Saturday April 21st 2012 at 10am in the Claregalway Hotel, Claregalway. Registration from 9.30am.
Our Speakers are Klaus Laitenberger, Dermot Carey, Trevor Sargent and Kay Sinnott.
Klaus Laitenberger
Klaus is well known to new and established vegetable growers in Ireland. His book Vegetables for The Irish Garden has become the bible for GIYers as it’s easy to read format and the fact that it is geared towards the Irish climate have made it a practical manual for anyone who wants to grow their own in this country. His new book, Vegetables for The Polytunnel and Greenhouse is sure to follow the same path to success! You can read more about Klaus on his website.
At the Gathering, Klaus will talk about Growing Vegetables in the Irish Garden. A lot of gardening books, seed packets etc… give growing advice for a UK climate. As we all know, our climate is different and Klaus will tell us everything we need to know to help us grow successfully in our Irish gardens.
Kay Synott
Kay Synott of Living Gardens is a qualified horticulturalist, school gardening specialist and garden designer with a particular emphasis on organic and wildlife gardening. Kay gives gardening courses and workshops and is also involved in community garden projects and environmental education in Co. Galway. She is a regular contributor to the gardening programme ‘Garraí Glas’ on TG4.
At the Gathering, Kay will talk about: Designing and Planning a Kitchen Garden Learn all you need to know about setting up a kitchen garden: from assessing your soil and site, garden layout, siting polytunnels/greenhouses to crop planning.
Dermot Carey
Dermot is the former Head Gardener at Lisadell House and is currently working with Mount Falcon Garden and The Walled Garden of Harry’s Restaurant in Inishowen. Harry’s is a multi-award winning restaurant and is unique because it sources all of it’s ingredients from the Inishowen area. Harry’s are growing all their own vegetables under Dermot’s stewardship in their beautiful walled garden. Dermot is also well known for his knowledge and interest in Potatoes. He gives courses in organic growing and also writes a monthly column for The Sunday Business Post.
At the Gathering, Dermot will talk about What to Sow and Grow in your Garden now. He will also talk a little about growing potatoes and The Three Sisters—the companion planting of sweetcorn, runner beans and squashes.
Trevor Sargent
Trevor Sargent has been growing fruit and veg for thirty years, mostly in his small patch called Trevor’s Kitchen Garden. He is also a volunteer in the walled garden at Sonairte, the ecology centre, Laytown, Co. Meath, which he co-founded in 1988. He was a Green TD for nearly twenty years and recently Minister for Food & Horticulture. He has now published (along with 25 guest GIYers), a week-by-week illustrated guide to growing and storing your own food, from a small garden. The book is called ‘Trevor’s Kitchen Garden’ and it accompanies an interactive website www.trevorskitchengarden.ie All proceeds from the book go to SEED, the Schools Earth Education Network of organic centres countrywide, which works closely with GIY Ireland.
At the Gathering, Trevor will talk about Growing in a Small Irish Garden. He will open our eyes to the amount of food we can grow regardless of the amount of space we have available.
Other things happening on the day!
• Presentations from the experts on keeping hens bees and pigs
• Pop up GIY Group
• The GIY Potting Shed
• The GIY Shop
