It's all about the willow!

It's all about the willow this week - a gorgeous willow dome built by the 6th class of Rathfarnham Educate Together NS on Monday, willow fence at Ashgrove Community Garden on Tuesday and Willow archway at Kilcock Men's shed today!

Team Willow rocking it at Body and Soul Festival June 2012

I returned for a second time to the Body & Soul Festival at Ballinlough Castle in Co. Westmeath with an increased Team Willow in tow this time! Myself and Cathy Eastman (good friend from days working down at Kerry Earth Education Project - see link below!) led team willow. Our main project was building and decorating the main entrance into the main stage area, see piccys below. We combined tissue and willow discs with a simple criss-cross willow fence at the base, and our saviour Rob built us the basic archway on which to erect all our art work! We also made large dry willow and tissue trees which decorated the main stage area, the usual ground lanterns in the woods, a few other small projects, oh and most importantly, there was a festival baby born to our decor boss while we were there! very exciting!

http://www.bodyandsoul.ie/

http://www.gortbrackorganicfarm.com/online/

Willow Haven in the city

We built these willow half domes and fence with a group of willing 4th class from St. Finians Nat. School in Finglas, they are to be a little haven and chill out spot for the kids, when they need some time out from class. We're going to get pieces of wood to sit on, and hopefully when spring finally fully bursts out it will become a living structure. We also found shield bugs, a bird's anvil and lots of other interesting finds on a wander along our nature trail we've built at the school.

You can book us through the INTO Heritage in Schools Scheme to do this type of work in your school. Check out www.heritageinschools.ie

Spring Madness!!

Spring 
Madness!

It's been a fierce busy spring for GROW, we've been teaching in Allenwood, Newbridge, Athy and we've just started a new horticulture group in Celbridge in the new ACRE Project that's been kicking off there. The ACRE Project is a very innovative community project that's looking to develop an all inclusive community garden project beside the Salesian College on the Maynooth Rd, we're expecting great things from this project!

On the schools front, we've been busy with setting up vegetable patches and especially busy doing willow structures this year. we've built a willow dome and fence in Nurney NS in Kildare and most recently I built a unique structure for the lucky hens at Derrinturn NS. With 4th class we built two mini domes and a joining fence, we're hoping they're going to provide some nice shelter for the hens, if we ever get some summer sun!

Electric Picnic - Living Willow!

 Electric Picnic - Living Willow!

Ok! Very lazy this autumn on keeping the news flowing! Big project of the summer was Lucy working on the Electric Picnic, along with Cathy Eastman from KEEP, the girls oversaw the willow fence crew in the Body and Soul area, where they built some unusual fences, one based on the double helix, and another was a bit more Alice in Wonderland! We did the main enterance to the Body and Soul and the entrance to the Zen garden, I got to work on a giant dream catcher for a new entrance into the Body and Soul which was very exciting, and it has to be said looked pretty deadly when it was up!

School Gardens in Full Swing!

School Gardens in Full Swing!

Well, it's been one busy spring and early summer! We haven't stopped to draw breath or get our own vegetables planted it's been so busy! School gardens are in full swing. New vegetable patches have been set up in St.Finian's and St.Malachy's in Finglas and most recently in Scoil Mhuire, Nurney, on home turf. Most of the beds were built with the capable hands of a variety of 4th, 5th and 6th class, the favourite part being the 'shovelling of cow pooh'. Other ongoing projects such as with the Holy Trinity N.S. in Donaghmede, which I still do with KEEP, are looking great too, they have 16 vegetable beds in full swing now, and the native woodland and soft fruit area has been extended over the last few visits. The potatoes are jumping put of the ground and there's radishes and lettuce for munching on. They have the biggest garlic I've seen anywhere this year. The kids are hoping there's enough blackcurrants to make home made ribena this year! We're hoping to get back to a few of the schools and do some nice projects such as living willow fences and domes in the autumn. don't forget you can book us through the INTO/Heritage in Schools scheme, and they pay half our fee!