OGI Events

Event Details

This full-day event for commercial growers includes a morning farm walk at Moyleabbey Organic Farm, Co. Kildare and an afternoon visit to the orchard at Teagasc, Oak Park, Co. Carlow.

Schedule
10am – 12.30pm: Morning Session – Moyleabbey Organic Farm
12.30pm – 2pm: Lunch
2pm – 4pm: Afternoon Session – Teagasc Oak Park Orchard

Morning Session – Moyleabbey Organic Farm
Moyleabbey Organic Farm is a 13.5-acre organic fruit and vegetable market garden farm in South Kildare where Liam Ryan grows approximately 18 different crops across the year, actively farming about 5 acres with the rest in green manure ley. Liam has been growing certified organic produce at Moyleabbey since achieving full organic status in 2006. Across 5 actively farmed acres, he and his team grow approximately 18 different crops throughout the year, ranging from rhubarb, asparagus and garlic in early season, through to sweetcorn, Brussels sprouts, tomatoes, cucumbers and strawberries, with leafy crops like kale, spinach and salad featuring for much of the year.

Liam is supported by a full-time OGI intern, two part-time staff and WWOOF volunteers, and sells exclusively through his own farm shop every Friday and Carlow Farmers Market every Saturday.

Subjects for discussion at Moyleabbey include seasonal crop planning, the move from wholesale to direct selling, hand harvesting methods, working with volunteers and interns, and buying in complementary certified organic produce from other Irish and European growers.

Afternoon Session – Teagasc Oak Park Orchard
In the afternoon, we’ll visit Teagasc’s established trial orchard at Oak Park, where we’ll spend a couple of hours exploring practical approaches to orchard management.

The four-year-old orchard is home to 50 varieties of mixed top fruit, and while not organic, it is a rich resource for examining how different trees establish and perform, including a range of training systems and rootstock choices, with a particular focus on disease prevention principles that are directly applicable to organic production.

Depending on conditions on the day, we may also get a look at some of the broader research trials currently running at Oak Park, which include solar panel integration, trunk growth monitoring, crop load management, and data collection through Neo sensors.