Cúrsaí Teagaisc

56 InTouch October 2013

Meán Fómhair – Gairdín Torthaí ar Scoil – Cur Chuige TeagmhálachPaddy Madden continues his series of SESE tips

What is it?A garden which teacheschildren about fruit which canbe grown and eaten in theirschool.

BackgroundinformationIt's important to grow fruit thatcan be harvested during theschool year. There's no point inplanting blackcurrants forexample which fruit during thesummer holidays.

Why have a fruit gardenin the school?1. It integrates well with a

healthy-eating policy in theschool.

2. It will enable children todifferentiate betweenimported fruit and home-grown fruit.

3. It will also enable them todifferentiate between thetaste of home-grown andimported varieties.

4. It will enable children tolearn about the importanceof pollinators for fruitproduction.

5. It will increase seasonalawareness.

Other possibilitiesIf space permits plant a Victoria plum. Also, if theschool is planting a native hedgerow includeblackthorns for sloes.

Did you know?� The word ‘straw’ in ‘strawberry’ could derive

from straw which is used to protect the fruitfrom getting wet and dirty or from the word‘strew’ which means to spread wide.

� Strawberries help the body fight cancer,whiten teeth and reduce cholesterol.

� Raspberries can be either red, purple, black orgold.

� Blackberries are high in antioxidants.� Apples have been eaten by humans since 6500

B.C.� Fresh apples float in water because a quarter

of their volume is air.

Suitable fruits to grow

Hands-on – the school fruit garden

Sloe fruitof the

blackthorn

LoughTreeof Wexford -Seedsavers

Cavan Sugarcane –

Seedsavers

Aherne beauty –Seedsavers

LATIN / IRISH Fragaria ananassa Sú talúnPOSITION SOIL Sunny; add well-rotted manure or& SPACING compost to soil. Plant 35 cm apart; 75 cm between rows.PLANTING September or Mid-April. Don't allow latter to fruit in first

year. Add general fertilizer before planting. Crown levelwith soil.

FRUITING June. Cut back to 7.5 cm above ground after fruiting. Cutoff dead leaves. Remove straw.

AFTER-CARE Plants are productive for about 3 years. Mulch in earlyspring with well-rotted compost. Propagate new onesfrom runners.

NOTES Water well when fruit is forming. Remove runners inMay. Feed with fertilizer high in potash when fruits be-gin to form. From late May place straw under fruits.Hardy during winter. Not hardy when new growth startsin spring.

Strawberry

LATIN / IRISH Pupillam ÚllPOSITION SOIL Sunny aspect. Well-drained.AND SPACINGPLANTING Dig in plenty of well-rotted compost be-

fore planting from October to December.Plant 2 or 3 different varieties. Have graftunion between apple rootstock and up-per part at least 10cm above soil. Applybalanced fertiliser when planting. Placelayers of damp newspaper around baseand cover with bark mulch.

FRUITING Sept/Oct.AFTER-CARE Prune in winter. Remove dead or

diseased branches. Maintain a pyramidshape with an open centre.

NOTES Soil must be rich in organic matter.When planting mix this with topsoiland general fertiliser. Plant heritageapple trees if possible with M26 root-stock. Produces a small tree that chil-dren can reach. Apple trees are oftendamaged by lawnmowersand ties lefton too long. Mrs Perry Keegans crab (notactually a crab). Kilkenny Pearmain, Ca-van Rose and Bloody Butcher are lovedby children.

Apple

LATIN / IRISH Rubus idaeus Sú craobhPOSITION SOIL Sunny; dig shallow trenchAND SPACING c. 30cm wide; add plenty of

well-rotted manure or organiccompost to soil. 45cm betweeneach cane and 1.5m between rows.

PLANTING Plant autumn-fruiting ones from November to March.Try 'Autumn Bliss'. Soak root-ball for about an hour be-fore planting. Keep old soil-mark on stems level withsoil.

FRUITING Late August until October. This only applies to Autumn-fruiting varieties.

AFTER-CARE Prune in February. Cut canes back to 5cm from ground.Remove any new unwanted ones to prevent them be-coming invasive.

NOTES Feed in spring with fertiliser high in potassium. Lightlyrake it into the soil around plant and then water.

Raspberry

LATIN / IRISH Rubus fruticosusSméar Dubh

POSITION SOIL Sunny, sheltered spot.AND SPACINGPLANTING Dig in plenty of well-rotted

compost before planting. Put 2fence-posts into the ground2.4-3m apart. Tie wires be-tween posts at c.30 cm inter-vals and tie the stems ontothese. Choose 'Oregon Thorn-less' or 'Loch Ness'. Soak root-ball for an hour before plant-ing. Spread out roots.

FRUITING Mid-August to September.AFTER-CARE They fruit on one year old

stems. Cut these back toground level after fruiting.

NOTES Place layers of wet newspaperaround plants. Cover this withbark-mulch to retain moisture.These thornless blackberriesare not invasive.

Blackberry

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Teaching Matters

InTouch October 2013 57

Literacy/Litearthacht� Rootstock/Fréamhstoc: The part of a grafted plant

from which the roots grow. Apple varieties are oftengrafted on to less vigorous rootstocks to controltheir size. An chuid sin de phlanda beangaithe ónabhfásann na fréamhacha. Déantar cineálacha úll abheangú go fréamhstoic nach bhfuil chomh tréanchun a méid a shrianadh.

� Crown/Coróin: The plant crown is where the stemof the plant meets the roots. Usually this is levelwith the soil. An áit a dtagann gas an phlanda agusna fréamhacha le chéile, is í sin an choróin. De gh-

náth, bíonn sí ar aon leibhéal leis an ithir.� Sloe/Airne: The fruit of the blackthorn. Toradh an

draighin.� Pruning/Ag Prúnáil: The practice of cutting away

dead or crossing branches to increase flowers andfruiting. An cleachtas ina ngearrtar craobhacha (atámarbh nó atá ag trasnú ar a chéile) chun líon nambláthanna agus na dtorthaí a mhéadú.

Buíochas do Marie Whelton (MIE) don aistriúchán. Alsothanks to Aine Ní Fhlatharta from www.irish-seedsavers.ie for her advice on apples.

Resources� www.irishseedsavers.ie/ Based in Scariff,

Co Clare, Seedsavers grow and sell over 50 heritagevarieties of apple tree.

� www.gardenorganic.org.ukGrowing fruit in the school garden.

� http://scoilmhuiregnslucan.scoilnet.ie/Growing fruit in a Dublin school.

� http://gardening.about.com/sitesearch.htm?q=Strawberries&SUName=gardeningGrowing strawberries.

� www.paulamee.com/paulamee/main/Video-Jan2.htm Videos on fruit and nutrition.

� www.rhs.org.uk/Gardening/Grow-Your-Own/Fruit-A-to-Z/StrawberriesGrowing strawberries.

� www.youtube.com/watch?v=56j_3cYjpwYThinning apples in June.

� www.videojug.com/search?keywords=Pruning+apple%20trees%20in%20ukPruning apple trees.

Paddy Madden lectures onSESE in the Marino Institute of Ed-ucation. He also gives short coursesto whole staffs on school gardening.

His book Go Wild At School, has recentlybeen reprinted. Available for frompaddy.madden@mie.ie (Includes p&p).Photos of applies: Eoin Keane.

hTreeexford -savers

GlenstalCooker -

Seedsavers

Not all these fruits are suitable for the school garden

The firstIrish School

Gardening Conferencewill be held in MIEon 5 October. See

www.schoolearthed.iefor application form

and details.

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