This Weeks Premium Jobs in Horticulture Ireland

EPA Publishes Final 2010 Figures For Ireland's Greenhouse Gas Emissions

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has today released final Greenhouse gas emissions figures for 2010, following input data from a range of State Agencies including Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI) and CSO.

Read more: EPA Publishes Final 2010 Figures For Ireland's Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Armagh Bramley Apples Get EU Protection

Armagh Bramley Apples have been awarded Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) status under an EU scheme which promotes and protects names of quality agricultural products and foodstuffs.

Read more: Armagh Bramley Apples Get EU Protection

Supernemos, Secret Garden Centre & Bord na Mona Winners at Green Awards 2012

The 2012 Green Awards took place before a packed audience of the top echelon of Ireland’s green business professionals, with Risteard Cooper, of RTÉ's Apres Match, presiding over the glittering awards ceremony.

Read more: Supernemos, Secret Garden Centre & Bord na Mona Winners at Green Awards 2012

Woodstock Trees and Shrubs Pleased with Met52 Biopesticide Results

Woodstock Trees and Shrubs is based in Carbury in County Kildare the premier nursery stock production area in Ireland and is a member of the Kildare Growers producer group who have been the drivers behind the very successful Kildare growers show for over 21 years.

Read more: Woodstock Trees and Shrubs Pleased with Met52 Biopesticide Results

When Marriage is Good for Your Genes

Botany researchers recently published a paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA showing that marriages within small farming communities in Africa may influence the genetic diversity of manioc.

Read more: When Marriage is Good for Your Genes

Dail Horticulture Questions - Community Employment Schemes

Tommy Broughan (Dublin North East, Labour) To ask the Minister for Social Protection if she will review the decision to cut funding to a critical addiction prevention service in Dublin 17 in view of the fact that the organisation has already had to cut some of its very successful programmes including its horticulture programme and that it also lost a third of its Department of Education and Skills grant three years ago; if she will indicate the level of funding that will be provided for the organisation as they are currently unable to budget for upcoming programmes; and if she will make a statement on the matter.

Read more: Dail Horticulture Questions - Community Employment Schemes

Becausewecare™ Compostable Seedling Pots Now Available in UK

The becausewecare™ range of compostable seedling pots is now available in the UK. The pots are initially available online through the British Plant Nursery Guide and in two award winning garden centres, Coolings Garden Centre in Kent and Perrywood Garden Centre in Essex. This innovative product has also been entered in the 2012 Chelsea Flower Show ‘RHS Chelsea Product of the Year’ award, with the winner announced at the show in May.

Read more: Becausewecare™ Compostable Seedling Pots Now Available in UK

Schools Investigate Consumer Buying Behaviour

Loughry Campus provided the opportunity for sixth form students, from schools across Northern Ireland, to become consumer experts for the day as they investigated the effect of marketing techniques employed by the food industry on consumer buying behaviour.

Read more: Schools Investigate Consumer Buying Behaviour

Notcutts Promotes Benefits of Coffee as Garden Fertiliser

Notcutts has teamed up with Greencup Coffee in an exclusive deal to provide the garden centre chain's customers with a unique, recycled coffee garden fertiliser that uses beans from coffee sold at its Notcutts centres.

Read more: Notcutts Promotes Benefits of Coffee as Garden Fertiliser

Kearns Fruit Farm Launch a New Website

Kearns Fruit Farm are pleased to announce the launch of a new website at www.kearnsfruitfarm.ie. Kearns Fruit Farm, based in Enniscorthy Co. Wexford, is one of Ireland’s leading suppliers of strawberries and raspberries to a variey of retailers throughout the country.

Read more: Kearns Fruit Farm Launch a New Website

Teagasc National Berry Seminar and Trade Show 2012

Sponsored by Bord Bia and the Irish Soft Fruit Growers Association
Date: Tuesday, 1 May 2012
Venue: The Dolmen Hotel, Carlow
Industry Trade Show: 2pm - 6pm
Seminar: 6.45pm - 9.15pm

Read more: Teagasc National Berry Seminar and Trade Show 2012

HortiTrends Weekly Comment & News Digest April 26th

John Lord continues his series on plant issues with 'I Got a Batch of Betula Pendula' which is telling nurseries that plant identification is king and results in the garden centres reputation being damaged when the wrong tree or plant is sold to a customer.

Congratulations to all those representing the horticulture sector including Supernemos, Secret Garden Centre & Bord na Mona Winners at Green Awards 2012. It's a prestigious and well known award that will be of great benefit to Supernemos as they spread their wings into the UK market and further afield.

Finally we bring you our first Dail Horticulture Questions - Community Employment Schemes. It's one of the cutback scandals that many very worthwhile horticulture related CE schemes are in danger of closing. It seems that government is happier to have people on the dole rather than maximising the benefits that these schemes bring to the community and to the participants and their self-esteem. I know of many people who have turned around their lives due to being on a successful community employment scheme.

Read more: HortiTrends Weekly Comment & News Digest April 26th

A Road Map to Sustainable Agriculture

An independent commission of scientific leaders from 13 countries has released a detailed set of recommendations to policymakers on how to achieve food security in the face of climate change.

Read more: A Road Map to Sustainable Agriculture

Thousand Farms and Rural Businesses to Benefit From Grants

Around one thousand rural farms and businesses will soon turn business plans into reality as the first grants from the new £20 million Farming and Forestry Improvement Scheme are approved by Defra, Farming Minister, Jim Paice announced recently.

Read more: Thousand Farms and Rural Businesses to Benefit From Grants

GIY Profile - Ballymaloe Cookery School

Ballymaloe is the only cookery school in the world that is located in the middle of a 100-acre, organic farm of which ten acres are devoted to organic market gardens, orchards and greenhouses. Students learn to cook with a large variety of the freshest ingredients - for instance, we grow over 40 different types of tomatoes alone!

Read more: GIY Profile - Ballymaloe Cookery School

Teagasc / DAFM National Bioenergy Conference 2012

The annual National Bioenergy Conference, organised by Teagasc and the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, (DAFM) is taking place in The Hodson Bay Hotel, Athlone.

Read more: Teagasc / DAFM National Bioenergy Conference 2012

Start Your Career in Food or Horticulture With CAFRE

CAFRE will be holding open days for anyone curious about a career in food or horticulture. If you are considering a career in the food industry then come to the open day at Loughry College. Loughry offers courses in Food, Nutrition and Health, Food Technology, Food Management and Marketing, Food Design and Nutrition and Communication.

Read more: Start Your Career in Food or Horticulture With CAFRE

7th Aughty Earth Day Gathering

Preparations are underway for the 7th Aughty Earth Day Gathering. The Aughty Earth Day Gathering is organised each year in a different location by a local group. The event was previously held in Crusheen, Kilchreest /Castledaly, Woodford, Tuamgraney, Gort and at Lough Graney in 2011.

Read more: 7th Aughty Earth Day Gathering

Slugs and Snails by Rónán Ó Snodaigh

Over the coming year we will be publishing a series of poems from Rónán's book of poetry The Garden Wars.

Slugs and Snails

Killing them seems only to encourage them
And if reincarnation is the cause of their return
Maybe they are embittered with their lot

Read more: Slugs and Snails by Rónán Ó Snodaigh