News - Page 12
Set off your flowers to perfection by planting a hedge this month. Filtering out the wind can turn a garden from windswept hillside to cosy flower haven; hedges also provide homes for wildlife and soften boundaries to a gentle green that’s the ideal backdrop for brightly-coloured perennials. Choose from deciduous hedges which drop their leaves in winter, such as elegant native beech or hornbeam; sturdy evergreens like yew for year-round shelter; or for a more natu...
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Ireland’s snowdrop season is about to begin, with gardeners all over the country itching to see the first shy white flowers opening their slender petals from this month onwards.
Snowdrop Season
Ireland is famous for its snowdrop collections, with some of the finest to be seen anywhere opening to visitors throughout early spring. The biggest and best of the snowdrop festivals is held at Altamont
Gardens in Co. Carlow, which has been building...
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The humble garden gnome is under threat, according to a new survey which found gnomes are a top target for thieves.
Garden Gnomes Need Your Help!
Four out of five gnome-owning households have lost at least one resident to gnome-nappers in the last five years, with the north of England a particular blackspot for unexplained disappearances. In the north-east, the average owner has lost nearly four gnomes in the last five years. The safest places for gn...
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Grow super-early potatoes by starting a few tubers in a potato sack about now under cover for a tasty treat ready weeks earlier than those you’ll be planting outside in March.
Grab a Pack of Seed Potatoes
You’ll need a couple of potato sacks, multipurpose compost and potato fertiliser from our garden centre here in Youghal, plus a pack of our super-early seed potatoes: varieties like ‘Rocket’ and ‘Swift’ are known for being really quick t...
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There’s no denying that January can be a bracing month in the garden – but it’s also the start of an exciting new season, and there’s plenty to get on with outdoors.
General tasks:
Lag outdoor taps with bubble-wrap insulation or hessian to prevent damage in freezing weather.
Remove snow from the roofs of greenhouses and polytunnels to prevent it building up and damaging the structures.
Ornamental gardens:
Feed Christmas...
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Give the greenhouse a good scrub and you’ll not only work off all that Christmas overindulgence – you’ll also get a warm glow of satisfaction from getting a job done which really pays dividends later in the year. You'll winkle out overwintering pests from their nooks and crannies, and by washing off all the algae and dirt you'll also let in lots of light: you need every bit you can get at this time of year.
Clean Your Greenhouses
You'll need an...
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Happy Christmas to all our customers! It's a wonderful time to celebrate all that's good about gardening, so just for fun here's a Christmas challenge to try while you're recovering from all that turkey.Your mission is simple: think of as many plants as you can with a Christmassy theme in the name. Here are a few to start you off:
Christmas Plants Challenge!
- Christmas cactus: reliable and undemanding houseplant with a profusion...
Ireland’s Christmas tree growers have launched their ‘Love a Real Tree’ campaign, aiming to highlight the benefits of choosing a real Christmas tree for your home this holiday.
Love a Real Tree
They’ve put together a website packed with tips and advice for choosing and looking after your real tree this Christmas, as well as plenty of reasons why you should opt for a real tree this year.
Top of the list of the many benefits of real Iris...
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