Gardening by the sea, Adam Frost's bulb of the month and celebrating 20 years of a garden trail

In this episode of Gardeners' Corner, host David Maxwell celebrates 20 years of the Donegal Garden Trail with a deep dive into coastal gardening wisdom, resilience, and the quiet power of native plants. The conversation unfolds through intimate visits to two remarkable gardens: Dorothy Jervis’ Seaview Garden in Mount Charles, where a wild, self-sustaining landscape thrives despite harsh Atlantic winds, and Sean O'Guihan’s private woodland garden near Falkara, a living archive of Irish native flora shaped by ancient ring forts and ecological harmony. Brendan Little, returning with a daffodil named after Mulroy Bay, shares his reverence for subtle beauty and the legacy of horticultural giants like Brian Duncan. The episode confronts real-world gardening challenges—from waterlogged Portuguese laurel hedges to dog-damaged lawns—with practical, often hard truths. Adam Frost’s Bulb of the Month, the native bluebell, becomes a symbol of ecological integrity and the danger of overharvesting. Ultimately, the message is clear: the most sustainable gardens aren’t those we control, but those we learn to coexist with—where biodiversity, history, and quiet resilience grow stronger than any manicured border.