Autumn in the Polytunnel with Klaus Laitenberger, The Organic Centre

What to Expect

The Organic Centre at Rossinver runs a programme of around fifty weekend courses a year on its nineteen-acre site in north Leitrim, and Autumn in the Polytunnel is the late-summer entry in the growing strand. It runs as a single-day course on Saturday 22 August 2026 and is taught by Klaus Laitenberger, one of the better-known organic growing tutors working in the north west and a long-standing contributor to the centre’s teaching programme.

The timing is deliberate. Late August is the point at which a polytunnel either gets planned for the colder half of the year or sits idle through it, and the course is pitched at that decision: what to clear, what to sow and plant now, and how to keep a tunnel productive through autumn and into winter. The Organic Centre’s teaching gardens and tunnels are on site, so courses here are run around working beds rather than in a classroom. The fee is €130. The centre notes that reduced rates are available for students and for people on income supports, arranged by contacting the office directly rather than through the online shop. Places are booked through the centre’s online shop in advance.

Good to Know

• Date: Saturday 22 August 2026, a single-day course
• Tutor: Klaus Laitenberger
• Venue: The Organic Centre, Rossinver, Co. Leitrim, F91 H978
• Price: €130, booked online in advance
• Reduced rates for students and those on income supports, by contacting the centre
• Contact: 071 9854338 or info@theorganiccentre.ie
• The centre is open daily from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM
• Bring clothing and footwear suited to working outdoors and under cover

Getting There

The Organic Centre is signposted off the R281 near Rossinver in north Leitrim, on the road that runs between Manorhamilton and Kinlough along the southern side of Lough Melvin. Manorhamilton is about 20 minutes away, Kinlough and Bundoran roughly 20 to 25 minutes, Sligo town around 50 minutes and Enniskillen about 45 minutes. There is free parking on site. Public transport to Rossinver is very limited, so almost everyone attending a course here drives or car shares, and the roads in are narrow rural routes worth allowing extra time for.