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St Patrick's Day:

Ireland: Busy times for shamrock growers

It is a busy period for shamrock growers in Ireland. In less than one week, on March 17, St Patrick's Day will be celebrated. In many countries, (e.g. Ireland, the UK and USA) this day is widely celebrated. Green is the key color of this day and many choose to wear something green, especially shamrocks as they are the most common symbol of St Patrick's Day. Therefore, shamrock grower Peter Martin of Living Shamrock is working overtime for these few weeks: they sell and market shamrock for just this one day of the year.



Export
"We are under a lot of pressure during this time of the year," says Martin. They do not only deliver the shamrocks within Ireland, but they also export them to countries all over the world. Every year, we sent them to the Irish army units and Embassies worldwide," he says. Besides that, they also provide the White House with shamrocks. "Ever since Bill Clinton, we provide the shamrocks that are presented to the US president every year," says Martin. Every March, they ship out around 100,000 shamrocks.



Cultivation
Living Shamrock starts the cultivation of shamrocks in September and grows them hydroponically. "Unlike many other growers, we grow the shamrocks in a gel instead of soil. This way of cultivation enables us to export them all over the world with a shelf life of 8 to 10 days," says Martin.



Products
The shamrock is often used in a lapel and in a traditional black pot. "In Ireland, we deliver the plant in a black pot with soil. Abroad we also deliver this concept, but then we only supply the seed in the pot. Then people can grow the plant themselves. So, we offer three items; the shamrock without soil, as a regular plant and as a seed."

For more information
Living Shamrock
Peter Martin
Email: [email protected]
www.livingshamrock.com


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