Horticulture
Is an Apprenticeship in Sportsturf Management a career option for you?
Is an Apprenticeship in Sportsturf Management a career option for you? The first apprenticeship in Sportsturf Management is due to commence in September 2023. It is a two year course leading to a Higher Certificate in Sportsturf Management QQI Level 6. Learners can apply via Teagasc and SOLAS. What does a Sportsturf […]
31 July 2023
Innovation drivers in horticulture
0 Innovation drivers in horticulture Dermot Callaghan, Head of the Horticulture Department, examines some of the challenges and opportunities facing the horticulture sector. With a €521 million farm gate value, the horticulture sector is spread across two key sub-sectors – horticulture food (€417 million) and amenity horticulture (€104 million). The sector is diverse […]
9 July 2023
Beautiful plants which thrive in acid soils
Beautiful plants which thrive in acid soils One of the great beauties of the late-spring garden is the abundance of acid soil loving plants doing their thing. Chris Heavey, Lecturer at the Teagasc College in the National Botanic Gardens, has many favourites and first among them is Magnolia, which comes in evergreen […]
25 June 2023
Beyond Peat, potential peat alternatives for Irish horticulture
Beyond Peat, potential peat alternatives for Irish horticulture To highlight the work being done to meet that challenge, we spoke to the core Beyond Peat Mushroom team: Senior Research Officer Helen Grogan, Technologist Brian McGuinness, Specialist Advisor Donal Gernon, and Research Officer Eoghan Corbett. Peatlands are natural reservoirs of carbon and biodiversity, […]
25 June 2023
Ripe for the picking
Ripe for the picking Seeking to bolster the market for Irish apples, a new screening project will develop in-depth blueprints of customer preferences, allowing growers to focus on producing the most desirable varieties. The market is ripe for the development of Ireland’s dessert apple sector. Across the globe, demand is increasing for […]
12 June 2023
Success for Teagasc students at Swiss landscaping competition
Success for Teagasc students at Swiss landscaping competition Two Teagasc students, Niall O’Brien, Kildalton Horticultural College, and Eoighan Mountaine-Barry, College of Amenity Horticulture, Botanic Gardens, won the People’s Choice award at a recent landscaping competition in Switzerland. Niall and Eoighan are Level 6 Advanced Certificate in Horticulture students and were selected to […]
28 May 2023
Flying the Teagasc flag at a landscaping competition in Switzerland
0 Flying the Teagasc flag at a landscaping competition in Switzerland Two Teagasc students, Eoighan Mountaine-Barry from the College of Amenity Horticulture, Botanic Gardens, and Niall O’Brien, Kildalton Horticultural College, will represent Teagasc in a landscaping competition at the Valais College in Switzerland this weekend. Supported by Teagasc staff from both colleges, the […]
5 May 2023
Developing an Irish apple sector
Developing an Irish apple sector A research orchard has been established in Teagasc Oak Park to support the development of an Irish apple sector. Planted in April, one third of the orchard consists of a variety trial with 48 apple genotypes, including sports of Gala, Jonagold, Elstar and several apple scab resistant […]
30 April 2023
Gardening tools: Think before you buy
Gardening tools: Think before you buy Chris Heavey, Lecturer at the Teagasc College at the National Botanic Gardens, explains why the secateurs and the spade are the two gardening tools he can’t do without in this article. Pruning a tree or a rose bush requires a secateurs, a loppers and perhaps a […]
23 April 2023
Horticultural input price inflation continues in 2023
Horticultural input price inflation continues in 2023 In recent years, input price inflation in the horticulture sector in Ireland has taken a firm hold. It has its roots in Brexit, the Covid pandemic, and more recently the illegal Russian invasion of Ukraine. Teagasc has taken a snapshot of input prices in March […]
21 March 2023