The passing of long-time Irish Farmers Journal columnist Mary Lynch has left a void for all of us who looked forward, with a real sense of anticipation, to her weekly diary of family, gardening and farming.

Mary wrote under the pen name Liz Kavanagh – a name that became known the length and breadth of the country for its portrayal of a farming family.

Mary, née Coveney, was born in Cork. At one stage in her youth, she considered becoming a nun in the order of the Medical Missionaries of Mary, an order founded by Mother Mary Martin in the 1920s, which concentrated on providing medical facilities and nursing assistance to African women. She entered UCC to do medicine, but left after two years and married Minane Bridge farmer, Diarmuid Lynch.

In later life, she returned to UCC as a mature student and studied archaeology.

As farmers, Diarmuid and Mary were ahead of their time. They set up a dairy farm that came to be recognised as one of the best in Ireland. Those were pre-EC quota days and after participating in an Irish Farmers Journal trip to New Zealand, organised by then editor Paddy O’Keeffe, a template for expansion was set.

Mary had little time for mediocrity. She enthusiastically backed and participated in the expansion and development of the farm at Minane Bridge, with new grass swards, rotational grazing and calving to grass and reflected in her column the joys, disappointments and worries of dairy farming life.

As their family of four boys grew, the columns followed their progress. Alongside farming and family, Mary developed a garden that drew admiration from all over the country. As well as welcoming visitors, she wrote vividly about other people’s gardens and how she envied their ownership of plants she coveted!

She had high standards in everything. As well as farming and gardening, it even extended to organising the family weddings.

For one of them, she insisted that her brother, Archbishop Patrick Coveney should preside.

In 1998, she published a book appropriately titled Straight from the horse’s mouth. It was mainly a compilation of her Irish Farmers Journal columns, with some extra pieces.

Her later years were blighted by the effects of a fall she suffered while painting a roof, while her beloved Diarmuid predeceased her by 10 years.