Muintir na Tire School Garden Competition

  Cork School Garden 2022 focus on Ballincurrig  National school This week we focus on Ballincurrig National school from South West Cork. The judges were very impressed by the  potential here and the great involvement by parents,  the b ug hotel and the outdoor classroom space with lots of recycling and colour.  The window boxes  planted were also nice. Congratulation to all involved in Ballincurrig National School. Enter for 2022/23 here

  Cork School Garden 2022 focus on Aghabullogue National school This week we focus on Aghabullogue National school from West Cork.  The judges were very impressed by the growing in the classroom, plant sale and great potential  for more use of raised beds. Congratulations to all involved at Aghabullogue National school. Enter for 2022/23 here

  Ballymoney National School wins Cork County & Gaelscoil na Dúglaise wins Cork City Muintir na Tire Schools Garden Competition 2022   The staff and Pupils of Ballymoney National School Ballineen are thrilled to be Cork County Overall Winners with Gaelscoil na Dúglaise Douglas winning the Cork City Overall Winners at the Cork County Federation Muintir ná Tíre School Garden Awards 2022 which were held in County Hall on Wednesday June 22nd 2022. The Competition is in its tenth year after a brief halt during covid and this year saw a record amount of entries. The enthusiasm and high standard and quality shown from all the schools proved to the Judges that the project continues to be a huge success. The competition involves each school developing/planning a garden in their own way.  Both adults and students work together to decide what type of garden they want to create. The competition encourages all students to get involved in working in the garden and the competi...

“When you grow your own food, you savor it more because of the effort and love  it took to get to your family table. There is nothing as  rewarding as picking your own fruit and vegetables.   Also growing your own food has many health benefits It helps you eat more fresh fruits and vegetables. You decide what kinds of fertilizers and pesticides come in contact with your food. It lets you control when to harvest your food. Vegetables that ripen in the garden have more nutrients than some store-bought vegetables that must be picked early. The Blueberry is the Super berry Blueberries So simple to grow and so good to eat. These berries are absolutely delicious whether eaten fresh or cooked. They grow to approximately 1 metre high, or a little lower if grown in containers. The best soil to use grow the plants in is a lime free compost, with some slow release tablets added. Here's a useful tip: it is best to grow two varieties of blueberry to...

Sweetcorn Why Grow It? Sweetcorn takes up a good deal of space and gives a relatively low return – just two cobs per plant – it can also be difficult to grow well in Ireland given our relative lack of sun.  But the sheer pleasure of harvesting a fresh cob of corn and the incredible sweet taste make it worth a try.  They say you should run from the veggie patch to the kitchen when you harvest sweetcorn to cook it immediately – this is because as soon as you pick it the sugars in the corn immediately start to turn to starch and so the flavour is degrading literally by the hour.  So in other words – you will never taste anything like homegrown sweetcorn Sowing Sow indoors in small pots about 2-3cm deep – one seed per pot.  Delay sowing until May.  They will need temperatures of 20 degrees celsius so a warm sunny windowsill or a heating mat is required.  Harden off well before planting out. Growing Plant out the seedlings when they are 8cm tal...