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St Mary’s Church of Ireland on Jacknell Street, Dungarvan Co Waterford is the setting for a pop-up, vintage tea rooms as part of a fund-raising, afternoon event for the charity, ‘To Russia with Love’. 

Organised by John Darcy from Stradbally, the event will be take place from 2.00pm to 5.00pm on August 23 and all proceeds will go directly to the charity, which supports abandoned and orphaned children in Russia. The Vintage Tea Rooms is a unique concept setup by Ria Drohan of Dungarven and has raised almost €50,000 for local charities over the past five years. Guests will have the opportunity to step back in time in charming surroundings to a backdrop of music from the 40’s, say the organisers. For more information or to book tickets, please contact 0879004530 or see www.torussiawithlove.ie

There will be a special charity Open Day at Terra Nova Garden, Dromin, Kilmallock, Co. Limerick tomorrow, Sunday from 2 — 6pm, the final open day of 2014. The event will include a half-price plant sale and the entrance fee of €5 includes tea, coffee and cakes. The proceeds will go to a number of animal charities, says Deborah Begley of Terra Nova. Phone [phone] for directions or email [e-mail] ; www.facebook.com/terranovagardens  or www.terranovagarden.com

The Farmleigh Plant Fair, at Farmleigh House, Dublin, takes place on Sunday, August 24 from 10am-5pm and a wide variety of specialist growers from all over Ireland will have an extensive range of rare and exotic plants on offer for visitors. Special guest gardener, Marie Staunton, will beon hand to to deliver two talks on the day. The first is on adding colour and interest to the garden through planting and it runs from 1.00pm to 2.00pm. The second lecture is on propagation, pruning and tips for novice gardeners, and runs from 3.00pm to 4.00 pm. A flower arranging demonstartion with Christopher White of Three Gates Florist and Nursery is also arranged — Christopher has won medals at the Chelsea Flower Show for the past four years.

As part of Heritage Week, the Cork Branch of the Irish Wildlife Trust are offering events around a marine theme. The first to be held is on the topic of coastal lichens. An important species, lichens in their white, orange and black colours are often forgotten so find out more about them with an event led by Paul Whelan, a lichenologist and author of “Lichens in Ireland”. He will give a guided lecture at Roche’s Point on Sunday, August 24 next and the event is free of charge with a donation optional. Guaranteed to be a very informative and interesting event — bring the kids, granny, girlfriend or boyfriend to Roche’s Point, Cork. The second IWT event for Heritage week is on Sunday August 31, also at Roche’s Point and is a rocky shore event. The walk will be led by Aideen Kane and Gill Weyman, both of whom have worked in the area of marine ecology. This is a fun learning event centred on the marine and animal life found on the sea shore. Again, it’s free, (with donatios to IWT welcome) and is open to all. Meet 2pm at Roche’s Point car park. As with most IWT events, suitable outdoor clothing is recommended, especially proper walking shoes, sun screen and a raincoat. For more information, contact the Cork branch at: [e-mail]  or Aideen on 087-6644623

Competitors are invited for the 2014 Arboretum Gardener of the Year competition which it’s hoped will get a national response. Arboretum MD Rachel Doyle will judge the competition and says she’s there are a wide range of categories for entrants: ‘I’m a firm believer that gardening is good for the soul and has endless psychological benefits. “Getting out in the garden is not only great for fresh air but it’s a great way to get family and friends together, especially in fine weather. Gardening is about nurturing and enjoymentof all things green.’ Gardeners can enter in to six different categories:

Best Large Garden

Best Small Garden

Best Vegetable or Allotment Plot

Best Raised Bed Plot

Best Hanging Basket or Planted Container

Best Gardener U14 Years of There will also be a trophy for the Overall Winner and Province Winner and the closing date is September 1. The prize is €1,000 spending money in Aboretum’s garden centre. The final will take place in Arboretum Home & Garden Heaven in Leighlinbridge, Co. Carlow where the overall winner will be announced and prize awarded.