We all know the importance of growing – and eating – Irish fruit and veg; but what about using Irish seeds to do so?
Well, this is the mission of Seed Savers, the Co Clare-based charity dedicated to protecting Ireland’s food crop heritage for future generations.
Established in 1991 by Anita Hayes in Co Carlow before moving to its present location in Scarriff, Seed Savers grows, conserves and distributes Irish organic vegetable seeds, grains and fruit trees.
And as a result of its work, it is now home to the country’s public seed bank – with over 600 varieties of rare and endangered vegetable varieties – as well as the native apple collection (over 170 varieties), the native grain collection and the native brassica collection, while its “seed catalogue” is in high demand with growers and gardeners.
Seed Savers also boast 20 acres of organic seed gardens, heritage orchards and native woodland trees, as well as a shop and cafe, and host regular workshops teaching the public how to grow, harvest and save seed, as well as self-sufficiency skills.
On Sunday 15 September from 11am-5pm, Seed Savers will host its annual “Harvest Festival” with apple, potato and tomato displays, demonstrations, and garden and apple tasting tours (admission €10, free for members and children).
Irish Country Living caught up with some of the team in advance to learn about their work.
General manager
Jennifer McConnell.
Jennifer McConnell’s career path has led her far and wide; from working in the corporate world in Jamaica and Haiti to community development in Papua New Guinea.
But two-and-a-half years ago, the Dubliner moved to east Clare to take up the position of general manager at Seed Savers, having decided she wanted to have an impact on issues closer to home – in this case, raising awareness of the importance of protecting (and planting) Irish seed for greater food security and biodiversity.
“You’ll find that a significant amount of seed – especially food seed – is imported into the country,” she says. “So as an island, that leaves us incredibly vulnerable.”
Much of Seed Savers’ work is in researching, curating and protecting Ireland’s heritage seed collections, but outreach and education are equally important; like encouraging everybody from school children to Tidy Town groups to grow more heritage varieties.
People are becoming a lot more conscious about the carbon footprint
“There’s so much that people can do in containers in their apartments, in their gardens, that actually requires very little,” says Jennifer, who explains that every person who plants a heritage seed is actually doing their part to protect the national collection.
Indeed, Seed Savers also encourage people to have a go at saving their own seed from their own vegetables to replant the following year.
“If you’re growing mangetout, the seeds are already within the pod,” says Jennifer as one example, “so it’s those kind of things that people probably don’t even realise.”
In the longer term, Seed Savers hope to get people thinking about using native Irish seed in the same way as buying Irish fruit and veg. “People are becoming a lot more conscious about the carbon footprint, the food miles; we’re also asking people to consider the seed miles,” says Jennifer.
Seed curator
Joanne Newton.
While raised in industrial northeast England, Jo Newton always felt a close connection to the land, from picking fruit and driving tractors in order to fund her travels around Europe in her early 20s to returning to education as a young mother of three to study horticulture.
And it was this longing “to provide for yourself” that brought her to west Clare in the 90s to buy her own small market garden farm.
After coming across Seed Savers by chance, however, Jo started working in the orchard part time to supplement her income in 2001, before taking on the responsibility of seed curator in 2004 – or rather, responsibilities.
“It was up to me to make all the decisions about what seeds we would grow that year, what crops needed growing, and where we’d grow them, how we’d grow them; and it was quite scary,” she admits of the start.
If you want local food, why would you not have local seed and growing it from seed that can be produced in Ireland?
Jo is passionate about encouraging people to grow food from Irish seeds, at a time when the majority come from overseas.
“If you want local food, why would you not have local seed and growing it from seed that can be produced in Ireland?” she reasons. “And if a crop can produce seed in Ireland, it’s actually going to be much more suited to the climate here in Ireland.”
One of her personal favourites is the “buan onion”. Originally bred in Ireland by Barney Crombie to suit the Irish climate, the seed had been stored in the Vavilov gene bank in Russia for many years, but has since been returned to Scarriff and is now growing in Ireland again.
“It’s entirely and utterly and uniquely Irish,” says Jo proudly.
Orchard curator
Jeremy Turkington.
When Jeremy Turkington first visited Seed Savers 10 years ago, he was so inspired that he decided that one day, he would return to work there.
“I always knew I would be coming back to east Clare,” says Jeremy, who is originally from Co Tyrone and previously worked as the manager of the native tree nursery in Clandeboye Estate in Co Down, having studied rural development at Greenmount Agricultural College, followed by a degree in arboriculture and urban forestry in the UK.
Since coming on board in June, Jeremy’s main roles have included running Seed Savers’s tree nursery, as well as looking after the Irish heritage apple collection, of which there are over 170 varieties, including many with interesting back stories, such as Sweet William.
People have forgotten these tastes and there are flavours there that are phenomenal and are part of our culture
“We found it in an orchard in New Jersey,” says Jeremy, explaining that the variety was most likely brought to the US during the Famine.
To encourage public interest in native Irish apples and other fruit, Jeremy and his team also host events ranging from orchard design and grafting courses to tasting tours.
“People have forgotten these tastes and there are flavours there that are phenomenal and are part of our culture,” says Jeremy, who lists apple varieties like Rose Hogan, Irish Peach and Ardcairn Russet among his favourites.
“It (Ardcairn Russet) tastes like bananas and hazelnuts, like a mixture, if you get them when they’re ripe,” he says.
For those who would like to grow their own heritage apple tree, however, Jeremy says that Seed Savers have plenty of “beginner friendly” options- including trees that can even be grown in pots- and that the best advice is not to “over-complicate it”.
“It’s really just a case of planting and caring for one tree,” he says.
Education co-ordinator
Aine Ni Fhlatharta.
Growing up in Connemara with a sustainable farming and fishing background obviously planted the seed for Áine Ní Fhlatharta to study organic horticulture in Dromcollogher, Co Limerick.
And today, as education coordinator at Seed Savers, Áine hopes to inspire young people in the very same way.
“They want to look after nature, they do want to make a difference,” says Áine, who is also a qualified ecologist, forest school leader and heritage-in-schools specialist.
Áine oversees a year-round programme ranging from weekend workshops for adults on all aspects of self-sufficiency to biodiversity talks for community groups. She is also kept busy off-site, whether it’s developing school gardens or setting up community seed saving hubs.
Much of her work, however, involves engaging with children and young people, such as with the autumn workshops in Scarriff, where they get hands-on experience of seed saving and heritage apple tasting and juicing. As well as this, they learn how a simple seed “is the very beginning” when it comes to food security.
Just to get them to understand just how vital seed is, not only to our survival, but for biodiversity and for things like climate change as well
“Because you’ve got access to food once you’ve got the seed,” explains Áine.
“And just to get them to understand just how vital seed is, not only to our survival, but for biodiversity and for things like climate change as well, having access to good seed, having control over where it comes from.”
Indeed, the children are encouraged to plant seeds that they save in their schools with the help of their teachers, while others will even return with their families to learn more.
“You have this circle where the kids are bringing the parents to Seed Savers,” says Áine, who believes that one of the most positive things that parents can do to encourage their children’s interest in the environment is to plant a tree.
“Planting trees is very empowering for them because they feel, ‘Well that’s something actually I can do’,” she concludes.
For further information or to find out about supporting Seed Savers’ work,
visit www.irishseedsavers.ie or
follow on Facebook
Read more
Watch: exercising with a bump... and beyond
Meet the two women making a living from farming half an acre
We all know the importance of growing – and eating – Irish fruit and veg; but what about using Irish seeds to do so?
Well, this is the mission of Seed Savers, the Co Clare-based charity dedicated to protecting Ireland’s food crop heritage for future generations.
Established in 1991 by Anita Hayes in Co Carlow before moving to its present location in Scarriff, Seed Savers grows, conserves and distributes Irish organic vegetable seeds, grains and fruit trees.
And as a result of its work, it is now home to the country’s public seed bank – with over 600 varieties of rare and endangered vegetable varieties – as well as the native apple collection (over 170 varieties), the native grain collection and the native brassica collection, while its “seed catalogue” is in high demand with growers and gardeners.
Seed Savers also boast 20 acres of organic seed gardens, heritage orchards and native woodland trees, as well as a shop and cafe, and host regular workshops teaching the public how to grow, harvest and save seed, as well as self-sufficiency skills.
On Sunday 15 September from 11am-5pm, Seed Savers will host its annual “Harvest Festival” with apple, potato and tomato displays, demonstrations, and garden and apple tasting tours (admission €10, free for members and children).
Irish Country Living caught up with some of the team in advance to learn about their work.
General manager
Jennifer McConnell.
Jennifer McConnell’s career path has led her far and wide; from working in the corporate world in Jamaica and Haiti to community development in Papua New Guinea.
But two-and-a-half years ago, the Dubliner moved to east Clare to take up the position of general manager at Seed Savers, having decided she wanted to have an impact on issues closer to home – in this case, raising awareness of the importance of protecting (and planting) Irish seed for greater food security and biodiversity.
“You’ll find that a significant amount of seed – especially food seed – is imported into the country,” she says. “So as an island, that leaves us incredibly vulnerable.”
Much of Seed Savers’ work is in researching, curating and protecting Ireland’s heritage seed collections, but outreach and education are equally important; like encouraging everybody from school children to Tidy Town groups to grow more heritage varieties.
People are becoming a lot more conscious about the carbon footprint
“There’s so much that people can do in containers in their apartments, in their gardens, that actually requires very little,” says Jennifer, who explains that every person who plants a heritage seed is actually doing their part to protect the national collection.
Indeed, Seed Savers also encourage people to have a go at saving their own seed from their own vegetables to replant the following year.
“If you’re growing mangetout, the seeds are already within the pod,” says Jennifer as one example, “so it’s those kind of things that people probably don’t even realise.”
In the longer term, Seed Savers hope to get people thinking about using native Irish seed in the same way as buying Irish fruit and veg. “People are becoming a lot more conscious about the carbon footprint, the food miles; we’re also asking people to consider the seed miles,” says Jennifer.
Seed curator
Joanne Newton.
While raised in industrial northeast England, Jo Newton always felt a close connection to the land, from picking fruit and driving tractors in order to fund her travels around Europe in her early 20s to returning to education as a young mother of three to study horticulture.
And it was this longing “to provide for yourself” that brought her to west Clare in the 90s to buy her own small market garden farm.
After coming across Seed Savers by chance, however, Jo started working in the orchard part time to supplement her income in 2001, before taking on the responsibility of seed curator in 2004 – or rather, responsibilities.
“It was up to me to make all the decisions about what seeds we would grow that year, what crops needed growing, and where we’d grow them, how we’d grow them; and it was quite scary,” she admits of the start.
If you want local food, why would you not have local seed and growing it from seed that can be produced in Ireland?
Jo is passionate about encouraging people to grow food from Irish seeds, at a time when the majority come from overseas.
“If you want local food, why would you not have local seed and growing it from seed that can be produced in Ireland?” she reasons. “And if a crop can produce seed in Ireland, it’s actually going to be much more suited to the climate here in Ireland.”
One of her personal favourites is the “buan onion”. Originally bred in Ireland by Barney Crombie to suit the Irish climate, the seed had been stored in the Vavilov gene bank in Russia for many years, but has since been returned to Scarriff and is now growing in Ireland again.
“It’s entirely and utterly and uniquely Irish,” says Jo proudly.
Orchard curator
Jeremy Turkington.
When Jeremy Turkington first visited Seed Savers 10 years ago, he was so inspired that he decided that one day, he would return to work there.
“I always knew I would be coming back to east Clare,” says Jeremy, who is originally from Co Tyrone and previously worked as the manager of the native tree nursery in Clandeboye Estate in Co Down, having studied rural development at Greenmount Agricultural College, followed by a degree in arboriculture and urban forestry in the UK.
Since coming on board in June, Jeremy’s main roles have included running Seed Savers’s tree nursery, as well as looking after the Irish heritage apple collection, of which there are over 170 varieties, including many with interesting back stories, such as Sweet William.
People have forgotten these tastes and there are flavours there that are phenomenal and are part of our culture
“We found it in an orchard in New Jersey,” says Jeremy, explaining that the variety was most likely brought to the US during the Famine.
To encourage public interest in native Irish apples and other fruit, Jeremy and his team also host events ranging from orchard design and grafting courses to tasting tours.
“People have forgotten these tastes and there are flavours there that are phenomenal and are part of our culture,” says Jeremy, who lists apple varieties like Rose Hogan, Irish Peach and Ardcairn Russet among his favourites.
“It (Ardcairn Russet) tastes like bananas and hazelnuts, like a mixture, if you get them when they’re ripe,” he says.
For those who would like to grow their own heritage apple tree, however, Jeremy says that Seed Savers have plenty of “beginner friendly” options- including trees that can even be grown in pots- and that the best advice is not to “over-complicate it”.
“It’s really just a case of planting and caring for one tree,” he says.
Education co-ordinator
Aine Ni Fhlatharta.
Growing up in Connemara with a sustainable farming and fishing background obviously planted the seed for Áine Ní Fhlatharta to study organic horticulture in Dromcollogher, Co Limerick.
And today, as education coordinator at Seed Savers, Áine hopes to inspire young people in the very same way.
“They want to look after nature, they do want to make a difference,” says Áine, who is also a qualified ecologist, forest school leader and heritage-in-schools specialist.
Áine oversees a year-round programme ranging from weekend workshops for adults on all aspects of self-sufficiency to biodiversity talks for community groups. She is also kept busy off-site, whether it’s developing school gardens or setting up community seed saving hubs.
Much of her work, however, involves engaging with children and young people, such as with the autumn workshops in Scarriff, where they get hands-on experience of seed saving and heritage apple tasting and juicing. As well as this, they learn how a simple seed “is the very beginning” when it comes to food security.
Just to get them to understand just how vital seed is, not only to our survival, but for biodiversity and for things like climate change as well
“Because you’ve got access to food once you’ve got the seed,” explains Áine.
“And just to get them to understand just how vital seed is, not only to our survival, but for biodiversity and for things like climate change as well, having access to good seed, having control over where it comes from.”
Indeed, the children are encouraged to plant seeds that they save in their schools with the help of their teachers, while others will even return with their families to learn more.
“You have this circle where the kids are bringing the parents to Seed Savers,” says Áine, who believes that one of the most positive things that parents can do to encourage their children’s interest in the environment is to plant a tree.
“Planting trees is very empowering for them because they feel, ‘Well that’s something actually I can do’,” she concludes.
For further information or to find out about supporting Seed Savers’ work,
visit www.irishseedsavers.ie or
follow on Facebook
Read more
Watch: exercising with a bump... and beyond
Meet the two women making a living from farming half an acre
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