DIY simple seedling watering carton

I found several versions of this idea on the web. Pierce a milk carton top with a hot needle or fine drill and use to water seedlings which tend to get washed out by watering cans. Ideally you should water from below but it's not always possible and this idea will provide a gentle shower for your new plants.

Blackthorn blossom

It's great to see some blackthorn blossom in the hedgerows at last. Whiter (and earlier) flowers than the hawthorn, these bushes will produce sloes later on in the year.

Great plant supplier at Kilkenny Market each Thursday

http://www.facebook.com/CaherhurleyNursery

All plants are Irish grown outside so are hardy. Most cost only €3 so you can go mad and fill a bag.
Got my comfrey from them. Support independent nurseries!

Vegetables for the Polytunnel and Greenhouse

For Irish gardeners, most gardening books are 'optimistic' in their sowing dates, based as they usually are on the warmer and drier UK climate. At last a tried and tested polytunnel vegetable book has arrived from expert Leitrim gardener Klaus Laitenberger.

Klaus's new book, "Vegetables for the Polytunnel and Greenhouse" compliments his excellent earlier book "Vegetables for the Irish Garden" This fresh release is specifically aimed at growing vegetables under cover (and in the idiosyncratic Irish climate)

Click the link below to buy both books direct from Klaus's website:

http://www.milkwoodfarm.com/buy-the-books.html

     

GARDENING Comfrey – the plant that keeps on giving

GARDENING Comfrey – the plant that keeps on giving

I finally got some comfrey plants from a Dutch plant-seller in Kilkenny Market (he's there every Thurs).
It will make natural fertiliser once it gets going. Prince Charles uses it at Highrove I heard. I has to be propagated by taking root cuttings and has been developed for organic gardening. See link above for more info on this excellent plant. This link is for propagating comfrey (YouTube)

Herbs & Salad in the polytunnel

I've overwintered some herbs in pots and re potted them as they have outgrown their containers. Also shown is newly sown salad (with sand to deter any rogue slugs that might have got in). The advantage of growing in containers is that they can be moved out the damn way when the tomatoes, peppers and chillis go in later.

 

I have a nice old book by Percy Thrower where he wages chemical warfare on a variety of pests. Never without a shirt & tie, Percy gave a certain gentlemanly air to gardening. I remember him on Gardener's World when I was a kid, my parents being big fans.

Tea Up!

My daughter & helper Roisin had a great idea the other day in the poly. Why not bring the camping stove & kettle into the poly for a nice cup of tea? We duly did so and the tea tasted great! Although we didn't get to go camping last year we can at least enjoy the best part of it - tea under cover! Does it get any better than this? I don't think so..

Polytunnel runner beans

I use toilet roll inners to start off my beans, peas, sweet peas, carrots etc. They make transplanting easy as the pots decompose in the ground. You can split them with a knife to hasten the process. Here are my runners as of today in the polytunnel.