Ballymaloe Blog

So much of the work in the garden depends on soil conditions and weather – I choose to see this dry, sunny spell as a late stretch of summer rather than the beginning of autumn.

So, along with rows and rows of weeding to be done, there’s late summer pruning to be done on wall-trained fruit. The pruning on these trees is done late in the summer so that no new, tender growth will occur just before the frosts begin – the frost will damage tender growth before the wood had a chance to harden.

So after the snow, the rain, and the blistering heat it seems we are finally getting a bit of a ‘normal’ Irish summer. As the summer is drawing to a close we are preparing for the winter in the garden. One way you can prepare is by setting green manures. Green manures are great for covering bare ground and adding fertility to the soil. It is very important to cover the soil to prevent soil erosion and it also cuts down on weeding! There are many manures to choose from and they all help with various different things.

Traford recently joined our team from the fabulous Cask in Cork city and has designed a seasonal cocktail menu for Ballymaloe House inspired by our walled garden.

Since joining us Traford represented Ireland in the global #HavanaClubCocktail competition semi-finals in Havana, Cuba representing Ireland and is currently in the semi-finals of the #BushmillsIrishWhiskey #TopBarMan cocktail competition... having taken part in a LIVE semi-final already, the results will be announced in August - good luck Traford!

The weather and the soil are finally getting a bit warmer, so even though we were behind about two weeks with the direct sowing from last year we could finally get going with it. Mags showed me the various stages; first, we needed to rake the ground, we then measured out the rows with string. We sowed carrots, navets, spring onions and beetroot. Using the string as a guideline we made 3 rows with a drill maker for each vegetable. Next is sowing the seed, raking over the soil to cover them and then finally using the string to make more markings for the rows.

Beautiful images of Ballymaloe House, farm, gardens and Grainstore during #StormEmma #BeastfromtheEast early March 2018.  We had not seen snow in East Cork similar to this since 1982, that was the last time Ireland came to a snowy standstill.

Difficult as it was to travel around the country, we were open as usual throughout the storm and Rory Allen braved the frosty elements to take these stunning images. 

It's the time of year for pruning before the trees start to wake up. It was a sharp learning curve for me as I only had a few hours experience over a year ago.

With lengthening days helping us shake off the cold, wet winter it’s seed sowing time! Just as well as the soaking rain has made working on the soil very difficult. 

Each year during the month of January Ballymaloe takes a well-deserved break for 3 weeks which facilitates the ideal time to renovate some of the bedrooms.

This year however, the bar was privileged to a much needed makeover.

What originally began as a water line adjustment for the above castle room lead to the extensive removal of the existing bar walls, returning to the original stone wall of the 15th Centenary Norman Castle. 

Once this fantastic feature had been discovered it was decided to incorporate it into the current, new bar.