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The Claire Byrne Show

Gardening with Marie Staunton

22 Apr 2026

Transcription

Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?

1.87 - 21.01 Claire Byrne

The Clare Byrne Show on Newstalk. With Aviva Insurance. Listen, you have to run the rule over Bulbgate, which is happening here in News Talk this week. Anton says that the bulbs I bought on Sunday, which were half-priced, delighted with myself, will not flower.

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21.651 - 26.757 Marie Staunton

Well, you see, there's spring-flowering bulbs and there's summer-flowering bulbs. These were all summer-flowering. But there you go, it could be grand.

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26.917 - 28.759 Claire Byrne

June, July, that's what it said on the packet.

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28.799 - 33.585 Marie Staunton

Isn't it lovely out now and perfect time to be putting them in? They're better in the ground than in your garage.

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33.645 - 37.309 Claire Byrne

Take that, Anton Savage. Right, we're talking about nostalgia plants.

37.329 - 44.358 Marie Staunton

We are. You know when you go and... Yeah. I mean, have you ever gone to, you know, a garden and gone, oh, I remember that scent, you know, from somewhere.

44.578 - 45.419 Claire Byrne

Something takes you back.

45.439 - 64.445 Marie Staunton

Yeah, something takes you back. So lilac for me is that plant. We used to have the only the only tree we had in the garden was lilac and then loads of irises. That kind of brings me back. But we have a tree in our garden at home. They're 100 years and it's a lilac vulgaris, just an ordinary lilac. flowers every year beautifully and it only gets better and better with time.

64.525 - 85.978 Marie Staunton

So when you're putting in a plant, think of not just now, think of the future. Think of how it's going to be in 20, 30, 50 years time. Beautiful plants. And they cost you very little at the time and they give so much back over the years. So that's one of them. But wisteria would be another one. Beautiful, you know, plant, wall plant or over a pergola.

Chapter 2: What are nostalgia plants and why are they significant?

102.278 - 118.742 Marie Staunton

You see, the likes of Dublin Bay. So years ago, People gifted roses when somebody bought a house. That was kind of the thing. And you had, you know, beautiful rose on your house. And then maybe the house was sold or getting going to be sold down the road, you know, when the parents have passed on or whatever.

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119.523 - 133.919 Marie Staunton

But you still want a bit of that plant and you can have a bit of that planting and actually have a clone of it by taking a cutting office. And maybe three or four cuttings, depending on how many siblings there are. And then each one gets gifted one of those cuttings and then they grow it on.

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134.461 - 134.962 Claire Byrne

Hopefully.

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135.203 - 139.236 Marie Staunton

Hopefully. If it works. Now, I don't know about in your house, but you know yourself.

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139.84 - 144.747 Claire Byrne

How do you do a successful rosebush cutting? How do you make sure, guaranteed success now?

144.788 - 166.28 Marie Staunton

So there's a lot of new growth at the moment, new fresh growth. So new fresh growth, you can do it twice. You can do it in the dormant season, which is February to, or sorry, November to February, or you can do it now as things really are shooting off. So new cuttings, new growth will have lots of cell action, so they'll be quicker to root, basically. Mm-hmm. So it's kind of pencil length.

166.32 - 180.856 Marie Staunton

Take off a number of the lower leaves. You can use a bit of hormone rooting powder or honey. Dip it in the little cutting into the base of that or into the honey and then put it into a mix of compost and horticultural sand. Little plastic bag over the top.

Chapter 3: How do you choose plants that evoke memories?

180.896 - 191.388 Marie Staunton

So when the water comes off it, it hits the top of the bag and comes back down and keeps it moist while it's trying to root. The whole idea is to get it to root before it gets waterlogged.

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191.749 - 193.911 Claire Byrne

And how long do you keep it in the bag for?

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194.077 - 213.756 Marie Staunton

So what happens is you'll see little top growth of it. So take the bag off, have a look underneath and see if you see any white little roots poking down, then you know it's rooted. So take the bag off and then just keep an eye on it. Better to take it out of that situation, put it into a slightly shaded area so it doesn't get burnt. And then you can pot it on then in...

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213.736 - 240.52 Claire Byrne

so you're keeping it in the original pot that you keep it in the original pot for a while yeah and then you're baby it along and then you can pot it up into a bigger pot when it's sturdier when it's sturdy and has roots of its own and it's ready to rock and roll now um helen and bray has been in touch i love lavender but whenever i plant it in pots it dies in a few months can you ask maria for some advice on helping it to thrive i almost bought lavender actually on sunday when i was in the garden center it is so nice like the smell then i thought i'm just going to kill that so i left it there

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240.5 - 262.282 Marie Staunton

It's to be treated mean. You know, it's a herb. It's basically a side of mountains plant. And the problem is we have a lot of rain in the winter and it doesn't like that. So if your pot got waterlogged, that's a huge problem for lavender. So if you're putting it in a pot, loads of grit and stones and all sorts of that sort of thing and a big heavy kind of mix of compost mixed through that.

262.342 - 269.649 Marie Staunton

So there's loads of drainage. Make sure that, you know, your pot is on these little legs that you can get. So the drain, you know, the water drains out.

269.669 - 270.27 Claire Byrne

So drainage is...

270.25 - 284.168 Marie Staunton

essential. Sometimes people cut them at the wrong time. So they flower. Then after the flowers are kind of over a bit, you give it a haircut. Then you give it a cut. Then not at the end of the season, just as we're coming into winter. And I can't hack it because it's trying to grow little new shoots.

284.488 - 293.239 Marie Staunton

So if you do it after it finishes flowering, has all that time before winter sets in to put on new growth, you know, to withstand the winter, if you like. That's the trick with them.

Chapter 4: What tips can help ensure successful rosebush cuttings?

462.948 - 482.305 Marie Staunton

If you buy a big enough plant now, the whole wall will be covered in maybe three years time. You can go for Cleantis punitius, which is the one with the lobster claw and beautiful flowers on its lobster claw. You can go for Dublin bay rose. You can go for, you know, there's so many different gorgeous things you can put on just to spite them next door for putting them all on the

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482.285 - 487.367 Claire Byrne

That's what the aim is there. Rhododendron, hydrangea and azaleas, can you put them in pots?

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487.482 - 505.825 Marie Staunton

You can, of course. You can put rhododendron, you know, the bigger versions need obviously a massive pot, but azaleas, the smaller azaleas can be certainly put in a pot. There's lots of stuff that can put in pots, but you have to top dress every year, which means you're taking out a good bit of the compost at the top of the pot, putting in new stuff, putting in a feed.

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506.386 - 513.074 Marie Staunton

And with those particular plants, you have to water with your rainwater, not your limey water from your tap if you're living.

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513.134 - 515.738 Claire Byrne

Really? Yes. We didn't know that, Mari.

516.038 - 520.465 Marie Staunton

And then you're wondering why the leaves go all yellow, you see, because it's not the right water.

520.746 - 521.747 Claire Byrne

So collect the rainwater.

521.767 - 523.33 Marie Staunton

Collect the rainwater, yeah, exactly.

523.35 - 543.662 Claire Byrne

Lilac, nasturium, snowdrops, all memories of my mother's garden and catching bees in jam jars 65 years ago. The happiest of memories. Isn't that give you reason enough now to go out and plant? Never mind what Anton Savage says to you about your bulbs. Mary, thank you so much. You're very welcome. Remind us of your Instagram because I know you do great stuff on there.

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