Fota Garden Centre

28/04/2018

The Not So Obvious Gardeners Choice and still on the Bee theme, enhancing your garden!
Sambucus Plumosa Aurea (Red Berried Elder) in bud and soon to flower with creamy flowers (loved by the bees and other pollinating insects), foliage looking lovely and yellow/golden, with the flowers followed by Red Berries in the late summer/Autumn (attracts members of the Thrush family).
Shrub, small tree, great for adding brightness to a partially shady area, or full sunlight but ensure it gets plenty of water in a dry spell until fully established.
Prune back to near ground level in Spring to ensure a splendid flush of new growth and colour.
Prune back to near ground level in Spring to ensure a splendid flush of new colour.
Deutzia Rosea. Beautiful, low maintenance, medium sized shrub with clusters of deep pink showy flowers from April through to June on arching stems. Full Sun or Part Shade, ideal for the informal or Urban garden. In Bud and soon to bloom.
Lots more interesting varieties to choose from at FGC, such as Philadelphus, Mock Orange and Lilacs.

27/04/2018

Busy, Busy Bees here at FGC. Hanging Baskets, Containers and Pots to order, flying out the door as gifts or just to bring some much needed colour to the garden and indeed much needed source of pollen nutrient for our Bumble Bees! The honey bees that visit us here at FGC appreciate the flowers as much as we do.
What better Wedding gift idea than Cornus Controversa Variegata (Wedding Cake Tree).Continued thanks to all our loyal customers who continue to appreciate what we do!

19/04/2018

The heat wave is here, lol! So time to get out there planting.
When thinking about planting schemes new, old or just re-invigorating with some additional colour and interest, beit Shrub or Perennial, the Grouping of plants can make for greater impact - 3's and 5's work well, depending on space and area and can be planted in groups or in close proximity, interspersed with other varieties.
To avoid a busy look and to keep the eye moving, plant large groups of each color and repeat them throughout your beds. You might add a mass of pink, for instance, followed by a large grouping of white, trailed by a mass of blue, then touches of yellow as highlights. Once established, repeat this pattern—or a subtle variation of it—throughout the garden. If the beds have a great deal of depth, stagger the pattern from the front to the back.
However, in my opinion (as Fiona) I don't necessarily believe in rules or obsessing over color theories. Almost any color combination can work - and at the end of the day, one has to enjoy looking at one's own garden, but certainly a considered colour palette and empathetic planting creates a sense of order and separates amazing gardens from those that seem slightly askew or cluttered.
Currently flowering and marking the season; Bergenia, Red Beauty and Harzkristall making a nice splash of colour, with the foliage adding interest as the year progresses. Heuchera, Sugar Plum, Azaleas, Pink and Purple Sensation, H**e Red Jewel and Raspberry Chocolate and Pieris, Forest Flame and Debutante, all shaping up nicely to add great interest in the Garden at this time of the year.

18/04/2018

There is no denying why Buddha paraphernalia is so popular, as we can all benefit from some thought provoking and uplifting enlightenment this year. My goodness, us gardeners need some "Zen" this Spring, as we are all chomping at the bit to get out and garden. So please Buddha, sprinkle some good fortune on our Irish Weather and push some of that heatwave in our direction! There is ground to dry out, replacement planting from storm damage, Spring flowers still trying to emerge, we are underway with lots of Hanging Basket and Containers for Confirmation and Communions and time for thinking ahead for Summer Hanging Baskets too, as we want a lovely long and full summer basket!

12/04/2018

AND THEN THERE'S MORE!
Latest Containers heading into Cork City after their Early Summer re-vamp!
Hot to trot this week - you are loving their blooms - Doronicum, Little Leo and Erysimum, Winter Orchid (which despite its name, is full of Spring/Summer colour).
First of the Petuna; Surfinia, Calibrachoa and Geraniums have arrived - so summer is definitely on it's way - with a variety of colourful Osteospurmum, Dianthus and Violas, there is plenty to choosefrom to start injecting some colour into your garden!

06/04/2018

Something for the Weekend!
Fota Garden Centre bespoke Window Boxes and Containers also make their way to our Clients in Dublin, which we appreciate and enjoy their long standing, seasonally returning custom. Your local Garden Centre spreading the joy of colour Nationwide.
All the firm favourites of Seasonal Bedding and Containerised material are returning. Amazing Osteospurmum (look at our beautiful Orange and Purple centred variety), Upright Fuschia, Europs, Arabis, Little Treasure and lots more to choose from. Finally, we are starting to feel the Spring fever, despite the weather!

04/04/2018

LAWNS
Easter has now left us and hopefully the last of the really heavy frosts have left with it and a little time afforded for things to dry out! So, no time like the present to think about the groundworks required for getting our lawns back into shape - we can allow ourselves no excuse for letting the lawn dictate its condition. Lawns require some TLC, just in the same way that the rest of our gardens do and so this is the perfect time of the year to get started. Singularly the most important thing for your lawn is fertiliser. Lawns need periodic feeding too.
Lawn Care;
Firstly lightly rake over the lawn, especially where heavy Moss patches have accumulated.
If you can, then aerate your lawn - use your garden fork in the absence of mechanics.
We love J. Arthur Bowers - trifacto; Lawn Feed, W**d and Mosskiller (currently in stock) with simple application 3 days after your lawn has been cut (allows any weeds to grow ) and left for a day or two after to work its magic before watering, with the returning growth stronger and more equipped to crowd out the Moss. Moss tends to take a stronghold when the soil nutrients are low and the grass weak.
I love this product as the lawn tends to feel like carpet under foot and of course this should be done probably twice a year in Spring and Autumn if you wish to keep your lawn in tip top condition.
Replenish any really bad patches or doggie marked areas with some fresh grass seed (good quality, such as Goldcrop's Premium Seed) and bobs your uncle!
Then just enjoy the grass mowing season, with some additional tips for mowing as Mowing the Lawn is also important;
Mow correctly, and you’ll groom turf that’s healthy, drought-tolerant and thick enough to crowd out weeds.
Avoid scalping grass, which is cutting it too short - Keep your mower blades sharp.
Ideally mow when the grass is dry and Better not to mow in the full heat of the day (that would be a nice problem to have this year, lol).
Change up your mowing pattern, we all love our Stripes and the lawn does look very regal, but sometimes do so crossways as opposed to lengthways as this also promotes stronger grass.
You are now ready to sit out and enjoy the lawn whilst neighbours and friends ponder why your lawn looks so much better than their own.
Sad, but true, Lawns require maintenance also!

02/04/2018

01/04/2018

HAPPY EASTER EVERYBODY!

31/03/2018

HAPPY EASTER AND GOOD EGG HUNTING!

30/03/2018

Trending today. Lovely Felicia, Swan River Daisy (Brachycome) - current stock selling fast!
A long flowering Annual, they make a good choice for filling in around tall, leggy plants and carpeting bare spots.They are especially effective as mass plantings, in pots, hanging baskets and as borders.