OGI Events

Farm Walk & Focus Session at Moyleabbey Organic Farm & Teagasc Oak Park Orchard
Tuesday, 1 September 2026 | 10am – 4pm

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.
NON-MEMBERS BOOK HERE (€35)

Schedule
10am – 12.30pm: Morning session at Moyleabbey Organic Farm
12.30pm – 2pm: Lunch at Moyleabbey Farm
2pm – 2.30pm: Travel to Teagasc Oak Park
2.30pm – 4pm: Afternoon session at Teagasc Oak Park Orchard

Morning Session – Moyleabbey Organic Farm
In the morning, we’ll Moyleabbey Organic Farm, where Liam Ryan has kindly agreed to host us on his 13.5-acre organic fruit and vegetable market garden. Topics for discussion include seasonal crop planning, hand-harvesting methods, working with volunteers and interns and building strong relationships with customers through direct selling—a model Liam has refined over many years.

Afternoon Session – Teagasc Oak Park Orchard
In the afternoon, we’ll move on to Teagasc Oak Park in Carlow, where Fruit Research Officer, Alberto Ramos Luz will lead an orchard walk through Teagasc’s experimental orchard, exploring ongoing trials, the latest research and practical developments in Irish apple production. Topics will include training systems, rootstocks and disease-prevention principles, time permitting there may also be an opportunity to look at other ongoing trials including solar panels, data collection, temperature and trunk-growth monitoring.

About Moyleabbey Organic Farm
Liam has been growing certified organic produce at Moyleabbey for more than 20 years, achieving full organic status in 2006. Growing approximately 18 different crops throughout the year—from rhubarb, asparagus and garlic in early season through to sweetcorn, Brussels sprouts, tomatoes, cucumbers and strawberries, as well as kale, spinach and salad—across 5 actively farmed acres, with the rest in green manure ley.

Liam is supported by a full-time OGI intern, two part-time staff and WWOOF volunteers, and sells exclusively through his own farm shop and Carlow Farmers Market. This video, made in 2013 gives a good overall picture of the farm: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2081k8c7sHY

About Teagasc Oak Park Orchard
Established in 2023, the Teagasc Oak Park orchard grows 50 different varieties of fruit. Its aim is to identify varieties suited to the Irish climate and to consumer and market needs, and to develop better orchard management practices for maximum yield efficiency and fruit quality. While the orchard itself is not organic, many of the principles and practices utilised will be applicable to organic systems.