Late May lusciousness
Growth everywhere!
Hello lovely subscribers! I hope that you getting to enjoy the good weather. I’m sitting in a sunny window sipping nettle tea while writing this - I harvested and dried loads of nettles from a clean space* and I’m trying to make this ritual a more regular part of my life. If you don’t feel like foraging, no worries, Eibhlin has some in the Refill Mill shop. And thanks to those of you who liked or shared this post, or who have told me that you enjoy reading it - it really helps!
So May was incredibly busy, and continues to be so. Echoing the rhythms of Mother Nature, where the birds are busy hatching young, the bees are foraging and the butterflies are feeding to have energy to mate and lay their eggs.
At the start of the month I attended a workshop hosted by the Irish Architecture Foundation to explore the creative reuse of materials. That was really fun, and I met some interesting people. It necessitated a stay over in Dublin, so I also had a chance to swing by Bridgefoot Street Park, in the Liberties. It’s a wonderful example of a mix of wild biodiversity with hard landscaping - some recycled- to give structure. A great example of what can be done with community involvement and creative thinking. I’d strongly encourage a visit, it blew me away!
That same weekend I was delighted to attend the Mullingar Choral society performance in St Pauls. If you fancy singing with a group in the midlands, this group is the one to join. They’ll be restarting in September.
My Lake County Learning project kicked off with 2 workshops - Eibhlin taught natural cleaning in the Women’s Community Project space, and I ran a sourdough course in the Refill Mill. Really fun and enjoyable sessions.
More courses are now available for booking - click here for a full list. The next one for me is the oft repeated jam jar workshop - it’s on June 7th at 6:30pm. I have loads of flowers right now, so if you attend that you’ll likely go home with more than one arrangement.
Next up for Eibhlin is Natural Skincare in Castlepollard library - a morning session for those of you who can’t make the evening course. June 19th at 10:00am . A lovely way to get together with like minded people to celebrate the solstice too!
I’m continuing my pottery course in Athlone (I’m a student) - the process to completion is slow, so it will still be a few weeks before I can use my new creations to showcase my flowers. Last week we finally got slips for decorating, so I’m very excited about that. Can’t wait to share photos of the finished work!
Funded by the Westmeath PPN, I ran a composting course in Ballymore at An Ghrian Glas farm. Kate (the farmer) had just hosted scores of campers who were attending the Uisneach festivities. It was a sunny day and the farm was looking amazing - a great example of how a farm can work hand in hand with nature, rather than trying to dominate. Kate gave the participants a detailed and informative tour , and then we covered all aspects of composting, finishing with a practical element where we turned compost, and added lots of grass, comfrey, chicken manure and coffee chaff in layers in her enormous compost bays.
I also squeezed in a bit of culture - a very pleasant day trip to Dublin on the train, to a wood themed exhibition in Oliver Cornet Gallery. Also a quick stop in Hugh lane , where I was found to be coordinated with a Sean Scully work…
I was sorry to miss the Flower Farmers of Ireland Stand at Oldbridge Floral and Food Fair, but my gazebo and flowers were there, so I attended in spirit. Here’s my floral contributions!
Failte Ireland had a public event in Mullingar where they were looking for ideas for sustainable tourism. I couldn't miss the chance be creative and give ideas, if you feel the same, here’s a link to the survey. There’s lots of funding for this coming down the line, and they will need to spend it quickly. They are looking to make the Hidden Heartlands the most sustainable tourist destination in Europe - wa-hey!
Biodiversity ‘week’ is May 19th to 28th, there are lots of free events going on all over the country. As part of this, I ran a ‘Biodiversity in action’ workshop in Belvedere and I’ll be running a similar workshop in Athlone on May 27th. We’ll talk about biodiversity in general, the problems caused by biodiversity loss, and then move onto action that individuals can take to reverse the loss.
Here’s the blurb: “Discussion with like minded people has been shown to reduce climate anxiety, so there will be plenty of time for that. Hands-on practical sessions equip the participants with practical skills that can help them to easily and cheaply increase biodiversity in their gardens and green spaces. Everyone will go home with a selection of biodiversity friendly, beautiful, fragrant plants. A light lunch from Magico bakery will be provided. The workshop will conclude with a biodiversity walk.“
This is generously funded by Westmeath Heritage and Westmeath PPN.
As part of my promotion for this, I did an interview on Athlone Community Radio. If you’d like to listen back, the here’s the link.
Last night my youngest son graduated from secondary school, it’s a momentous event that I couldn't have imagined when he started school in 2008. I’m not allowed to post any photos, so sorry about that! We are very proud parents, especially since he went to the pub after, but doesn’t drink.
So what’s next?
I won a prize last year - a biodiversity tour of Dublin Bay - that’s this Friday - really looking forward to it!
I’m really enjoying my weekly pilates classes with Colette - every week I leave feeling taller and thinner. We are discussing a joint venture for next month - details to come!
The beautiful Alyce has a Shakti Dance Workshop in the woods for charity on Sunday, as part of Revolution Period this year, it’s a great cause! We need to be able to talk about menstruation without getting embarrassed, it’s a fact of life, nothing to be ashamed of. Period poverty is real, and needs to be addressed. I am always delighted to see free period supplies in businesses.
Alyce is also one of the the three organisers of The Yoga Picnic - I’ll be bringing my flowers to that for a Mandala workshop, and also talking about flowers and biodiversity. Still a few tickets left. Should be a great day. July 2nd, and the Leaving Cert will be over by then!
We are live with quite a few Lake County Learning courses, as I mentioned above , the locally grown flower arranging is next, and also coming soon - Edible flowers and herbs, Soap making in Mullingar and Athlone. These course sell out quickly, they are just online now, so I’d encourage you to book your place and put it in your calendar!
So, for this months song - during the week I fell into a bit of a Kate Bush Rabbit hole, but I came across this on YouTube, live performances from the BBC over the years. She’s such a talent!
*A farm where no one is spraying, nature is allowed to do her thing. Hope you can find a similar space. Roadsides not great for foraging.