Secrets of an expert fruit and vegetable grower
Not only does he like producing vegetables (and fruit too, don't forget the fruit), he also loves talking about talking producing them – and he has discovered plenty of soulmates with whom to shoot the breeze about compost or pruning or when to plant garlic or whatever is the issue of the moment.
John was one of the volunteers who manned the recent Edible Bray occasional seed swap event led by Elida Maiques at the town's library on Eglinton Road. He observed that those who came on the last Wednesday of the month to dispose of their surplus beans, while seeking unwanted tomato seeds, did not arrive to simply carry out their bartering business and then scurry off to do their shopping. They expected to linger and enjoy some horticultural camaraderie too, sharing a joke and a few tips.
Gardening can be quite a solitary exercise but it seems that those who labour alone in the back garden or allotment with rake, fork and hoe emerge from their plots with a tale or two to tell. So it was that the swapping sessions became quite convivial as the decibel levels rose with the heat of conversation. John admits that the atmosphere was not quite in keeping with the usual hush traditionally associated with libraries.
He apologises to any readers whose peace may have been disturbed by the chattering plantspersons. However, he is optimistic that the once-a-month gatherings will resume in August for the exchange of winter greens, as library management did not seem overly discommoded by the rowdiness.
Now 67 years old, the man with the signature white moustache has been gardening most of his life. He grew up in Belfast through the Troubles that beset that part of the world, one of thirteen children – eleven of whom still survive. Veggie enlightenment dawned at the age of five: 'My earliest memories are of walking behind my grandfather. I remember him holding a huge earthworm and telling me it was the gardener's best friend.'
Grandad had come through the world war growing fruit and vegetables to supplement the stingy official rations of the time. Though the word 'organic' never crossed his lips, he never bothered with chemicals, a man before his time in that respect. He encouraged his young grandson to plant, tend and harvest his first crop behind the family home - a simple drill of potatoes.
John grew up and in due course married, he raised Catholic and his bride a Protestant. They decided that Northern Ireland was not the place to raise their children and decamped to London. Their four children were all born in the UK. As of the last count there are now four doted-on grandchildren.
However, two decades ago they decided to return to this island in order to be closer to aging parents. They ruled the North still off limits, landing in the Republic instead and gravitating towards Bray: 'It's a nice friendly town, with the mountains and the sea both close by.'
As the children matured, John cut back the area devoted to the lawn in order to have room for the spuds, plus peas, beans, onions, leeks, salad crops… He reports proudly that he has moved with changing taste and added chilli peppers to the list. He also loves his herbs – rosemary, sage, oregano, parsley and the rest.
After taking early retirement, while his wife was away for a few weeks, he cast around a few years ago for something to do and spotted an interesting organisation online called Edible Bray. He met one of their activists Richard Webb – 'a fabulous amateur gardener' – in the flesh at the recycling centre on the Boghall Road and was soon signed up to become a volunteer.
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The beauty of the group is that, though most of the members happily devote much of their time to their own plots, Edible Bray brings gardening out from behind people's homes and into the public spaces around Bray. They oversee allotments at Windgates. They encourage schoolchildren to grow – and all the town's six primary schools now have gardening programmes. They collect autumn leaves in cages on the streets of Bray to make mulch. They promote and support community gardens. They have an orchard with apples, pears and quince flourishing in big pots at the site on the Boghall Road. This all amounts to a green revolution.
Pride of place in John's mind, however, is Albert Walk, a stone's throw from the railway station. Not so long ago, the area was a squalid eyesore. Many pedestrians followed lengthy detours rather than follow Albert Walk. Nowadays, in contrast, thanks to the combined efforts of Edible Bray and Bray Tidy Towns, it provides a popular connection running between Daly Station and Galtrim Road, with a string of healthy businesses along one side and a mass of plant life along the other.
When the raised bed was first being developed under the old brick wall, volunteers were required to wear thick gloves lest they come across syringes buried in the soil. Such concerns are now long gone as the earth, enriched with much of that leaf mulch, hosts a range of edibles that includes Jerusalem artichokes, rosemary, apples and potatoes. Passers-by are free to pick whatever they fancy whenever it is ready to eat.
John points to the latest addition to the Albert Walk horticultural collection: three morello cherry trees have been pinned to the wall and are due to start producing fruit before the end of the summer. In the meantime, he is happy to keep the gardening conversation going.
Talking point 1
Perhaps because of the cold spring rather than the dry May, many of plants in his garden are behind schedule this year. His beloved spuds, for example, are perfectly healthy but have been slow to kick on. He expects that they, along with the courgettes and the Halloween pumpkins, will catch up in due course. Herbs, on the other hand, are doing brilliantly.
Talking point 2
The Edible Bray seed swap has been to the fore in fostering the revival of the Blauwschokker pea. John reports proudly that he has 18 Blauwschokker plants in his own garden. He looks forwards to picking the distinctive purple pods to find peas of standard green hue inside. Though the Germanic names suggests they came originally from the Continent, they were once very popular in Ireland.
Talking point 3
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