Introducing myself

**K* M* <k*@iol.ie>**

Greetings everyone

I find I'm uncharacteristically nervous about introducing myself to  
this group since garden writing comes some way down both my source of  
earnings and how I spend my time. My main source of income is  
academic editing and my main use of time is the management, on a  
volunteer basis, of the gardens of Sonairte: The National Ecology  
Centre of Ireland where one apple tree, an Ecklinville Seedling, is a  
survivor from the 1835 Ordnance Survey of Ireland. The garden has had  
organic certification since 1987 and is used to demonstrate growing  
techniques and sustainability to both amateurs and commercial  
growers. I have a fortnightly general gardening page in a Dublin  
newspaper and contribute occasional articles, mostly on issues around  
organic gardening, the integration of ornamental and food gardens,  
gardening for wildlife and similar issues to a range of magazines and  
newspapers. I talk and teach on these and related themes nationally  
and occasionally internationally to a range of clients from garden  
groups to industry bodies and represent organic and environmental  
interests on a statutory body, the GMO advisory group of the  
Environmental Protection Agency. I have a three acre garden, much of  
it in a state of benign neglect, which includes damp woodland and  
formal bog gardens, water meadow managed for species variety, orchard  
and vegetable areas and the usual collection of formal gardens. I  
make regular resolutions not to become a plantaholic but break them  
when faced with roses, hellebores, irises and primulas. It has  
recently been born in upon me that 18 climbing roses, six clematis,  
two wisterias and two honeysuckles is probably too much for the walls  
of any one not particularly large house but I have great difficulty  
making sacrifices.

On the topic of fees I am a firm opponent of undercharging. One can  
always give a discount to a group who can't afford one's full fees  
but who one wishes to talk to for one reason or another. But it  
should be made clear that this is a discount and should be invoiced  
as such. It just isn't fair to others to start undercutting. If  
speaking to a charity one can even charge full fees and later make a  
tax deductible donation - a practise I have found acceptable to the  
Irish revenue commissioners.

Looking forward to learning a lot

kathryn
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