News - Page 13
Happy National Poinsettia Day! Gardeners around the world celebrate our favourite Christmas flower each year on 12 December, paying tribute to this exotic beauty that for many encapsulates the essence of Christmas.
National Poinsettia Day
December 12 is the Dia de la Virgen in the plant’s native Mexico, where poinsettias have been used to celebrate Christmas since the 17th century and are known as La Flor de la Nochebuena, or Flower of the Holy Nig...
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Ireland’s government is getting behind our beleaguered bees and asking businesses to do their bit to plant nectar-rich plants and provide habitats for pollinating insects.
Protect our Bees
The launch of the initiative is the latest step in the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan, identifying actions everyone can take to help protect pollinators – responsible for helping 78% of Ireland’s plants flower and set fruit.
Steps businesses can take incl...
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On a brisk, clear December day there’s nothing nicer than working up a warm glow outside in the garden. Here are the jobs you can get on with this month:
General tasks:
Clear out old seed packets to make sure you aren’t sowing seed that’s past its best next spring. Treat yourself to new replacements from the seed racks in the garden centre.
Avoid walking on the lawn on frosty mornings as you can end up d...
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Grow microgreens on a bright windowsill indoors and you can keep your green fingers busy right through the winter as well as providing yourself with some really scrumptious freshly picked and home- grown salad greens even when the garden outside is frozen.
Microgreens
Microgreens are veg eaten at seedling stage, when they’re extremely tender and the flavour is fiercely concentrated into a little taste explosion, It’s the very latest in cutting-ed...
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Bird tables at the ready: it’s almost time for Birdwatch Ireland’s annual survey, known as the Garden Bird Survey (GBS), enlisting the public’s help to chart the fortunes of Ireland’s birdlife from year to year.
Birdwatch Ireland
The GBS starts in December, with about 1000 people sending in records each year. All you have to do is keep a note of the highest number of each bird species visiting your garden each week through winter, and submit...
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This year’s autumn colour display has been pronounced ‘beyond spectacular’ by one of the country’s leading autumn gardens, the Batsford Arboretum in Gloucestershire.
Autumn Colour
‘The arboretum always colours well, but this year I’ve noticed certain individual trees that are looking beyond spectacular with intensely bright colour,’ said director of operations Stuart Priest.
At Stourhead in Wiltshire, famous for its autumn displa...
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Results from this year’s Big Butterfly Count are in – and the majority of butterflies are continuing to struggle with populations of most species falling, and some at their lowest numbers since the count began.
Big Butterfly Count
More than 36,000 people took part in the count this year, spotting about 390,000 butterflies over the three-week recording period in midsummer.
The Gatekeeper, Comma and Small Copper butterflies experienced their...
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Planting trees can cut urban air pollution by up to 24% according to a new study by US think tank The Nature Conservancy.
Planting Trees
Researchers measured microscopic particles of pollution near trees and compared them to particulate counts in areas where there were no trees growing. They found levels were between 7% and 24% lower near trees. The study also found that trees caused a ‘cooling’ effect, reducing air temperatures nearby by up to 2...
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Store your surplus maincrop carrots to keep them in good condition for eating later in winter.
Store Carrots for Eating Later in Winter
Seasoned veg growers sow two types of carrot: sweet, tender early carrots which mature in double- quick time to pull fresh and eat straight away, and slower-maturing maincrop varieties to harvest all at once in late autumn for winter stores.
Main crop carrots include some of the most delicious varieties there...
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Ireland’s gardens are blazing with autumn colour and it’s a fantastic time of year to set off for a bracing walk around some of the best to collect inspiration to take home for your own garden. It’s also prime time for planting new trees and shrubs – so if your garden is short on autumn fireworks bring your notebook to the garden centre here in Youghal after your visit and we’ll help you create a display to end the year with a bang!
The National Bot...
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