EP014- Pat Fitzgerald talks to Master My Garden about Sweet Potato Growing, Evercolor and lots more!!

In episode number 014 of Master My Garden podcast I talk to Pat Fitzgerald of FitzGerald Nurseries. Pat is in my opinion one of the most progressive people in Irish horticulture. Fitzgerald Nurseries is a specialist propagation nursery supplying trade growers all over the world. He has bred some superb plants himself and many of these plants now sit under his own brands which are collections of plants aimed at specific target areas in the end users garden. An overview of the ranges are as follows: EverColor® which is a collection of easy to grow, colourful foliage plants ideal for using in containers, living walls and garden borders alone or in combination with seasonal flowering plants.MyPlant® collection brings together a range of dramatic, functional and colourful patio container plants and high impact foliage plants. These plants can be used to great effect in small garden spaces and drought tolerance has been considered in the selection process, especially for our container plant selections. Irish Primrose™ collection is made up of two distinctive groups. One with distinctivly chocolate foliage turning many heads with this uniqely Irish originated dark foliage and contrasting flowers. And one with green foliage and masses of flowers ideal also for mass planting."The Chef's Farm" This is a range of edible crops which previously hadn't been able to be grown in Europe and will be available to gardeners in 2021. More developments to follow on this category. But the idea to produce sweet potato like many good ideas came from a question and a challenge: “Is it possible to grow sweet potato in Ireland and Northern Europe?” The general consensus was “No”, but the question deserved a proper answer. This thought combined with general awareness of the importance of healty food crops all had impact on the thoughts leading into the sweet potato project. From there on it was only a small step to add other food crops into this range and we will continue to look out for more.The ability to grow sweet potatoes in Ireland and the Uk albeit under cover is very exciting for gardeners and grow your own enthusiasts and something I certainly am looking forward to seeing coming through. Fitzgerald Nurseries is a trade only nursery but their website www.fitzgerald-nurseries.com shows the superb plants in the different ranges and sweet potato varieties under Chef's farm. You will also find the social channels for Fitzgerald on there including Twitter, Facebook and Linkedin. If you are enjoying the podcast it would be great if you could leave a review on Apple podcasts or if you want to send me a review by DM on my social channels its good to know people are enjoying and getting something from the podcast.  If there is any topic you would like covered in future episodes please let me know, you can find me on facebook John Jones (Master My Garden), Instagram @Mastermygarden or send an email to [email protected] www.mastermygarden.com Until the next time Happy GardeningJohn  Support the showIf there is any topic you would like covered in future episodes, please let me know. Email:  [email protected]   Check out Master My Garden on the following channels   Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mastermygarden/  Instagram @Mastermygarden https://www.instagram.com/mastermygarden/   Until next week  Happy gardening  John