The soil or compost you use in your school vegetable garden is the single most important part of the project. Vegetables are demanding as plants go, after all we we expect quick growth and lots of cr ... … Soil or compost for a school vegetable garden

I spent a good bit of time in the vegetable garden this weekend as the skies were blue for a change which made working outdoors a pleasure. I was also able to have a good snoop about without getti ... … The Quickcrop Vegetable Garden in July

With so many available options causing confusion for novice gardeners here are some simple suggestions for anyone planning to grow vegetables. Herb Garden Preferably planted close to the kitch ... … The Top 5 Gardening Ideas for Beginners

Last weekend I was back in the polytunnel and sowed a few trays of seeds which I wanted to start on the heat bench (onions and leeks). It is still very early days but there are seeds that can be sown ... … February in the Quickcrop Vegetable Garden

Klaus Laitenberger is the man behind'Green Seed Company' which is a select range of vegetable seeds picked for vigour, disease resistance and flavour. Klaus has also written our two favourite gardeni ... … Organic Gardening with Klaus Laitenberger

Small Garden Ideas Vegetable growing should be available to anyone even if you have have a very small urban garden or no garden at all. Small urban gardens can be just as productive as larger suburb ... … Urban Planters - Small Garden Ideas

I know I mentioned feeding your soil in some detail at the end of August, but it really is the best thing you can do for your garden at this time of year. Layers of organic matter - which may includ ... … The Vegetable Garden in October

I can't believe I am already writing about the vegetable garden in August, where has all that time gone? I don't know what the weather is like where you are but we are seeing cooler, showery days whi ... … August in the Quickcrop Vegetable Garden

As you may know I keep in touch with Dermot Carey (ex head gardener at Lissadell House) and like to hear about the projects he is working on in his travels around the country. Dermot works as a con ... … Burtown Kitchen Garden Diary - Dividing and Planting Rhubarb

Urban gardening often involves having to make the most of small spaces. Just how much space you have to work with will depend on circumstance, but it’s possible for even an apartment-dweller t ... … Urban Gardening Tool Essentials

Last week the blog included some tips on starting a new vegetable garden and, judging by the emails I received (thank you), a number of you found it very helpful (fantastic!). With that in mind, I ... … Growing tips for beginners

Whether you have a large garden or a modest balcony, what better person to speak to about making your space more wildlife and nature-friendly than someone who's just written a book about the subject ... … Attracting Wildlife to Your Garden - an interview with Donna Mullen

We are now very close to being able plant out seedling plants outdoors or to be able sow directly in the garden soil. Please be aware, however, that despite the recent sunny weather, it has been a co ... … Late April in the Quickcrop Garden 2021

The unwelcome garden visitors that come back every year. Here's a rundown of who they are and how to send them away. SlugsThese garden molluscs, along with their close relative the snai ... … Top Ten Garden Pests

This weekend showed some real promise with blue skies and the first fleeting traces of heat from the sun. As you see from the photo (taken on Sunday morning) the wind had also dropped leaving the lak ... … February 2018 - Vegetable Garden Update

The news from the Quickcrop garden could be described as 'mixed'. Outside, a mind boggling amount of slugs continue to eat everything in sight despite my best efforts at control. On a more ... … Early May in the vegetable garden

It is has been an interesting year in the Quickcrop garden with a hot and dry start followed by plenty of rain. The overcast or rainy days have not been much use for ripening tomatoes but has been gr ... … September in the Vegetable Garden - Feeding and protecting your soil

Garden 'pests' are the scourge of many a gardener - it can feel like they’re taunting you and all your careful work as they infest, burrow into and devour crops or plants. In these kinds of ... … How To Attract Beneficial Insects To Your Garden

Weed control options If you saw the state of my garden right now you would laugh your head off that I have the cheek to talk about weeding, it has never looked so bad (too much wandering a ... … Controlling Annual and Perenniual Garden Weeds

What to sow or plant in September - it's not too late! I have included below some good things to sow or plant out as vegetable seedlings in September. Most of the varieties mentioned are available a ... … Plants for the Autumn Vegetable Garden

What is a Polytunnel? A polytunnel is an elongated, semi circular-shaped tunnel made out of polyethylene. They come in a wide variety of sizes, and they can be something of a game changer in a mild, ... … A Beginner's Guide to Polytunnel Gardening

If you’re just thinking about starting your first vegetable garden, you might feel like you’ve missed the boat or that it’s the wrong time of year. Fair enough: many gardeners see ... … Is It Too Late To Start A Vegetable Garden in August?

Well, it's been a while. I always have great intentions to write more articles every month but time seems to slip by so easily with the day to day business at Quickcrop. Yes, I am the same person who ... … The Vegetable Garden in Early Spring

As you know, September is about the final act in the vegetable garden when we harvest many of our crops and prepare the soil for winter. This week I have had a quick run around the garden to check in ... … September in the Quickcrop Garden

Onions have to be one of the easiest crops to grow and will reward you with delicious crisp bulbs with a homegrown flavour all their own. Onions can be grown from seed but the easiest way to cultivat ... … Planting early onion sets in January

This week we are back in the vegetable garden to look at growth towards the end of the season and to make sure we get the best possible harvests before the cold weather arrives. While August can seem ... … Late August Garden Update & Protecting Your Soil.

This year I have slowly begun to move my garden into the field in front of my house by extending the lawn and creating a new orchard. The area is small as fields go, about 2 acres, but makes a large ... … Preserving wild areas in your garden

As we move towards the beginning of May, things really start to move in the vegetable garden. Up until this point there have been very few seeds we can sow outside or seedlings we can plant out but t ... … April 30th Garden Update - Seedling Sowing Tips

July is a fabulous time in the garden with so much glossy new growth and tasty young vegetables. Don't forget there is still plenty of things you can sow now, the warmer weather giving the added adva ... … Your garden in July

Firstly, thank you to anyone who mailed me last week to let me know you found our most recent article on plant feed for container growing useful. It is always great to hear from anyone out there, wha ... … The Quickcrop Garden in Early June

Pricking out tomato and chilli seedlings This week I have started pricking out and potting on my tomato seedlings, you can see the tomatoes happily growing away in the photo above. There are a coupl ... … Mid March 2021 Vegetable Garden Update

Since I've been slow in the vegetable garden this year (which has recently turned from a wet and miserable prospect into a sun kissed paradise) I am very interested in what I can sow or plant right n ... … Mid June in the Vegetable Garden - What to sow

This week I would like to talk about succulent plants and flowering perennials, as both give me something to do while the vegetable garden sleeps. First though, I thought we might start with a couple ... … Stuff for gardeners to do in winter.

Due to a relatively dry end to last week I had thought the worst of the weather was over. I said as much on Facebook (and nearly caused an International incident) but today, it seems, the rain is bac ... … The Quickcrop garden in March - dealing with a wet Spring

Using school raised garden beds We would strongly recommend using timber raised vegetable beds for your school garden for a number of reasons, the biggest from the teachers point of view is they ... … How to build a school raised bed vegetable garden

We are often asked about the pros and cons of raised bed gardening, and how raised bed kits can help you overcome space or soil limitations. And since there's a good chance you're asking yourself (o ... … Gardening With Raised Beds: Frequently Asked Questions

I must admit I'm finding it a little difficult to write my usual enthusiastic post today as my garden isn't quite the paradise it normally is at this time of year. I don't know where you are but her ... … The Vegetable Garden in August - What to grow in Late Summer

This week we have our second installment of the Burtown Kitchen Garden Diary where we see Dermot building a new polytunnel on the site to broaden the choice of fruit and vegetables destined for the ... … Burtown Kitchen Garden Diary – How To Build a Polytunnel

Whether you're moving into a new build or you're looking to improve an existing boundary that has deteriorated, the thorny (pun intended) question of fencing vs hedging is likely to come up. Th ... … Garden Fencing vs Hedging: Pros and Cons

I am afraid we have had to close the Quickcrop site for 3 days and not taking any new orders until Friday. As I think I explained last week we are down to a small team of core staff who are doing all ... … March 31st Vegetable Garden Update

As you know the Quickcrop research bureau never sleeps. Our aim is provide you with the best products for your garden but also to back them up with plenty of useful information. If there is a me ... … Fish for Small Garden Ponds

When choosing bare root hedging for your garden, a number of different factors can come into play. Your number one priority might be privacy, creating a natural windbreak, or ease of maintenance. Ho ... … The Best Wildlife Friendly Hedging for Gardens

I can't tell you how much of a relief it is that the weather has warmed a little and that there is no frost forecast for this week. As you may know I am filming our new vegetable growing course this ... … Growing Peas and Beans in the Quickcrop Garden

Urban Planters / Container Gardening for vegetable growers. An image blog post. Wooden Wine Boxes make great little planters for herbs and salads. Vertical farming with herb containers. Any wall or ... … Growing Vegetables In Urban Planters - Container Gardening

Well folks, I am back from my week's holidays loafing around with the day to myself. If anyone is interested, I was in Oysterhaven, a pretty spot on the sea in county Cork. The idea was to have an id ... … The Quickcrop Garden in Mid June

I took a few photos while the sun was out at the weekend which I might as well show you. Above you can see the beds covered in seaweed which has started to rot down. It starts off a mustard brown col ... … Photos from the Quickcrop Garden in January

I was working my way around my garden yesterday, checking on things and harvesting a bit of this and a bit of that. As I worked my way through a few small jobs I thought you might like to see what ... … Vegetable Harvesting guidelines - A trip round our garden.

Be Realistic! I'd give the same advice to any new gardener - to start small with easy to grow crops. A school vegetable garden also has the holidays to take into account so unless you have ... … What to grow in a School Vegetable Garden

A raised bed can provide the perfect environment for creating a herb garden. It can be positioned anywhere that suits you and can be maintained easily. A selection of plants can be mixed for a div ... … How to Create a Raised Bed Herb Garden

Whether it’s homegrown or store-bought, compost plays a vital role in the health of your soil, and healthy soil makes for healthy plant growth. But you may be asking yourself: What is the bes ... … When Do I Add Compost To My Garden?

I took the above photo on Friday morning on the last day of my holidays. It shows Gurteen bay in Co. Galway on another gloriously sunny day. For the first time ever the weather went my way, with nea ... … How to Irrigate your Garden During a Hosepipe Ban

I thought we'd start the garden update with a couple of photos taken last evening while having a walk on a local bog. The photo above is of Eriophorum angustifolium or bog cotton (oddly, th ... … The Quickcrop Garden in Early June 2020

As you know my top priority is keeping you happy so when I noticed a sunny spell outside the office window I sped over to the Quickcrop garden to take some photos. I was concerned, you see, that you ... … Early August in the Quickcrop Vegetable Garden

You know when you meet someone at a party who you've never met before you have to try quite hard not to ask them what they 'do' to get the conversation going? Similarly it's nigh on impossible not to ... … The Spring Vegetable Garden, Looking After Your Soil.

Garden Update I am making some progress in the garden this week with a few tips coming to mind which hopefully you will find helpful.The first tip I have is get a tractor! Readers from last Autumn m ... … April 20th Garden Update. Planting French Beans

It’s always fun to learn about and experiment with a new gardening technique. Olla pots (and the unique way that they work) aren’t exactly new though, far from it. The use of olla (prono ... … How to make your own Olla Pots for Eco-Friendly Garden Irrigation

I am sure you are sick of seeing pictures of my potatoes by now but I ended up digging out another barrow full of them on Sunday while I prepared a bed for Summer cabbage. According to the weather fo ... … Rathdooney Vegetable Garden Blog - Jan 10th

I don't know what the season has been like for you but thanks to a warm and dry early summer followed by some welcome rain, my garden is looking vibrant and green. Despite the fact that the ... … July 7th - Quickcrop Vegetable Garden Update

Pollinating Sweetcorn As you may know from previous mails, I am growing sweetcorn in the polytunnel this year as part of our video project. I thought you might like to see a couple of photos as the c ... … Mid July Vegetable Garden Update

Unusually for me I found myself in not one, but two fancy restaurants at the weekend (it was my Mother's birthday) both of which presented me with pea shoots perched on top of my dinner. It got me ... … Edible Flowers in the Vegetable Garden

Crop rotation is a system of moving the position of certain crops (or families of crops) around so that they are not being grown in the same soil for successive years. It plays an important role in a ... … What Is Crop Rotation?

While you won't be able to fool yourself that you are lying on a beach with a pina colada (Ingredients: 3 parts Pineapple juice, 1 part White rum, 1 part Coconut cream) in your hand, you will be able ... … Turn Winter into Summer with 'Sunblaster' Grow Lights

It might seem a bit premature talking about pest control in mid March as we have very little in the ground but I think it is worth learning how to avoid some common issues before they arise. As ... … Natural Pest Control Methods

For a bit of colour to start, below is the beautiful magenta bulbs of onion 'long red Florence': a crop I harvested in 2021, but a variety I sow every year. A new batch of onion seedling plants ... … April in the Vegetable Garden - What Can You Sow?

It might sound like a phrase from some futuristic sci-fi story involving androids and off-world colonies, but xeriscaping actually comes from the Greek word ‘xeros’, meaning dry. It’s the pract ... … Xeriscaping and Drought Tolerant Plants

Keep sowing those seeds! I know I said it in a previous mail/blog post, but I feel I should again remind you to keep sowing seeds for late summer, autumn or overwintering crops. I know it doe ... … Late July in the Quickcrop Vegetable Garden

If you are considering building a garden pond you may want to calculate the volume of water for water treatment or if you intend to introduce fish. Water treatments to clear algae and other issues ... … Quickcrop Pond Volume Calculator

The trouble with pots and planters made from ceramic or stone is that they are heavy (extremely heavy if we're talking about stone), and can split in a heavy frost. From our point of view, they are ... … How To Plant an Attractive Succulent Display

Right then. For the last while I have been both adding to our list of flowering perennial plants and working on planting plants and corresponding plant packs. As the year so far has been nuts, progre ... … New Perennial Style Planting Plans

Q - My strawberries are in their 4th year growing in an outdoor bed; fruit has been very poor this year despite feeding them, what is going wrong?  Apart from the fact that this spring a ... … Q & A: Why Aren't My Strawberry Plants Producing Fruit?

Comfrey leaves are highly regarded as a natural and sustainable plant feed. The plant's far-growing roots enable it to extract nutrients from deep in the soil, including the the 'Big 3' pla ... … How To Make Comfrey Tea Plant Fertiliser

Researching the benefits of drinking wheatgrass juice has to be one of the most challenging tasks as opinions vary wildly from one side to the other. The problem for me is that the more ardent suppor ... … Gaby Wieland on Wheatgrass

Pumpkins can be a bit of a challenge to grow in Ireland, as they require a long growing season with good levels of sunshine - something that we can't really take for granted in this side of the ... … Do Pumpkins Grow in Ireland?

I think I mentioned last week that haven't been spending as much time as I should have in the vegetable garden due to the uninspiring weather we have been having lately. I had noticed on one of my br ... … How do I deal with potato blight?

Raised beds are better for growing vegetables because they raise them off the ground level, protecting them from foot traffic and creating a more comfortable working height. Raised bed protection cov ... … Raised Bed Covers

With rising energy bills being the reality these days, many people will want to avoid the expense of trying to heat a greenhouse by using storage or paraffin heaters etc. There are some alterna ... … How Can I Heat My Greenhouse For Free in the Winter?

It's always nice to see birds and other wildlife out in the garden until they start destroying crops. Shortly after sowing seeds, birds can become a problem in any garden. There are many bird scare m ... … How to Protect Vegetables From Birds

Everyone who has grown potatoes will have heard of potato blight, it's the most serious disease affecting potatoes and one which is almost impossible not to get. The disease is thought to have ori ... … Potato Blight - Recognising and avoiding.

Whatever style of greenhouse you opt for - whether it’s a ‘lean-to’, a compact house or a larger one - it will open up new possibilities for you and extend your growing season. It’s also a very ... … How to grow in a greenhouse

Although it is still too early to sow anything I thought I would run through some seed sowing notes this week for any new growers who are unsure when or how to start growing. It will also likely be d ... … Vegetable Seed Sowing Notes

Can potato plants with late blight be composted? If care is taken the answer is yes. Blight spores can only survive on living plant tissue, once the foliage has been cut it will die and so will ... … Can I compost potato plants affected by late blight?

The popularity of Metal Raised Beds continues to grow, with more and more gardeners seeing them as a compact, durable and low-maintenance option for growing vegetables at an elevated height. … Timber Raised Beds vs Metal Raised Beds: Pros and Cons

Regular readers will have heard me mention my farmer friend Clive Bright before (aka 'The Rare Ruminare'). He farms his 50 or so acres of Sligo countryside with the lightest touch and produces ... … Growing with fungi

I had the pleasure on Monday evening to give my very first talk to a gardening club. It was all very professional with a projector for my (first ever) Powerpoint presentation and a microphone s ... … The Importance of Soil Biodiversity

Onions are some of the easiest things to grow and require very little looking after. As our friend Dermot Carey (last head gardener of Lissadell House) says if you can't grow onions you might as well ... … Know Your Onions - How to grow onions

As you will know if you read last week’s mail, we kicked off our winter plant biology series with roots (I was going from the bottom up), but, in retrospect, I should really have started with se ... … The Science of Seed Germination

When you’re just starting on your food-growing journey, it’s probably best to be a little selective about what you’re planning to grow. There are some food crops that can prove to be surprising ... … What are the best crops for beginners?

As was briefly mentioned in my mail of a couple of weeks ago, changing weather patterns can challenge our habits and our 'collective wisdom' about the traditional growing season. In recent years spr ... … How To Extend The Growing Season with a Polytunnel - Part 1: Spring

This week sees a whole new departure for the Quickcrop team as we stick our pretty little toes into the wonderful world of flowering plants. It is not that we have fallen out of love with our vegetab ... … How to grow tulips

Unlike other countries in the world, we just don't get the weather to grow chilli peppers successfully outdoors. It is possible but the results and cropping levels aren't as good. From my own person ... … How to Grow Chilli Peppers

If your garden is anything like mine you've been reaping the rewards of the good weather with a fantastic crop of fresh vegetables. So much worked for me this year it was almost as if someone else to ... … Harvest Time Heroes

O.K., so you've managed to get your seedling plants off to a good start (or have bought in some promising looking specimens). You have hardened them off and are ready to move them out into your gard ... … Tips for Planting Out Seedlings

What kinds of things can you do in the garden at this time of year. It’s not quite Spring after all? Well, no, we’ve still a long way to go before we get to Spring. This time of year is really a ... … Vegetable Growing in Late Winter

Despite the fact that I am usually busy enough in the polytunnel in late Winter (sowing sweet peas, peppers, broad beans etc....), it is not until I sow my tomatoes that I really feel the season ... … Sowing Tomatoes in late February - a guide from Rhys Jaggar

So, how is everyone feeling with the improvement in the weather? I for one am feeling pretty good about it. I don't know what the temperatures were like where you are, but it was wonderfully wa ... … ​The Polytunnel in April

Growing your own can be tricky business for someone new to vegetable gardening but there are a number of ways you can stack the odds of a successful harvest in your favour. My number one would be ... … Growing Healthy Vegetable Seedlings

Recommended Varieties: Hispi F1 Where to grow: Cabbage needs a fertile moisture retentive soil with good drainage. The cabbages will remain in the ground through the Winter so in wet a ... … Cabbage Spring

We had a lot of emails regarding the supply of dry firewood after a mail I sent out about wicker wood and turf baskets. Niall did a fair bit of legwork and the result is we're now able to supply b ... … Firewood, Baskets and Log Storage boxes

… Soil Calculator

IntroductionAndrew and myself set up Quickcrop in 2009 when we both moved West with our families to live a more Sustainable life style. With this in mind the company was formed with Sustainability at ... … Sustainability Statement