Leonie Cornelius and Jo McGarry
Garden designer Leonie Cornelius and nursery owner Jo McGarry are working together for this year's Bloom, taking place next weekend in the Phoenix Park. They explain why their garden 'Nourish' is a very personal project for them both
Full details: www.bordbiabloom.com
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Irish Independent
3 days ago
- Irish Independent
Over 20,000 people attend fourth day of Bloom
Today at 13:44 Over 20,000 people flocked to the Phoenix Park in Dublin today for the fourth day of Bord Bia Bloom. Around 100,000 visitors are expected to attend the five-day festival over the June bank holiday weekend, finishing on Monday. Celebrity chef Donal Skehan had a smashing time during his cooking demonstration at the festival over the weekend, when the stage oven shattered during his segment, sending glass and pieces of the oven towards the chef while cooking Korean chicken. 'When you're in the kitchen, disasters may happen, that is probably the worst thing that has even happened to me,' Mr Skehan told the laughing crowd. 'Had a smashing day. It's been ten years but I'm thrilled to be back with a bang,' he shared on his social media after the demo. 'I always get asked what my worst kitchen disaster has been, well it happened today live in front of 100s of people. 'A huge thank you to the amazing audience I've ever had a for a cookery demo, you honestly kept me going during the craziest moment in the kitchen. I will remember this forever. 'No home cooks were harmed in the making. The incredible crew at Bord Bia had the oven replaced in less than an hour.' Following the interruption, Mr Skehan carried on with the cooking demonstration and told the crowd 'it's back to business'. The sun was shining for most of the day between scattered showers, with temperatures reaching 18 degrees. Tomorrow is set to be mostly dry with spells of sunshine with highest temperatures of 17 degrees. Meanwhile, Bloom designer Joe Eustace said he has looked up to the garden designers at Bloom since he was a child. ADVERTISEMENT 'There's photos of me as a child in a boogie at Bloom,' he told the Irish Independent. "I idolised the designers the same way that someone else my age may idolise a football player or a rugby player. "To be up here now, competing on the same stage as them, learning from the designers, they've all been absolutely fantastic, and taking me under their wing. 'It's a real watershed moment for me, because I'm here now, and I'm in the position that I would have looked up to a lot when I was a kid. "And I just hope that there's some kid at the show this year that was in the same position as me, and that they can look and see that it is possible and they can come and bring new life into the industry the same way that I fell into it,' he added. Mr Eustace from Newbridge, who is a co-founder of Online Garden Designs, was the first winner of the Boom Bia Bloom cultivating talent initiative in 2022. He has participated in Ireland's largest gardening festival ever since, and is currently completing a master's at UCD. His second show garden at last year's Bloom, the Citroen Floating Lounge Garden, won a gold medal. "My father was a landscape contractor, and so when I was 13 years old, I was out helping him. I had a shovel in my hand, and from there, it's built on. 'I did my first show garden in Bloom in 2023, and I've delivered a garden ever since, I've never looked back, so it's been a great experience so far. And long may it last," he added. Mr Eustace designed the Support Garden this year, sponsored by the Decision Support Service, which won a silver gilt medal at the festival. It has a steel fireplace at its centre, which symbolises the donor of an Enduring Power of Attorney. The garden has two bespoke chairs and is surrounded by a steel pergola, which supports the fireplace and stands for the network of trust built between the donor, their attorney, and the people that surround them. 'What it represents is the profoundly vulnerable moment where someone has to confront the idea of advanced planning, so someone who may be fearful that, in the future, they may make it in an accident or develop a decision impairment disorder such as Alzheimer's or dementia,' said Mr Eustace. 'Essentially, what this garden is all about is planting the seeds now that will flower in the future, and that's what advanced planning is about. "The metaphor of the space is that the central fireplace represents a person who is at the centre of one of these agreements, and then this support network that spans throughout the space represents the friends and family of that person and the decision support service. 'The fireplace is floating and it's being lifted, so the support network that's in place is supporting the person even when they can't support or decide for themselves. 'The planting for the space is chosen for that idea of support, so it's planting that's going to support pollinators,' he added. Una FitzGibbon, director of marketing at Bord Bia said: 'Bloom 2025 has been an incredible success so far, and we are thrilled with the enthusiastic participation from both visitors and exhibitors alike. 'The feedback from attendees has been overwhelmingly positive, and it's clear that Bloom continues to deliver a memorable experience for all. As we approach the final day, the forecast is looking good, so we encourage everyone to come, make the most of this fantastic event and grab a bargain on the final day.'
Irish Independent
4 days ago
- Irish Independent
Holly White: ‘I had a disappointment in my personal life and I completely crumbled. What terrified me was how quickly you can fall apart.'
The vegan chef and writer talks bouncing back from burnout, break-up and anxiety, and the Hoffman Process Holly White, vegan chef and writer, could not look anymore the maven of a perfect life. She's just turning 42 and has bought a house in the past year – she's full of the joys of TikTok house-cleaning hacks – and today she's giving a talk at Bloom, listed alongside the likes of Diarmuid Gavin and Rachel Allen. Her vegan recipes are available at the Merrion Hotel and she has collaborated with, among others, Insomnia and Camile Thai. Right now, she looks settled and happy in her life. But she would be the first to admit that the last few years have been challenging.
Irish Independent
5 days ago
- Irish Independent
‘Lots of colour, great atmosphere': Sunshine returns to Bord Bia Bloom as thousands turn out for second day
While the opening day had been hit by rain, 'real Bloom weather' as some called it, returned yesterday and brought with it a smell of sunscreen in the air. It was the first day of Bloom for Aisling Newe, from Co Galway, who praised the 'vibes' and the exhibits on display. 'I'm loving the show gardens – judging them as if I know, like an expert here. But they're really good, to see what they could do with such small spaces. It's really inspiring.' She found the Bee Happy wildlife garden – which won a silver medal and was the winning garden on RTÉ One's Super Garden – the most inspiring. Ms Newe said she came to the festival for a 'bit of inspiration for the future'. 'I don't have green fingers, but I like to think I have. I love a lot of indoor plants, so I am interested in plants… I'd love a really nice garden like this.' Fionnuala and Emmet Savage from Dublin, who were wandering through the gardens with two big bags of plants, most definitely do have green fingers. 'I can't believe the amount of vendors since I was here first, which was probably about six or seven years ago,' Mr Savage said. 'Feels like it's about 10 times larger than the first time we were here, between food and natural producers, and then, of course, plants. 'I enjoyed walking through the model gardens, but I just enjoy walking through the place and absorbing the summer atmosphere.' His wife, Fionnuala, who was looking for gardening inspiration, said: 'It's elevated again this year. More space, bigger, and everything is just fabulous. Very impressive.' ADVERTISEMENT The best show garden for Anita Deane and Margaret Deane Carolan was Nature's Symphony: Celebrating Organic Growth, which pays homage to the Bloom patron, President Michael D Higgins. 'The Michael D Higgins garden is fabulous, you can smell seaweed,' Ms Deane Carolan said. 'Lots of colour, great atmosphere.' Always the biggest attraction of the festival, the 21 show gardens were all designed with sustainability in mind and incorporating environmental measures. Many visitors admiring them were chatting with their designers and asking for gardening advice. The Repak Most Sorted Garden won the overall large garden category award and was very popular with the public, and designer James Purdy said winning the gold feels like a 'recognition for your hard work'. 'It's not normal to put wine bottles, crushed cans and old brick in a garden and make it look beautiful. So I'm glad I've got it over the line well,' he said. In his garden, he wanted to 'look for the beauty in recycled, refined and reused materials'. Another winner was The European Commission's Renewed Blooms Garden, designed by David Negus from Suffolk, England, who won the overall medium garden category award. It is his first time at Bloom, and he said it felt 'surreal' to win the award for his garden, which features a discarded railway track. 'When you're self-employed, like I am, it's actually really nice, because I haven't got anyone telling me if I'm doing well. It's just me, my own brain,' he said. 'So it's really nice to do an event like this and say: 'Oh, I kind of know what I'm doing'. It kind of reaffirms that.' Designer Alan Rudden, who created The Pot Gallery Garden, won the overall small garden category award – his ninth gold medal in 10 years of attending the festival. The Rainbow Brick Balcony Garden, designed by Gary Kirwan as a tribute to Lego, and the How To Train Your Dragon Garden, designed by Tunde Perry and Barry Kavanagh, were especially popular among the visitors. Benny Magennis, from Co Monaghan, designed The Early Bird Catches the Worm garden, sponsored by the Marie Keating Foundation, and won a silver-gilt award. 'Bloom is a great day out. It's very inspiring for people. They're asking for advice all the time. That's all part of it,' Mr Magennis said.
