The Cottage MarketWe are expanding the cottage market nationwide this year thanks to amazing partners Ulster Bank and The Ireland Funds. A Cottage Market in your town or village can really bring out the best in your community and help it develop from the inside out. Each village and town creates a market that reflects the skills and talents of the people that live there. We now need to find Cottage Marketeers who will step up and take on the opportunity to lead their community in creating a market. We will be providing lots of training, starter kits and support for the start up markets so spread the word! Check out our website thecottagemarket.ie

Soil HealthThrough our campaign with Brownbin.ie and Cre, the compost association, we are learning loads about soil, compost and the health of the planet. Did you know experts believe we could be less than 100 harvests away from the earth’s soil being completely depleted of nutrients? That scary thought, when paired with how little of our domestic waste we send to be composted is ludicrous! It’s really important to learn about how to replenish the nutrients in our soil so that we can continue to grow food and survive. Check out our website GIY.ie and come along to our soil health panel discussion on Feb 27th at 6.30pm.

february NEWS

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GROW HQPlenty of action in GROW HQ this month. With Valentine’s Day approaching we are using the full range of French Head Chef, JB’s, skills and running a class to teach you how to cook with love for your partner, that’s on 9th Feb at 6.30pm.Continuing our back to basics range we have plenty of classes to get your growing started including Growing in Polytunnels at 10am on 8th Feb, Raised Beds at 10.00 am on the 17th Feb And This Month In The Veg Patch at 10am on the 25th Feb.

The Children are the FutureInspiring, empowering and educating the next generation of GIYers is one of our most pressing ambitions in GIY. That’s why here at GROW HQ we offer so many class for children to learn and benefit from. This month dietician Jemma Kehoe and our chef JB will run a Nutritional Cooking for Baby class on 7th Feb at 10am for the parents.For children we have a Grow, Cook, Eat Jr class Saturday the 4th and the 23rd at 10am, a Vegetable Art Class every Sunday at 11am and a Willow Craft workshop to suit all ages. Booking is essential as places are limited. You can book in person at GROW HQ, online at GROWHQ.ORG or on the phone at 051 584422.

what to do in february

Harvesting – wHat’s in season?Winter cabbage and cauliflowers,Brussels sprouts, spinach, kale and leeks.

to do List Prune fruit trees and bushes if necessary, to improve their shape and remove winter damage

to the bushes (it’s best to complete this job before Spring when the sap begins to rise). Consider netting the bushes after pruning (fruit netting can be bought in DIY stores

and garden centres - it’s worth it unless you want your fruit to become a nice treat for local birds) and dress the ground around with a potash feed (or use wood ash), which encourages fruit growth.

Check the pH of your soil – you can buy a soil pH testing kit in any garden centre. January is also a good month to split the rhubarb plants if you want to propagate. Lime your soil now if required (for acid soils) – ground limestone or crushed chalk are the

most common forms. The addition of lime is particularly important in your brassica bed. Scrub seed trays with hot soapy water in preparation for sowing – dirty old seed trays

can harbour disease.

sowing seeds and PLanting out Finally, we can sow some seeds. On asunny windowsill indoors, in a heatedgreenhouse or on a heating mat: sowcelery, globe artichokes, celeriac,leeks, onions, lettuce, tomatoes, peas,aubergines, peppers/chilli-peppers. Inpolytunnel or greenhouse: beetroot,Brussels sprouts, summer and autumncabbage, carrots, leeks, lettuce, radish.Outside: Weather permitting you cantry planting out broadbeans, spinach,kohlrabi, onion and shallot sets,Jerusalem artichokes, parsnip and earlypea varieties. Now is a good time toplant fruit trees and bushes. It’s alsoa great time to start planning a herbgarden - get root cuttings of perennialherbs i.e. Mint, Fennel, Thyme etc. fromfellow GIYers. Buy seeds for the annualherbs like basil and coriander.

PreParationIf you didn’t do so earlier in the winter,spread well rotted manure or compostover vegetable beds and cover selectedareas with cardboard, black plastic orcarpet to start warming up the soil. Thesoil in raised beds will warm two weeksat least before open ground which willmake it easier to grow in later in thespring. For those beds which are notcovered or for open ground, turn overthe soil if the weather is good. Keepoff the beds to prevent soil compaction- use timber planks to stand on foraccess. If you have not already done soorder/buy your seeds, spuds and onions.Chit seed potatoes – put them in acontainer (e.g. used egg carton or empty seed tray) and leave them in a bright warm place.

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giY members Don’t forget our lovely GIY members get four glossy information packed GROW magazines a year plus seeds and a fab welcome gift. Members also mean we get to carry on spreading the GIY message and

that’s a beautiful thing. If you want to get in on the action for yourself or

even as a unique gift, it’s just the click of a button away

www.giy.ie