Of the hundreds of engagements carried out by President Michael D Higgins, none are as close to his heart as opening the Bloom Festival in Phoenix Park.
The President toured the show gardens yesterday on the first day of the festival and his ardour was not dampened by heavy rain which sent the thousands of early visitors scurrying for shelter.
Neither did it dampen the ardour of many in the crowd for the President and his wife Sabina. Many clamoured for a photograph of the first couple and one woman thrust five coins into the President’s hands, each one symbolising a square metre of Irish soil.
Luckily, it appears the weather has done its worst for the weekend. Fine weather with temperatures tipping 20 degrees are forecast for tomorrow, although Sunday and Monday will be mixed.
President Higgins said the Bloom festival exemplified the “real economy” of food producers and crafts people and a sense of community. He said it was the “ploughing championships for urban dwellers”.
President Higgins praised Irish food producers for increasing exports to Britain by 40 per cent in the past five years and by 30 per cent to the United States despite the global recession.
He referenced his recent State visit to the UK and he said the presentation made by Bord Bia in Britain had been one of the most remarked upon aspects of his visit.
The President toured the food village and remarked on the number of young entrepreneurs making their way in the industry.
These were the type of people, he said, who gave him hope for the future.
“It is doing what is best in the most responsible way in human skills and in produce. My wish only is that more and more of the young people that you see around the place will be able to stay here (in Ireland) and make their livelihoods.
“If you want to see a place that breaks down any artificial barriers between rural and urban, come to Bloom and you will see them.”
He praised the restorative powers of gardening but also the “importance of wildness”.
Among the gardens the President toured was the winning garden, the Renault Zoe: City Life Garden designed by Kevin Dennis. "I came for gold, but I didn't expect to get the category as well," said the Raheny designer.
