Catch The Wave

This month gardening expert Conrad McCormick focuses on the challenges and opportunities of coastal gardening.

Many of us will make a beeline for the coast over the next few months, lured by stunning scenery, sandy beaches, and some rest and relaxation. Those who only visit during benign summer conditions may forget how tough year-round coastal living can be for those who've chosen to make it their home. A glance at the trees, often stunted, gnarled, and twisted as they grow away from the prevailing winds give a clue that only the toughest will survive here. After the tourists have left and autumn wears on ferocious storms roll in battering the land regularly.

Strong, gale-force winds and salty air are the enemies of plants. The salt desiccates soft foliage giving a brown, burnt look while wind causes breakages of stems and trunks, or in some cases even tearing plants from the ground!

We're a small island but with a phenomenal and long coastline stretching for several thousand miles, from sheltered bays clothed with trees to exposed headlands, coastal gardening brings difficulties but also presents enormous opportunities to grow an exciting garden.

Ireland has an incredibly mild climate, despite its northernly position. We're on the same latitude as Canada's chilly Hudson Bay and southern Alaska, so although we often complain about the weather, rarely enjoying the hot dry summers others seem to regularly receive, our shores are bathed with warm temperatures brought here by the gulf stream, travelling all the way across the Atlantic Ocean from the Caribbean. Generally, gardens by the coast will have higher light levels and be warmer in winter than that inland, meaning you can grow an increased range of tender plants.