Greta’s Herbs

Growing wild in the West of Ireland

No cookbook this month for my monthly book tip, but a herb book from Greta McCarthy O’Brien who lives on the Dingle Peninsula, the West of Ireland. At the base of each meal is the choice of herbs. Add too much and they’ll overpower everything, don’t add enough and your meal might fall apart. But other than that, most people tend to stick to the same types of herbs most of the time and tend to not go and explore too much. One of the things i’ll be doing as soon as I have a house and garden of my own, will be to put in my own vegetable, fruit and herbal garden, so I can grow my own herbs and experiment with their flavours as well as use them to bring a lovely scent to the house.
If you are like me and would love to know more about herbs, when to grow them, how to use them for both decorative and culinary use and maybe discover some new flavours you hadn’t heard about than this book for sure is the thing for you. It’s very much a no-nonsense book, straight forward with no unnecessary bells and whistles. It comes in a very handy a thin size as well, making it very easy to carry it with you into your garden or out in the wild to go forage some herbs and flowers.

Book description
This 160 page, neatly sized A5 book is full colour throughout, thread sewn with a laminated cover making it user friendly and durable. “Greta’s Herbs is a great ‘hands-on’ introduction to the world of herb growing, written by an experienced horticulturist and nursery-owner who knows her stuff'” Fionnuala Fallon, The Irish Times Gardening Correspondent.

“Greta’s charming and beautifully illustrated book will be a source of tremendously useful advice, knowledge and inspiration for all who wish to grow their own herbs”. Rory O’Connell, Co-founder of the Ballymaloe Cookery school, TV presenter of ‘How to Cook Well’ and award winning author of ‘Master it’.

About the Author
Greta McCarthy O Brien grew up in the small historical village of Cloyne in East Cork. Her early influences included her father Denis O Brien who was a commercial tomato producer and Ballymaloe house where she worked during school holidays for the renowned Myrtle Allen. She gained a scholarship to study horticulture in the National Botanic Gardens, Glasnevin, Dublin in the the early 80’s.

She was the proprietor of Greta’s Garden Centre in Bray and Greystones, Co Wicklow. In 1997 she moved to the West of Ireland and set up a small herb nursery in Annascaul on the Dingle Peninsula. Greta specialises in the production of potted herbs locally, gives talks and writes on the subject of herbs.

Greta’s Herbs can be bought in-season — typically March to September — in selected outlets in Co Kerry.

• Foxy John’s, Dingle
• Miltown Organic store
• O’Donnells Shop, Annascaul
• Mace, Camp
• Keanes Petrol Station, Lispole
• Individual deliveries to customers can be organised.

Greta gives talks and demonstrations on Herb Growing to various groups especially those involved in the food industry and garden clubs. She writes regularly for local publications on the topic of herbs.

If you’re interested in a course on growing herbs, Greta will be doing a workshop with chef Mark Murphy at the Dingle Cookery School on May 5th Bealtaine Festival, Dingle). For more info: Courses – Growing Herbs for your Kitchen with Greta McCarthy O’Brien.

Visitors are welcome to visit the nursery by appointment. To contact Greta, you can call her on +353863169716 or email on  gretasherbs@yahoo.com. For more information you can always visit her website www.gretasherbs.com.

Book information
Paperback: 160 pages
Publisher: Greta’s Herbs Ireland; First edition (April 10, 2017)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1527206564
ISBN-13: 978-1527206564

You can buy the book on Greta’s website.