen Smyth explains how Brexit will impact the import and export of rare plants between the UK and Ireland

T

he UK Government’s formal rejection in June, of a Brexit transition period extension means that movement of CITES-listed plant and animal species between our two countries will need import/export permits following the UK’s exit from the EU on December 31, 2020.

The movement of listed plant and animal species has not been an issue up until now, as the UK were part of the EU; however from January 1, 2021, the rules will change. This will impact your business significantly if you regularly source CITES-listed plants and bulb species such as snowdrops and orchids from UK nurseries. The UK nursery will need to get CITES export permits from the UK CITES Management Authority and you as an importer may have to get import permits from the Irish CITES Management Authority. As the UK CITES charge for export permits this may add to the cost of your import if the charge is passed on to the importer. The Irish CITES Management Authority does not charge for permits.

For a quick way to find out if the plant you are dealing in and wish to import (or export) is CITES listed, or if you want to know what species are listed, you should access https://speciesplus.net/. Species+ is updated after each CITES and EU CITES trade meeting, and is managed by the United National Environment Programme at the World Conservation Monitoring Centre. Species+ incorporates the latest EU CITES regulations to take account of the changes and decisions made at each CITES Conference.

If you have any queries on imports or exports of listed species they can be directed to the CITES Management

This will impact your business significantly if you regularly source CITES-listed plants and bulb species such as snowdrops and orchids from UK nurseries.”

CITES APPENDIX II ECHINOCEREUS BRANDGEEI.

Authority based in Smithfield, Dublin. (https://www.npws. ie/licences/importexport-trade/cites).

CITES BACKGROUND Ireland and the EU continue to import and export large quantities of wild-sourced plant species; part of international trade in wildlife and wildlife products currently estimated to be worth billions CITES APPENDIX II DENDROBIUM PIERARDII. of euros. Wild plants and animals are imported as live for the pet and horticultural industries, or as parts for use in cosmetics, perfumes, food supplements, musical instrument, timber and medicines. Garden centres are now lifestyle centres selling furniture and even what were traditional hardware stores now sell plants and pets too. Horticulture has expanded into new horizons and new industries have branched, literally, into horticulture.

CITES (The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of wild fauna and flora), came into force in July 1, 1975. Today, over 183 countries (or parties) have agreed to enforce and uphold the Convention which regulates trade in rare and endangered species of wild plants and animals. Plant species make up the majority of CITES-listed species. Today, over 30,000 plant and 6,000 animal species and subspecies are listed on the three different CITES lists or appendices. This means you may need a CITES permit to import and export any of the species listed.

For a species to be listed on CITES it has to meet two

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09 / INSIGHT The most recent EU Wildlife Trade report in 2016 highlighted that of the 3,200 imported CITES taxa into the EU, 2,400 of them were plants. It is estimated that 73% of all global CITES trade with the EU is in plants species.

Snowdrops, cacti, cycads and orchids continue to dominate the trade by number, with Aloe extracts, tropical timber and bark also featuring highly by volume.

Live ornamental plants are the commodity imported in the highest quantities, consisting of wild-sourced snowdrops (Galanthus spp.) and cacti, cycads and orchids. Other notable imports of plants included stems from sago palm (Cycas revoluta), leaves from Rhipsalis, bark from African cherry (Prunus africana) and wax from candelilla (Euphorbia antisyphilitica).

THE APPENDICES

CITES APPENDIX II PITCHER PLANTS.

criteria, firstly they must be rare in the wild and secondly they must occur in international trade. So why would we trade in such rare species you might ask? Well, the answer is well-managed trade can help with both species conservation and sustainable livelihoods. Our most charismatic, most sought after and useful animal and plant species are found in our most biodiversity-rich, but poorer developing parts of our world.

There are 60 plant families with species listed on the CITES’ Appendices, ranging from well-known families such as orchids, cacti, and cycads to more unusual ones such as Didiereaceae, which is an unusual family of spiny succulents from Madagascar and Africa. One of the largest plant families, the orchid family, dominates the CITES listings, accounting for 84% of listed species. Orchids for sale as cut flowers and pot plants represent a trade worth millions of euro and over 39 species of orchids in European trade appear in the components of cosmetic, food and medicinal products.

SPECIES + WEBSITE IS A USEFUL RESOURCE TO FIND OUT IF A PLANT OR ANIMAL SPECIES IS LISTED: WWW. HTTPS:// SPECIESPLUS.NET/

The CITES Appendices are labelled I, II and III. Appendix I species are those directly threatened with extinction and the international movement of these species is only permitted for conservation purposes e.g. slipper orchids. Appendix II species are those which are not immediately threatened with extinction, but for which international trade in them has to be regulated to ensure their sustainability in the wild; e.g. most orchid species, cacti, pitcher plants, rosewood timbers, etc. The majority of trade in CITESlisted species in Europe are for species listed in Appendix II. The bulk of which is from a small number of species such as snowdrops and wild cherry.

To have a species included in Appendix I or II, a two-thirds majority of the 183 parties or countries signed up to the Convention is required. This can only happen at a CITES Conference of the Parties (CoP) meeting which happens every few years. The last Conference of the parties meeting, CoP 18, was held in Geneva, Switzerland in August 2018.

The next is due in Costa Rica in 2022.

Appendix III species are species where countries seek international co-operation to monitor international trade in one of their native species. A country can notify parties of their decision and an Appendix III listing can be initiated by a party to the Convention at any time; e.g. Pine (Pinus koriansus) from the Russian Federation. The party doesn’t need to wait until the next CoP. ✽

CITES IRELAND Ireland ratified and formally became a party to CITES in 2002 and has nationally designated bodies to monitor any trade in CITESlisted species.

The Management Authority is based at the National Parks and Wildlife Service and is part of the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.

This authority has responsibility for the issuance of permits and certificates to facilitate and monitor trade in CITES-listed goods. The CITES Scientific Authority has a responsibility to advise on scientific matters in relation to any listed species and to make nondetriment findings (NDF) when a new species enters trade. CITES enforcement is done through the officers of the Revenue and Customs service as well as through the Conservation Rangers and Regional Management of the National Parks and Wildlife Service.

NOELEEN SMYTH is a botanist and horticulturist. She holds a PhD and Hons Degree in Botany from Trinity College Dublin and Diplomas in horticulture from Teagasc and the RHS. She is currently a Biodiversity and Conservation specialist working at the National Botanic Gardens (OPW).

As part of her current role, she acts as the CITES Scientific Authority for Ireland advising the government on rare plant imports.

Summer 2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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09 / INSIGHT

Dr Brian Murphy discusses how gardeners, landscapers and growers all have a part to play in locking up carbon

THE CLIMATE CHANGE SOLUTION UNDERFOOT CARBON CAPTURE AND SEQUESTRATION TECHNOLOGIES WILL BE REQUIRED ALONG WITH EMISSION REDUCTIONS IF IRELAND IS TO MEET DEMANDING CLIMATE TARGETS.

I

rish soil might be the unsung hero in the battle to mitigate the country’s carbon emissions. Healthy soil ecosystems sequester and store vast amounts of carbon. As Ireland and other nations struggle to meet reduction targets for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, the topic of soil carbon sequestration is raised more and more. However, there are many unknowns around the potential of soils as a quantifiable mitigation tool in the battle to decarbonise. Which is why there is no clear policy or plan from Irish government or Europe on how to account for soil carbon as an offset of our national emission figures.

WHY IS SOIL CARBON SEQUESTRATION RELEVANT? Since Covid-19 restrictions have started to relax the national news (at time of writing) is now dominated by government formation talks. Climate and specifically greenhouse gas emission reductions are a key negotiation point.

By now, most people are aware of the emission reduction goal of 7%; Ireland’s emissions reduction commitments are not new. This goal comes from Ireland’s commitment to the Paris agreement ratified in 2016. Every country in the world signed the Paris agreement which sets out a framework to hold average global temperature increases of less than 2°C

Soil carbon sequestration is the removal of carbon from the atmosphere into the soil in a form that will not be lost easily.”

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INSIGHT / 09 above pre-industrial temperature. Ireland has a target of a 20% reduction in emissions by the end of 2020, compared to 2005 levels. We appear to have failed badly to meet this target and in fact our emissions have been increasing from 2016 through to 2018 (EPA).

To meet targets set out in the Paris agreement, Ireland will need to reduce its emissions 30% by 2030 and the goal for 2050 is net-zero emissions.

To achieve these demanding targets, reducing emissions alone will not be enough. Supporting and implementing ways to capture, sequester and store carbon are crucial. Soil is naturally a huge sink for carbon. Globally, soils hold two to three times more carbon than the atmosphere and twice as much carbon as the world’s vegetation; this includes the rainforests. Yet Ireland’s Climate Action Plan (2019) is very disappointing from a soils point of view with very little mention of exploring or utilising soil carbon sequestration to mitigate climate change.

Recently, the plans to reform the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) look set to include paying farmers to sequester carbon in soils. There is no doubt that agriculture is a huge contributor to Irish GHG emissions, contributing 33.9% of GHGs in 2018 (EPA), but farmers, as custodians of the land, can be the solution to mitigating the problem. The ability of soils to sequester and store carbon also offers all gardeners, landscapers and growers an opportunity to do their part in locking up carbon.

SOIL CARBON PATHWAYS All soils contain carbon. Carbon in soils exists in organic or inorganic forms. It makes up approximately 58% of organic matter in the soil. This organic matter comes from living things or things that once lived. Inorganic carbon exists in carbonate minerals such as calcium carbonate (limestone) and magnesium carbonate (dolomite). Soil carbon sequestration is the removal of carbon from the atmosphere (where it contributes to climate change as carbon dioxide or methane) into the soil in a form that will not be lost easily. For a long time, soil scientists believed that only the organic pool of carbon in soil was dynamic, but now studies have shown that the inorganic pools also fluctuate.

Recent studies have shown that even brownfield sites where the soil is littered with construction materials can sequester carbon as carbonates. This process is known as passive carbon sequestra-

36

tion. In this case, atmospheric carbon interacts with calcium silicate minerals (found in concrete) and carbon locked up in the soil as calcium carbonate (CaCO3). This chemical reaction, which locks up carbon, is also an additional benefit of applying rock dust such as basalt to soils, a popular practice in organic and regenerative approaches.

Plants are made up of 45% carbon (dry weight). Traditional thinking on the carbon cycle is that plants die and decay into the soil and that is how carbon is sequestered. However, as plants live, they sequester huge amounts of carbon.

Through photosynthesis, plants use the sun’s energy to remove CO2 from the atmosphere and convert it into simple sugars. This liquid carbon is exuded through the plant’s roots into the soil where it feeds and stimulates soil microbiology. This carbon is the basis of soil organic matter (SOM). Anyone that works with soil knows the importance of SOM, it provides nutrients, structure, drainage, plant available water, drought resilience and healthy soil microbiome.

Eventually, the bacteria and the fungi in the soil produce humus, which is the holy grail of stable soil carbon.

So, if carbon is sequestered into soil naturally, why do we even need to give it a second thought? The reality is that conventional agricultural and soil management practices have disrupted natural soil carbon sequestration. Overtilling, pesticides, herbicides, chemical fertilisers and monoculture planting are the main cause of breaking the natural

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2020

carbon sequestration cycle. Soil organic matter is decreasing in soils across the UK and Wales; this means loss of carbon. A 2017 report estimated that European countries are losing up to €1.25 billion annually in agricultural productivity due to soil erosion and loss. Soil conservation is not only crucial for sequestering carbon but also our own survival as we depend on soil to produce food.

In his book Dirt: The Erosion of Civilisations, Dr David Montgomery found that the loss of many ancient civilisations was closely linked to the degradation and loss of their soils. The impact of soil loss on civilisations is not just an ancient problem it is still happening today. The soil must be protected.

NATURE BASED SOLUTIONS Methods for increasing soil carbon sequestration are inspired by nature and tend to follow the principles of regenerative agriculture. These principals not only help conserve and sequester carbon but they result in healthier, more productive and resilient soils which will require less inputs and even be more resistant to drought. Some of the practical measures that can be taken include: • Reducing soil disturbance decreases the infiltration of oxygen into the soil. Increased oxygen encourages opportunistic microbes which rapidly breakdown important carbon ‘glue‘ compounds, like glomalin, which binds soil particles together. The disturbance also kills up to 90% of earthworms and destroys hyphae

09 / INSIGHT soils but can also stimulate passive sequestration of carbon through the formation of carbonates in soils.

EXAMPLES OF SOIL CARBON SEQUESTRATION PROJECTS

There is huge potential for Ireland to offset carbon emissions using soil sequestration.”

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from the beneficial fungi in the soil.

Min till or no-till practices are now becoming common in agriculture and no dig practices are proving fruitful in horticulture.

Limit chemical disturbance. Chemical fertilisers, especially inorganic nitrogen and phosphorus, are detrimental to the soil carbon cycle, not to mention water quality. Overuse of these fertilisers disrupts the symbiotic relationship between plant roots and humus-forming microbes.

Chronic use of herbicides and pesticides also damage the soil microbiome.

Cover cropping. Plants put carbon in soil, therefore if there is always a living root in the soil there is always carbon sequestration. Cover crops protect soil from erosion and build soil health and function in the process.

Improve grassland species diversity and management. Plant diversity is also beneficial as a greater diversity of plants result in a more diverse microbiome. How animals are allowed to graze can improve sequestration by ensuring plants are not overgrazed.

Use organic-based amendments.

Organic amendments, as the name suggests, are rich in organic matter.

Stable amendments such as compost put stable carbon in the soil and support a healthy soil microbiome.

Use of rock dust and silica-rich minerals. These add nutrients to

The Jena Experiment, is a long-running experiment in Jena, Germany, looking at the relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem function. It confirmed that plant species diversity increased soil carbon storage in permanent grassland settings. Up to 3.8t/C/ha (14t of CO2 equivalents) was locked up using multi-species grasses alone, instead of monocultures like ryegrass.

The Humus Projekt in Austria has the involvement of over 100 farmers (1,300 ha). The goal is to increase soil organic matter, therefore increasing the soil carbon sink. This project employed min-till, cover cropping, species diversity, compost use and reduced chemical use.

In a five-year period, farmers increased soil carbon corresponding to 60-100t of CO2/ha. Farmers were able to sell carbon credits on a voluntary market to Austrian-based companies such as ALDI, for €45 per credit.

Australia appears to be leading the way in terms of supporting national soil carbon sequestration schemes. Soil carbon credits generated through soil carbon sequestration following regenerative practices are now counting towards Australia's national targets under the Paris agreement.

UNKNOWNS AND NEXT STEPS The reason soil carbon sequestration is not yet a mainstream technique for decarbonisation is likely to be down to its uncertainties. It is not widely understood and it is not straight forward, therefore it has not been thoroughly verified, especially in an Irish context. The main mitigation strategy proposed in Ireland’s Climate Action Plan to remove carbon from the atmosphere is afforestation. Per hectare forestry sequesters 7t CO2 /year.

Being able to attribute a tonnage for carbon sequestered per hectare makes accounting for this carbon offset easy for the Environmental Protection Agency, who calculate Ireland’s emission figures.

Unfortunately, soil carbon sequestration in Irish soil does not have a defined carbon offset value. Research from Northern Ireland’s Agri Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI) has estimated, based on their 50-year trial site, that grasslands could be sequestering 1.1 to 2.2t of CO2/ Ha/year, under certain management practices. Given the Republic of Ireland

has 3.7 million hectares of grassland, even this conservative estimate is a 9 million tonne offset of carbon emissions.

It would be enough to offset carbon emissions from farming by up to 44%.

It is clear there is huge potential for Ireland to offset emissions using soil sequestration. The problem is there are many variables and unknowns when it comes to soil carbon sequestration. Soil type varies widely across Ireland; land use and management also vary. Even the sampling and analysis methods for assessing soil carbon sequestration are not standardised. Currently, in Europe, there is no legislation or guidance on claiming carbon credits for carbon sequestered in soil. Should we measure organic matter, total organic carbon, inorganic carbon or total carbon? Can modelling be used?

There are also question marks over who will pay the landowner for such a scheme. Who will buy/own the credits?

Who will certify the credits? Companies such as the Gold Standard certify carbon credits from projects which sequester or offset GHG emissions. They recently published a framework (2019) for soil organic carbon sequestration, but it’s early days.

In any case the road map for a scheme to claim carbon credits for soil sequestration will require at least: 1. Baseline measurement of carbon in farms or sites signed up to the scheme.

2. Assessment and implementation of various management practices to enhance sequestration.

3. Yearly measurement of soil carbon under various practices for a threeto five-year period.

4. Reporting and verification of soil carbon sequestration.

5. Defined outlets for carbon credits or offsetting of national emission figures.

It is not straightforward but with a predicted future value of €100 per credit, carbon credits could be the next big currency. ✽

DR BRIAN MURPHY is a senior scientist with Enrich Environmental Ltd. (www.enrich. ie). Enrich offer soil sampling, analysis, assessment, management and improvement plans. Including carbon sequestration assessments.

Summer 2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

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LANDSCAPE / 10

A BEGINNER’S GUID

REWILDING

EURASIAN GREY WOLF © NADEZDA MURMAKOVA / 123RF

Féidhlim Harty describes how ‘rewilding’ can produce landscapes with an abundance of plant and wildlife with opportunities for people to thrive socially and economically

W

e are beginning to recognise that if we don't manage our landscapes in a way that supports the natural world we may well find ourselves without all sorts of things we currently take for granted.

'Rewilding' is all about bringing nature back to life and restoring living systems and allowing nature to flourish.

It’s a relatively new term, coined by conservationist and activist, Dave Foreman, and first appeared in print in 1990. He envisaged rewilding as a large-scale affair with two specific prongs: giving the land back to wildlife and giving wildlife

38

back to the land: Giving the land back to wildlife involves devoting sufficient protected space to wildlife so that it can thrive, hand-in-hand with sufficient connection with other protected space to prevent genetic islands forming. Such islands (be they in an ocean, a clear cut rainforest, or small remnant of a raised bog) lead inevitably to extinctions over time if the genetic pool is too small to sustain sufficient diversity.

Giving wildlife back to the land involves reintroductions of keystone species; often apex predators. We have become used to greatly denuded habitats when it comes to top

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2020

10 / LANDSCAPE

E TO

WHY CARNIVORES OR KEYSTONE SPECIES? What ecologists have discovered in recent decades is that without the full complement of species within a habitat, the whole habitat suffers. European bison and other large grazers; predators like wolves and bears; and the dam-building beaver are amongst the species that have been reintroduced into rewilding projects in Europe over the past decade or so.

Wolves and other top predators can be very useful in controlling both the numbers and behaviour of herbivores, as witnessed over the past 30 years in Yellowstone National Park.

Since wolves were reintroduced there, they have essentially kept the deer away from easy grazing along the open riverbank areas. This has allowed trees to regenerate naturally, to the point where the course of the river is shifting and changing as it once would have done naturally before Europeans cleared the plains of large grazers and their predators.

Carnivores are not the only keystone species, however. An initiative at Knepp Castle Estate in England, is an example of a successful rewilding project that relies on the herbivores as the main landscape architects in the project; in a dynamic dance with the emerging plant community. There, longhorn cattle have been chosen to represent the wild cattle of Europe.

Tamworth pigs represent the wild boar. Exmoor ponies stand-in for the extinct European wild horse. Finally, the deer are already wild. Between them these animals dig, graze, forage and browse the vegetation, keeping the succession to forest cover in check and allowing a host of natural habitats to emerge within the estate. Without apex predators, human intervention is needed to replicate their role, and thus animals in Knepp are harvested for meat on a periodic basis to keep herbivore numbers in balance with their habitat.

Salmon are a keystone species in some bioregions such as the American North West, bringing nutrients up from the sea into the forests where they are a valuable fertiliser, transported by bears and people (as long as flush toilets don't undo all the salmon's hard work and flush the nutrients into the rivers again).

Another keystone species is the beaver. Vegetarian in nature, beavers are a quiet, unobtrusive animal, which would have a considerable tourism value in any wilding project. They have been introduced into parts of England and Scotland and have been shown to improve water quality and wildlife value generally. Unlike apex predators and even larger herbivores, beavers are happy in relatively modest areas. They may even be a viable introduction in Irish river systems if a sufficient riparian corridor is first created to ensure that crops and commercial forestry timber are not damaged by damming.

Although not in the fossil record in Ireland, beavers may well have been present here, having swum across from Scotland or Wales in the distant past. We have bone records of bears and stories of wolves, but perhaps this smaller and probably tasty vegetarian mammal didn't leave much trace after providing a meal for newly arrived humans and other hungry animals.

predators and large fauna generally.

In Ireland, we have lost wolves, bears, giant deer, mammoths and other EUROPEAN BEAVER megafauna, through a combination of climatic shifts and hunting since CORE-PROTECTED SPACE humans first arrived here. Keystone species So, how much core-protected space is needed to reintroductions allow the natural predator-prey qualify as a rewilding project? EO Wilson's book, Half Earth, relationships to unfold in a way that supports the whole indicates the scale needed to protect the diversity of life on ecosystem. earth. However in practical terms, many projects will be more These elements of rewilding have been summarised as Core, modest than these continent-scale endeavours. For smaller Corridors and Carnivores. projects, much depends on the area available and on the

Summer 2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

39

LANDSCAPE / 10 them, provide excellent corridors for wildlife. Otters, kingfishers, trout and dragonflies are all wetland species that can thrive in a healthy river system with good interconnections along its length. If carried out with care to protect the wildlife, corridors can also provide the basis for introducing a walking and cycling network to improve local amenities and tourism.

EUROPEAN BISON

keystone species being reintroduced. Since wolves are one of the archetypical rewilding keystone species, let's start with a look at the land area they need. Wolf packs range over areas as large as 50 square miles (or 30,000 acres) – or much more where food is in short supply. So, they are suitable only for the largest of rewilding projects.

To get an idea of the sheer scale involved in supporting such a pack, consider that Knepp Castle Estate in England is 3,000 acres. Wild Nephin Park in Co. Mayo is still well short, at 11,000 acres. Alladale estate in Scotland (where wolf reintroductions are being proposed at present to help regenerate the ancient forests currently denuded by deer) covers 23,000 acres, with plans to double that. So in a nutshell, the core protected area needs to be considerable to support a self-sustaining wild habitat with a full suite of keystone species present.

However, as Knepp has shown, smaller-scale rewilding projects can also offer invaluable wildlife benefits. Smaller still, but no less impressive, is a 250ha enclosure for European bison within the Dutch Kennemerduinen National Park. What is very clear from the experience in both of these examples is that keystone species can take the form of large herbivores; as long as some management input is ensured to replace the role of predator. In essence, the smaller the land area, the more human intervention needed to compensate for the lost species at the top of the food chain.

So perhaps rather than asking the question of how much space is needed? We could ask, how much space is available?

Whatever the size, there can be benefits on multiple levels: creating a valuable public amenity, generating economic value, supporting biodiversity, carbon sequestration and improved water quality and hydrology.

CORRIDORS Corridors between core-protected spaces are an essential component in the overall rewilding of our landscapes. In Ireland, we are blessed with a dense network of hedgerows, which provide invaluable corridors to bees, bats, small mammals and other fauna.

As with hedgerows, many Irish and European habitats have evolved over centuries hand-in-hand with human management practices. Farming in a way that supports wildflowers, insects, birds and other species offers a space for wildlife to thrive and to navigate through the landscape. It also plants the seeds of appreciation in our minds, so that when we create new coreprotected space within our landscapes on less productive land, we will have already created safe corridors in our farmland, through which animals can pass.

Rivers and streams, and the riparian wetlands alongside

40

STEPPING FORWARD On the 10 or so large-scale rewilding projects in Europe, there have been concerns from the farming community about the impact on their livestock, livelihoods and whole way of life. Yet careful project planning and implementation and working handin-hand with landowners, can allay many of those fears. Recent farming-for-nature projects in Ireland have had great success with this process, being farmer-led. These support landowners financially to make changes that are healthier for wildlife on their farms. The fact that our main agricultural payments system actively excludes spaces for wildlife on our farms can be our greatest opportunity for creating positive changes in these coming years. It's such an easy one to overhaul and offers so many benefits for farmers and wildlife that it could be changed in the morning to create immediate win-wins.

Whether at the level of core-protected space, corridors through the landscape or by exploring suitable keystone species reintroductions, rewilding may be an answer to many of the questions being raised at present in our society. How do we halt mass extinction? How do we reverse climate breakdown?

How can we manage our waterways to better prevent flooding? Why is our topsoil becoming ever more degraded and eroded? What do we need to do to clean up our drinking water, rivers and lakes? Will farming be possible without pollinating insects? Are there diverse, healthy ways to create livelihoods on the land?

We have become used to a narrative in which our impacts are inevitably damaging. This need not be the case. Humans are termed a hyper-keystone species; such is our impact on the landscape. In many instances, European colonists have decimated cultures that had survived many thousands of years by working hand-in-hand with what nature provides, rather than trying to impose their will on the landscape. As we look at the wreckage of our own consumption-driven culture and its impact on the world around us, we could learn much from the wisdom of those societies that see the earth as a sacred being, to be loved and protected rather than suppressed and pillaged.

Partnerships between land and livelihood are our future. The biodiversity success of the Burren Programme in Co. Clare lies in the long evolution of the wildflower-rich landscape, born of grazing by large herbivores and traditional livestock management practices. By carefully adopting or returning to measures that support local flora and fauna, we can move forwards to a countryside that supports all of nature; human and non-human alike.

The more we learn about the natural world, the more we realise that people need what nature offers rather than the other way around. In meeting both our own needs and those of the rest of the natural world we could be on the cusp of something truly beautiful. ✽

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2020

FÉIDHLIM HARTY is director of FH Wetland Systems and a writer. His most recent books are Permaculture Guide to Reed Beds and Towards Zero Waste. www.wetlandsystems.ie

11 / RESEARCH

TAKING STOCK Andy Whelton outlines the main actions in the production of the popular scented cut flower, Stock, following recent trial work

S

cented or Column Stock (Matthiola incana) is a member of the cabbage family (Brassicaceae) and native to the Canary Islands and parts of southern Europe (Mediterranean). Given the interest from retailers and florists for Irish cut flowers, Teagasc Horticultural Development Department carried out trials in an unheated protected structure to determine suitability for production.

SITE AND FACILITIES In its native habitat, Stock is hardy and grows in full sun on free-draining, slightly alkaline soils. A side ventilated polytunnel in a free draining mineral loam soil of pH 6 was used for our trial. A glasshouse would be equally suitable. Overhead irrigation or ground level trickle tape irrigation is necessary in aiding establishment after planting and during the vegetative

growth phase of the crop. A layer of wire support to keep the stems straight, circulation fans and cold store facility for post-harvest storage are also important.

Soil sterilisation prior to planting is recommended to ensure freedom from weeds and soil pathogens. A soil analysis should also be taken prior to planting to determine precise nutrition requirements - base dressings of Nitrogen (N) as Calcium Ammonium Nitrogen can be applied at up to 8 kg/100m2. Crops can be given extra feeding in the form of top dressing or liquid feeding as necessary.

The crop is generally grown on the flat where a 1m wire mesh (12.5cm x 12.5cm) is rolled out over the bed and stakes placed at 2.5m-3m intervals. The stakes and wire mesh support the crop as it grows.

Stock can be grown at 70-80plants/ m2. Ensure transplants are not planted too deeply and water well in to ensure good contact with the soil.

RANGE OF COLOURS Stock varieties for the cut flower market have been bred to produce double flowers along the flower stem or ‘column’ in a range of colours. The ones used in the trials were: Aida – White; Carmen – Yellow; Figaro – Lavender; Figaro – Rose Light – Pink and Opera Francesca – Rouge. Module plants were purchased from specialist Dutch plant raiser: Florensis BV.

CROP CONTINUITY To ensure continuous cropping, it is important to understand crop scheduling techniques. Production time of Stock crops will vary depending on planting dates and weather conditions.

Warm weather will reduce crop production time, however, hot weather can induce flowering before plant stems

'FIGARO' IS A POPULAR LAVENDER COLOURED VARIETY OF STOCK.

Experience suggests that a net return of €6/m2 is achievable from the crop with a supply of regular volume over at least 15 weeks.”

Summer 2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

41

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11 /RESEARCH have reached the required length. Under normal growing conditions, crop production will take 8-13 weeks depending on planting date (see table). Each crop will flower for 1 to 2.5 weeks allowing three or four separate cropping ‘picks’ until all marketable stems are harvested.

The ideal growing temperature for Stock is 15C to 24C during the day and 7C to 13C during the night. The difference between day and night temperatures is important to produce the required stem length. The Teagasc experience suggests that a mid-May harvest is possible from an early March planting in a polytunnel.

A glasshouse facility is required if you require flowers earlier in May. Experience suggests that cropping until late September /early October is possible in a tunnel with sequential plantings during the late spring /early summer.

Planting Date

Calendar Week

Harvest Date

Harvest Week

Weeks

1 March

9

21 May – 30 May

21-22

12-13

22 March

12

4 June – 14 June

23-24

11-12

5 April

14

11 June – 20 June

24-25

10-11

19 April

16

21 June – 28 June

25-26

9-10

3 May

18

2 July – 11 July

27-28

9-10

24 May

21

16 July – 25 July

29-30

8-9

7 June

23

30 July – 8 Aug

31-32

8-9

14 June

24

6 Aug – 15 Aug

32-33

8-9

28 June

26

20 Aug – 5 Sept

34-35-36

8.5-10

12 July

28

31 Aug – 23 Sept

36-37-38

8.5-10.5

become an issue over time with heavy cropping. It is a soil-borne pathogen that prefers warm conditions, ideally 23C to 25C. It can result in significant losses with the crop wilting and dying and is the subject of research in the UK at the moment.

PESTS AND DISEASE THREATS

STAGE OF HARVEST

Aphids, caterpillars and slugs should be monitored for and action taken if necessary. Downy Mildew and Botrytis may cause problems and a spray programme will have to be implemented. Fusarium is the other major disease threat which can

The stems are ready to harvest when four or five flowers have

STAGE OF HARVEST IS CRITICAL AS SHOWN HERE IN 'AIDA WHITE'.

opened. They should be 55cm to 65cm in length. Earlier harvesting will reduce shelf life. The most commonly used harvest technique is to pull stems including the plant roots. Stems are then bunched (normally five per bunch) with lower leaves and roots trimmed off. The stems are sleeved and placed into buckets of water.

As Stock produces one flowering stem per plant, it is expected that 50 to 60 stems/ m2 will be harvested depending on planting density and the occurrence of disease. Taking 10% waste, experience suggests that a net return of €6/ m2 is achievable from the crop with a supply of regular volume over at least 15 weeks. The species can be double-cropped during high season. ✽

ANDY WHELTON, a specialist in ornamental cut foliage crops in the Teagasc Horticultural Development Unit, continues his series of articles on the agronomy and screening work on innovative novel plant material being trialled for use in the floristry trade at Kildalton Agriculture and Horticultural College, Pilltown for use in the floristry trade.

Contact Andy Whelton: andy.whelton@teagasc.ie SCENTED STOCK TRIAL IN A POLYTHENE STRUCTURE.

Summer2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

43

RESEARCH / 11

EURO-TRIAL REPORT:

HIBISCUS

Paul Fitters reports on the results of a threeyear Euro- trial that compared 56 Hibiscus syriacus cultivars for general performance 44

F

rom 2016 to 2018, 56 Hibiscus syriacus cultivars were compared for general performance at Pat Fitzgeraldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s nursery in Co.

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2020

Kilkenny. The same cultivars were tested in several European countries as part of the Euro-trials.

The Euro-trial group consists of participants from Austria, Belgium,

11 / RESEARCH The Netherlands, France, Germany, England, Finland, Ireland and recently also Iceland. The aim of this group is to test cultivars of a particular plant species under different climatic regimes.

The same cultivars are tested in all countries. This research is similar to the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) Award of Garden Merit (AGM) trials in the UK, but with a broader climatic range. Plant species tested so far are Weigela, Vinca, Hydrangea and Buddleia.

Currently Physocarpus and Spiraea trials are on-going and the Hibiscus trial is just finished and reported on in this article.

SET UP AND ASSESSMENTS

WHITE MARGINS DUE TO COLD

The grafted Hibiscus syriacus cultivars were provided by Minier Nursery in France and arrived in each country in the autumn of 2014. In Ireland they were planted (56 cultivars * 3 replicate plants each) at Pat Fitzgerald’s nursery in Co. Kilkenny. After establishment the plants were assessed for three years on general shape and health, but mainly on flower power (quality, abundance and period of flowering). Plants were marked between 0 and 10 for each category by a panel of assessors from the industry, WIT/ Teagasc college lecturers and students.

RESULTS In Ireland, the plants came into leaf very late (May) and early leaves were often yellow with white margins (see photo).

The white margins stayed on these leaves but disappeared out of sight with new leaves appearing.

There were no general health issues with the plants. The plants were never sprayed. Aphids and leaf spots did appear on some plants but were never a real problem. The same could be said about die-back of twigs which was found in some cultivars in year one, but to a limited extent, and plants quickly grew out of it. As a result the combined mark for general health and shape is mainly a mark about the shape of the plant. Some plants were more upright than others while others were more spreading in habit. There were also differences in compactness.

There was a big difference in flowering quality between the cultivars, as well as in abundance and weeks of continued flowering. Flowering also varied per year of assessment with some cultivars doing well one year and not another. Some variation could also be attributed to the actual day of assessment, as a cold or wet week had a big impact on the flower quality.

H. SYRIACUS ‘MINSPOT‘ (PINKY SPOT).

PHOTO: PLANTS AND PICTURES

H. SYRIACUS ‘MINDOUB1’ PBR (FRENCH CABARET PASTEL). PHOTO: PLANTS AND PICTURES

The mark shown in Table 1 is a threeyear average.

The flowering period varied from 0 to 7 weeks. All plants produced flower buds, but some failed to properly open (on assessment days) and early on in the season some cultivars dropped their buds. Cold and wet weather (summer 2017) meant that the flowers did not always open and often got spoiled by the wet. Colder nights the day before opening also inhibits opening even if it is sunny the next day. This could account for the reduced performance in Ireland compared to some European countries such as France and Austria where Hibiscus can flower well from June until October. Despite this, some interesting cultivars have been identified that even look good when in bud, such as ‘Mindour’ (French Cabaret Red). Other cultivars tolerate wet weather better and flowered well, such as ‘Minspot’ (Pinky Spot).

The 12 best performing cultivars, with each colour (white, pink, blue and red) included, are given in Table 1.

The overall best performing H. syriacus cultivar was ‘Minspot’ (Pinky Spot) PBR. It had a long flowering

period of over seven weeks, and overall the highest score for both flower quality and plant shape and performed consistently well in all three assessment years.

H. syriacus ‘Minspot‘(Pinky Spot) has simple white flowers with red heart and white stamens. Second best of the white with red heart cultivars was the semidouble flower H. syriacus ‘Mindoub1’ PBR (French Cabaret Pastel). Other good performing cultivars were ‘Mathilde’, ‘Melrose’ and ‘Leopoldii’ the latter has double flowers which looks good even in bud, but flowers sometimes fail to open fully).

H. syriacus ‘Mindour1’ PBR (French Cabaret Red) came out as best red/ maroon flowering cultivar. It has double flowers that often failed to open properly under the Irish weather, but as a result had a long-lasting effect. H. syriacus ‘Duc de Brabant’ PBR came out second best of the red flowering cultivars.

H. syriacus ‘Notwood two’ PBR/AGM (White Chiffon) came out as best white flowering cultivar. It is a semi-double.

H. syriacus ‘Eléonore’ PBR came out as second best white flowering cultivar.

Summer 2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

45

RESEARCH / 11 Hibiscus syriacus cv. (+ selling name)

Colour

Flower quality and abundance

Flowering period (weeks)

Health and shape

‘Minspot‘ (Pinky Spot)

Best overall white/pink

6.8

7

6.6

‘Mindoub1’ (French Cabaret Pastel)

white/pink

5.7

3

6.2

‘Mathilde’

white pink

4.8

6

5.5

‘Melrose’

white/pink

4.3

5

5.4

‘Leopoldii’

white pink semi double

5.4

0*

5.8

‘Mindour1’ (French Cabaret Red)

Best red double

5.2

3

6.5

‘Duc de Brabant’

red

5.3

0*

6.0

‘Notwoodtwo’ (White Chiffon)

Best white

5.2

3

5.8

‘Eléonore’

white

4.5

6

4.7

‘William R. Smith’

white

4.1

7

3.9

‘Minultra’ (Ultramarine)

Best blue

4.5

5

4.6

‘Notwood3’ (Blue Chiffon)

blue

3.5

4

4.2

TABLE 1: HIBISCUS SYRIACUS CULTIVARS PERFORMING BEST IN IRELAND (OUT OF 56 CULTIVARS TESTED) BASED ON FLOWER QUALITY AND FLOWERING PERIOD (LENGTH IN WEEKS WITH OPEN FLOWERS) AND OVERALL HEALTH/SHAPE. VALUES ARE THREE-YEAR AVERAGES (MARKED OUT OF 10)

The flowering lasted about six to seven weeks and their growth was moderate.

Another good white cultivar was H. syriacus ‘William R. Smith’ AGM, a single white long flowering cultivar.

The blue flowering cultivars in general did not score as well as the

white or pink flowering ones. Of the six cultivars tested, H. syriacus ‘Minultra’ (Ultramarine) PBR came out as best blue flowering cultivar. The flowering period for all six blue cultivars was about five weeks and their growth was moderate.

Second best of the blue cultivars was

H. SYRIACUS ‘NOTWOOD TWO’ PBR/AGM (WHITE CHIFFON).

PHOTO: PLANTS AND PICTURES

the semi-double H. syriacus ‘Notwood3’ (Blue Chiffon) PBR/AGM. There was not much difference between the six blue flowering cultivars.

In hindsight, the site chosen for the Hibiscus trial was not ideal as it was exposed and hence at times windy and cold. Hibiscus likes a sheltered and warm site to do well. On the other hand all cultivars were exposed to the same, sometimes challenging conditions, so a comparison could be made and a selection of the best suited for general Irish conditions could be made. If the same cultivars were grown in a more sheltered and warmer spot (e.g. in city gardens), they are likely to do better.

The top 12 cultivars are grown on in the Teagasc, Ashtown campus to assess just that.

The performance of the Hibiscus cultivars in Ireland was not as impressive as their performance say in Belgium or Austria, and this is reflected in a lower overall marking. In Table 2 you can find a list of all the cultivars tested and the rating they got in five other countries.

In this table the rating is reduced to a star system (0 to 3 stars) for easier comparison. It shows the value of Eurotrials as different cultivars perform well in each country. There is even a difference between Ireland and the UK, despite having a comparable climate.

CONCLUSION

H. SYRIACUS ‘MINDOUR1’ PBR (FRENCH CABARET RED)

46

H. SYRIACUS ‘ELÉONORE’ PBR. PHOTO: PLANTS AND PICTURES

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2020

Despite not doing as well in Ireland compared to other countries with warmer summers, the above mentioned plants in Table 1 did well and could be very useful garden plants in sheltered locations.

I would like to thank Minier nursery for proving the grafted Hibiscus cultivars, Pat Fitzgerald for providing the space in his

11 / RESEARCH Final results

Austria Belgium Germany Ireland

Netherlands UK

Rating

Rating

Rating

Rating

Rating

Admiral Dewey

**

**

*

0

0

America Irène Scott (Sugar Tip)

*-**

***

0

0

*

0

Aphrodite

0

0

0

0

0

**

Ardens

*-**

*

*

0

0

*

Boule de Feu

0

**

*

0

0

0

Bricutts (China Chiffon)

***

0

***

*

0

**

Britreize (Kimono)

*

0

*

**

0

**

Coelestris

**

0

**

0

0

**

Collie Mullens

*

**

*

0

*

0

Diana

**

0

**

0

*

**

Duc de Brabant

*

**

**

**

0

0

DVPazurri (Azurri)

*

**

**

0

**

**

Eleonore

**

0

*

**

***

**

Flogi (Pink Giant)

*-**

**

**

0

*

*

Floru (Russian Violet)

*-**

*

**

0

0

**

Freedom

**

0

*

0

*

*

Gandini Santiago (Purple Pillar)

**

0

*

0

s

0

Hamabo

*

*

**

0

0

**

Helene

*

***

**

**

*

**

Jeanne d'Arc

**

***

*

0

0

*

Jwnwood4 (Pink Chiffon)

**

0

***

0

***

**

Kakapo

**

0

0

0

0

Lady Stanley

**

0

**

0

**

*

Lenny

*

0

*

0

0

*

Leopoldii

*

0

*

**

0

0

Maike

**

0

**

*

0

*

Marina

**

**

*

0

*

***

Mathilde

*

0

*

**

0

**

Mauve Queen

*

*

*

0

*

*

Meehanii

0

0

s

0

s

**

Melrose

**

0

*

*

*

***

Melwhite

**

0

0

0

0

*

Mindoub1 (French Cabaret Pastel)

*

***

*

*

0

*

Mindour1 (French Cabaret Red)

*

**

*

**

*

**

Mindouv5 (French Cabaret Purple)

**

0

***

**

**

*

Mineru (Eruption)

*

0

**

0

***

**

Minfren (French Point)

**

*

**

*

*

*

Mingravi4 (B'twist Lavender)

***

0

***

*

**

***

Minomb (Sup'heart)

***

*

**

0

**

***

Minpast (Pastelrose)

*

0

*

0

0

*

Minrosa (Rosalbane)

**

0

*

0

*

*

Minspot (Pinky Spot)

***

0

***

***

**

***

Minultra (Ultramarine)

*

*

**

*

0

***

Notwood3 (Blue Chiffon)

*

**

***

0

*

***

Notwoodone (Lavender Chiffon)

**

0

***

0

***

***

Notwoodtwo (White Chiffon)

***

0

***

*

**

***

Oiseau Bleu

**

0

**

0

0

**

Puniceus Plenus

*

0

*

0

0

0

Red Heart

*

*

**

0

0

***

Rubis

0

0

*

0

0

0

Sanchonyo (Purple Ruffles)

**

**

**

0

*

*

Snowdrift

**

0

*

0

Speciosus

**

***

**

0

**

**

Stadt Erlenbach

*

**

*

0

0

0

William R. Smith

*

0

**

**

Woodbridge

0

0

**

0

0 ***

** **

Rating

*

H. SYRIACUS ‘MINULTRA’ (ULTRAMARINE) PBR. PHOTO: PLANTS AND PICTURES

H. SYRIACUS ‘NOTWOOD3’ (BLUE CHIFFON) PBR/ AGM. PHOTO: PLANTS AND PICTURES

nursery to do this trial, Bord Bia for paying the Eurotrial membership fee, Teagasc for providing me with time and resources to organise the trial and finally all the assessors for giving up their time to assess the cultivars so professionally. ✽

DR. PAUL FITTERS is a lecturer at the Teagasc College of Amenity Horticulture in the National Botanic Gardens since 2003.

He is co-ordinator of the Eurotrials in Ireland and organiser of the Chartered Institute of Horticulture, Young Horticulturist of the Year competition.

TABLE 2: HYBISCUS SYRIACUS EURO-TRIAL RESULTS OF SIX EUROPEAN COUNTRIES.

Summer 2020 / www.horticultureconnected.ie / HORTICULTURECONNECTED

47

RESEARCH / 11

SHOTHOLE STUDY MAKES NEW DISCOVERIES Helen Grogan shares Teagasc/UCD research findings into one of the most visible Cherry Laurel diseases

C

herry Laurel (Prunus ‘Rotundifolia’ hedgerow, so 1.

2. laurocerasus) not all shothole symptoms are is an important caused by the same organism. plant species for They may be a generalised nurseries and cutresponse to infection, although foliage growers. The cultivar this hypothesis needs ‘Rotundifolia’, used widely further research. for hedging, is the main one Worryingly, Xanthomonas 3.

4. propagated in nurseries and is arboricola pv. pruni, a an important plant for export destructive pathogen of stonetrade. The cut-foliage sector, on fruit Prunus species worldwide, such as peaches, apricots and the other hand, mainly grows plums, is also known to infect the cultivar ‘Etna’ along with Cherry Laurel and produce smaller amounts of ‘Caucasica’ a shothole like symptom. and ‘Novita’.

SHOTHOLE SYMPTOMS ON DIFFERENT CULTIVARS OF P. LAUROCERASUS Currently, it is absent from the One of the most noticeable 28 DAYS AFTER INFECTION WITH PSS. PHOTO 1: ‘ROTUNDIFOLIA’; PHOTO 2: UK, which has ‘Protected Zone’ diseases to affect Cherry 'NOVITA'; PHOTO 3: 'ETNA' AND PHOTO 4: ‘CAUCASICA’. status, meaning it restricts Laurel is shothole, which is other blemishes. In 2017, the predominant imports of Prunus plants to countries predominantly caused by the bacterial organism associated with disease that also have Protected Zone status. In pathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv symptoms was the Pss bacterium, with Ireland, the Department of Agriculture, syringae (Pss). Researchers at Teagasc 28% of samples testing positive for the Food and the Marine is seeking ‘Protected and UCD have been working on this diagnostic syringomycin B gene (n=320).

Zone’ status for Ireland, which would disease for the past three years and Shothole symptoms can vary from be a distinct advantage for the sector, have made some interesting discoveries. distinct 'shotholes' to leaf-edge necrosis, facilitating the growth of exports of P. Leighton Smith, a Masters student at making the recognition of symptoms laurocerasus cultivars for hedging.

UCD, studied the epidemiology of Pss on more challenging. Six per cent of samples In conclusion, from a plant health Cherry Laurel and found that the cultivars were associated with a fungus identified perspective, most shothole symptoms ‘Rotundifolia’ and ‘Novita’ displayed the as a Neofabraea sp., the first time this has on Cherry Laurel in cut foliage most severe symptoms while ‘Caucasica’ been recorded on P. laurocerasus (photo plantations and nurseries are caused was the least susceptible to shothole 2), while the known P. laurocerasus fungal

by Pseudomonas syringae pv syringae disease and ‘Etna’was somewhere in pathogen, Eupropolella britannica, was but other bacteria can cause similar between (photo 4). Abiotic factors isolated from just two samples. Many damage so vigilance is needed to ensure such as wounding (e.g. pruning, wind/ samples yielded no pathogen, most that Xanthomonas arboricola pv. pruni insect damage), exposed sites and mild likely because once shotholes have is not imported on plants coming from temperatures were all found to promote formed, the pathogen has been excised outside non-protected zones. Ireland shothole disease and may account from the plant and is no longer present. is well-placed to embrace sustainable for why the disease can be prolific in Interestingly, another bacterial species, Xanthomonas-free P. laurocerasus nurseries and cut-foliage plantations. To Micrococcus aloverae, was isolated production for both cut foliage sustainably reduce the occurrence of from shothole symptoms on an infected and hedging. ✽ shothole, growers may need to consider providing more shade for Cherry Laurel (e.g. interplanting with taller species) This work was led by HELEN GROGAN, Teagasc and ANGELA or to counteract ‘wounding’ effects by FEECHAN, UCD and was funded by the Department of reducing pruning events and protecting Agriculture, Food and the Marines’ competitive research from insects. programmes. Helen is a Senior Research Scientist in Teagasc’s Horticulture Development Department. Her main research focus DISEASE-CAUSING ORGANISMS is mushroom science but she also contributes to research for the Brian McGuinness and Danielle Boland at Cut Foliage and Hardy Nursery Stock sectors. Helen co-ordinates Teagasc surveyed 11 commercial Cherry Laurel plantations and seven nurseries in a DAFM funded research project called ‘New Leaves’ which is a systematic manner to obtain diseased looking at pest and disease issues of Prunus laurocerasus as well as propagation material, and to identify the pathogens techniques for hard to propagate species. Helen.grogan@teagasc.ie associated with shothole symptoms and

48

HORTICULTURECONNECTED / www.horticultureconnected.ie / Summer 2020

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Check out than our website We are much more Polytunnels! www.cwp.ie

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Let the Experts Find The Right Staff for your Business COLM WARREN POLYHOUSES Kilmurray. Trim . Meath 046 954 6007 info@cwp.ie

Ballough, Lusk, Co. Dublin Tel: 01 843 8521 www.whitesamenity.com Email: info@whitesamenity.com Contact: Noel Walsh Mob: 086 049 4836 Andy Robinson Mob: 086 045 3135

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Amenity SeedS FertiliSerS SprAyS HArdwAre work weAr pitcH cAre

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WEB DESIGN

NURSERIES

MEET, SHARE & LEARN… Membership to the friendly, sociable and supportive Professional Gardeners’ Guild offers a wealth of opportunities to engage with like-minded individuals.

Enjoy garden visits, study tours, job and legal advice, and keep bang up-to-date via our website and journal.

PRI NT & WEB DESIGN 6 Shaw Road, Sag Harbor, NY 11963

For more info visit: www.pgg.org.uk

WHY BECOME A MEMBER OF THE RHSI? Receive three issues of the RHSI’s Journal per year ● Visit private gardens rarely open to the public ● Go on tours overseas ● Enjoy free or discounted entry to 32 partner gardens throughout Ireland ● Attend lectures, workshops, floral art demonstrations, and seminars with national and international speakers ●

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Tel: +353 1 493 7154

Email: info@rhsi.ie

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The Home of Ireland’s Leading Garden Designers Want To Become A Member?

Call +353 (085) 876 0203 or E-mail: info@glda.ie

BRAND NEW

Residual herbicide STRATEGIC AGILITY FOR THE IRISH MARKET

Pre-emergent residual herbicide Valdor® Flex is a new residual pre-emergent herbicide controlling a broad spectrum of weeds for up to 4 months

Key

product benefits

// A total, residual, pre-emergent herbicide // Combines new and trusted active ingredients Iodosulfuron and DFF // The 2 active ingredients have a complimentary effect for greater weed control // Residual effect for up to 4 months // Great tool for resistance management // Convenient 500g (1Ha) and 10g (200m2) pack sizes // Can be mixed with glyphosate or fatty acids for post emergent control

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from the team at www.es.bayer.co.uk

All information contained herein was deemed correct at time of print. Published February 2020. © Bayer Crop Science Ltd. Valdor® Flex contains 360g/kg diflufenican and 10g/kg iodosulfuron-methyl-sodium (PCS05882) use plant protection products safely. Always read the label and product information before use. Pay attention to the risk indications and follow the safety precautions on the label. Valdor® Flex is a trademark of Bayer.