Last week we went to the Farmers Market in Boyle, County Roscommon, and as we parked the car we noticed a beige coloured fluff all over the road, the footpaths and piled up in the gutters: Have you figured it out? Look above Gabriel’s head and you’ll notice the overhanging branches of great big beech [...]
Back in October 2008 I wrote on the subject of ash seeds being so abundant. They could be seen in colossal quantities dripping off the twigs of every ash tree. Ash seeds generally take 18 months to germinate, so do the sums, – it’s now 18 months on. How exciting is that? Look about you [...]
You may have noticed that it’s been a while since I’ve tapped out a Local Forest Blog. For four weeks I was in Beaumont Hospital, first having surgery and then recovering my strength. I went in on 5th April feeling so fit and healthy and after surgery (removal of a meningioma on the brain) I [...]
I A whirl of white as the branches and twigs grow a coat of frozen snow. Alder twigs, seed long since dispersed, making lovely patterns in the snow. But the ground feeding birds need hedges and trees to find their food. ……. And little patches of wildness…..
The long awaited visit of Pro Silva Ireland (PSI) to Baronscourt Estate near Newtownstewart, County Tyrone was well worth the wait. In keeping with PSI tradition, two foreign experts were invited over to Ireland to join us on the day. Brice De Turckheim, a forest owner and forester with many years of experience in close-to-nature management [...]
Mostly I want to keep this blog site jargon free and low tech, but on this post I thought it might be useful to paste up my own notes which include a few facts and figures for those who are interested in more technical details: Het Loo Royal Estate After a good breakfast we piled [...]
Continue reading about Visit to Holland – “Het Loo” Royal Estate and Badger Mountain
Yesterday I met a man who agreed to help me work through a new project I’ve been thinking about, to do with close-to-nature forestry of course. I travelled to Dublin on the train. We met in Juice, that wonderful restaurant on South Great George’s Street, Dublin. I had never met him before. He started by [...]
Continue reading about Forests Evolve – You Can’t Plant Them
As the leaves are turning colour and starting to fall from the trees, brambles really come into their own. Brambles are so important to birds and animals for shelter and food, especially in the winter months. Some say that brambles are an awful nuisance in a woodland, and I know they can be in some [...]
Have you noticed what’s happening with the ash trees? Just look at this – They’re coming down with seed this year. Free trees for everyone whether you want them or not! Ash likes it here in the Cavan/Leitrim area where I live. Ash seedlings appear in people’s garden beds and pot plants; they come up [...]
The Lakeshore Road at Garadice When the County Council tarred the quiet lane that runs along beside the lake shore at Garadice many trees were knocked down, damaged or pushed over by the machine driver and rammed up onto the low bank, causing even more damage to remaining trees. Grand Old Oak Tree [...]
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