Ballybeg Greens- Market Garden & Learning Hub

13/10/2026

Looks like an amazing day!

Great event in Brill FRC next Friday 16th October. Lots of information on Energy usage, biodiversity, etc There will be great services here with lots of very useful tips and information. Our Free Store will be open and there will be an opportunity to get a tour of our Community Allotments as well. We look forward to welcoming you on the day.

13/10/2026

Our Jerusalem artichokes are doing fantastic this year. It's not normally warm enough in Ireland for them to flower and set seed but in the right summer and in a nice sheltered corner they will. Jerusalem artichokes produce a tuber like potatoes under the ground and keep multiplying year after year. They are closely related to sunflowers and the plants look quite similar.
Has anyone got any nice recipes for artichokes?

11/10/2026

The foundations are almost finished for our new porta cabin office right at the heart of the garden.

08/10/2026

With the colder weather and shorter evenings upon us we have put together some soup/stew veg bags from some veg that we need to get out of the ground asap to make room for winter crops. These are perfect as a base for a stew or make a lovely soup on their own with a stock cube and a bit of garlic added. You can even add in any veg you've got in you press that needs using asap. A steal at €4 per bag. Order via DM or at 0852513912.

07/10/2026

Collecting and saving seeds was the subject matter for our gardening classes this week. Almost every plant we grow here in the garden produces it's own seed that we can save at this time of year. They all look slightly different depending on the plant but once you know the plant and what family it comes from you can identify and save seeds easily. And it's free. Just don't put them in your pockets or they'll end up in the washing machine. Ask us how we know that 🙀

05/10/2026

We took a gamble a few weeks ago to move some celery plants that had struggled during the drought and due to trees overshadowing the bed they were in. We moved them indoors to extend the growing season by a month hoping that they would cope and wouldn't bolt when we disturbed their roots. They are looking fabulous now and will be ready for harvesting soon.

02/10/2026

This week we harvested all our squash and now they will sit in the sun inside the tunnel for a couple of weeks for to cure the skins so they will store overwinter if needed. They can however be eaten straight away. Theses are delicious in soups, stews and curries or roasted in the oven.

30/09/2026

A wild day in the garden today. Sunshine and torrential rain in equal amounts but the work continues until we have to hide in the tunnels to escape the rain.

28/09/2026

Tunnel 6 getting ready for winter salad planting soon. This is the driest of our tunnels making it more suitable for planting winter crops than the other tunnels which tend to get a bit waterlogged over the winter.
We've added a layer of homemade compost from our compost bays to keep the soil humming.

24/09/2026

You've gotta love September. It's almost impossible to walk down the tunnel or step between two tomato plants without getting a face full of cobwebs! We're pretty sure this is an Orb Weaver spider hanging out in the garden. The early morning dew at this time of year makes it super easy to spot their big beautiful webs hanging between plant stalks. The spiders are big and brightly patterned too.