Mother Earth is thriving.
Her abundance is nothing less than magnificent.
Everywhere on this land She thrives.
I have found a great many Cherry Trees She has seeded and grown over the past two years, but have remained hidden in the general mayhem of Spring and Summer, only to be discovered this year as Spring seemed to struggle and lag behind, so allowing me to see.
It is simply delightful to behold. The mother tree was planted by me a mere 13 yrs ago and already she has brought forth abundance.
This Field Maple is bearing fruit this year and the Bees are soaring around its topmost branches.
I know that I have posted this quote before, but it speaks loudly and will not be quietened…
“Wherever forests have not been mowed down, wherever the animal is recessed in their quiet protection, wherever the earth is not bereft of four-footed life – that to the white man is an ‘unbroken wilderness.’ 
But for us there was no wilderness, nature was not dangerous but hospitable, not forbidding but friendly. Our faith sought the harmony of man with his surroundings; the other sought the dominance of surroundings.
For us, the world was full of beauty; for the other, it was a place to be endured until he went to another world.
But we were wise. We knew that man’s heart, away from nature, becomes hard.”
― Chief Luther Standing Bear
“Kinship with all creatures of the earth, sky, and water was a real and active principle.
In the animal and bird world there existed a brotherly feeling that kept us safe among them…
The animals had rights – the right of man’s protection, the right to live, the right to multiply, the right to freedom, and the right to man’s indebtedness.
This concept of life and its relations filled us with the joy and mystery of living; it gave us reverence for all life; it made a place for all things in the scheme of existence with equal importance to all.”
― Chief Luther Standing Bear
And so wherever we allow Her, enable Her and protect Her, abundance flows…
It’s humbling to witness…
My Goddess helps me to keep in mind the great Life Force of the Great Mother, for I, as a human need symbols to ground me and remember that She is not just a life-force, but an intelligent sentient being.
Symbols have always resonated with us.
We possess an innate ability to read and understand symbols, for they transcend language and culture.
Yet even as I walk back along the veranda towards the door of the cottage, I see the abundance.
This time in a recently re-potted tree…lots of tiny Parsley seedlings. I have no idea where they have come from, except to add that I used home made compost and these are from the seed-heads of last Summer.
“A Cottage and Three Acres,” by Colette O’Neill
Please email Colette if you would like a particular inscription in your book. From a desolate cottage set in 3 acres of monoculture sadness, to a vibrant, thriving food forest of life…the journey back to Eden over 13 years… Bealtaine Books and Maps are printed in Ireland and posted from Ireland to support the people of Ireland.
€27.00
In Search of The Goddess Rising
This is the second book in the Goddess Permaculture series from Colette O’Neill at Bealtaine Cottage, Ireland. In this book I explore the ancient landscape, mythology, literature and life around Bealtaine Cottage… in search of the Great Goddess. The price of the book includes all postage and packing to wherever you live in the world! Bealtaine Books and Maps are printed in Ireland and posted from Ireland to support the people of Ireland.
€21.00
Bealtaine Cottage Guide to the Deep Midwinter
A little Yuletide book filled with colour photographs, recipes, reflections, lore, poetry and mirth to guide you through the wonderful days ahead. Fifty pages of sheer delight from Bealtaine Cottage to you. The book is fully bound and can be posted direct as a gift. Price includes P&P worldwide. Bealtaine Books and Maps are printed in Ireland and posted from Ireland to support the people of Ireland.
€15.00
Special Offer: Goddess Book and Midwinter Book
In Search of the Goddess Rising and The Bealtaine Cottage Guide to the Deep Midwinter…both books normally cost €36.00 but can be purchased together for for €32.00 which includes P&P Worldwide. Bealtaine Books and Maps are printed in Ireland and posted from Ireland to support the people of Ireland.
€32.00
Magical Mythical Map of Bealtaine Cottage and Gardens
Beautiful map created by the artist David Gascoigne, especially for Bealtaine Cottage. The picture shows one side of the map…it is printed on both sides, see the photos on this page. The price includes all Postage and Packing to wherever you live in the world! Bealtaine Books and Maps are printed in Ireland and posted from Ireland to support the people of Ireland.
€12.00
There’s the makings of a decent salad, with Fennel, Japanese salads like Mizuna and others as well as a lovely edible garnish in the form of Pansy flowers. 
In other parts of the gardens, where little micro-climates exist in the form of stones and shed walls, there’s Flat-leaf Parsley and Thyme. 
Purple Sprouting Broccoli is giving lots of florets…delicious raw or cooked and full of goodness! 
Then there’s Leeks…all grown from saved seed and the stronger for it! 
Elsewhere in the gardens I found stands of Kale…shred this in salads and roast as chip dips! 
Here and there in the flower beds and in pots…lots of Sage and Rosemary…great herbs to add taste to root vegetables at this time of year! 
Bay is growing in abundance, quite acclimatised to the Irish climate. 
Golden Oregano continues to thrive past Midwinter. 
Even the Rhubarb is beginning to produce! 
There’s lots of other food in the garden…for birds and small mammals, in the form of berries. 
This seed has adapted over twelve years to grow in difficult conditions, for as you know, it rains frequently here and the gardens are all on a north-facing slope. 
This is why the seed saved here, year after year, is more resilient than commercial seed, which is grown in ideal conditions for the maximum production value! 
Saving seed also makes one value the pollinators, especially the Bees…for without their incredible work there would not be any seed to collect! 
During the 1900’s we experienced a startling drop in the number of heirloom varieties—because gardeners stopped saving and trading their own seeds. 
Here at Bealtaine Cottage I have developed a seed bank over twelve years, adding more and more seed year on year, as the biodiversity increased similarly throughout the gardens. 
When we rely on commercial seed companies, any seeds that sell slowly simply get dropped from production and disappear. 
If you would like to support this vital work of seed-saving and building resilience for the future, consider purchasing some seed from Bealtaine Cottage… 
You may remember that last week I visited the Atlantic shoreline to harvest some seaweed to use on the garden. 
The strands to the south of Sligo town have piles of loose seaweed here and there along the beaches.
Always only ever take the loose stuff…don’t pull seaweed from stones as these form habitats and are essential to the ecology of the seashore!
In the end I managed about three big bags of seaweed and headed home with my foraged booty!
The first thing I do is to spread it on the gravel around the cottage and allow the rain to wash out excess salt.
After about a week, I start to spread the seaweed around established plants in the garden and tunnel.
The seaweed acts as a wonderful feed and a weed-suppressing mulch!
One of the best things about growing food in the garden is the opportunity to use local and near resources that are free to be foraged or collected…seaweed is an organic fertiliser! 
Seaweed is washed in by the tide, so is easy to forage!
Only ever take what you need!
It’s packed with Potassium and Nitrogen, bot wonderful for the garden!
Ireland is the richest source of Celtic myths and legends. 
Down through the Ages, Ireland remained remote and cut off from mainland Europe, holding onto its rich folklore and spirituality. 
It’s peoples worshipped all aspects of the natural world in which they recognised the Divine, in much the same way as I do here at Bealtaine Cottage. 
The reason for the wealth of myth and legend that pervades Ireland, today and it’s people lies not just from its isolation from mainland Europe for much of its history.
Ireland remained free from pressures exerted by other cultures such as the Roman Empire. 
So much so, that the great writer, John B. Keane referred to his people as having only a “thin veneer of Christianity…” in that they merged their pre-Christian practices with their newly inducted Christianity.
And so I offer this up as a simple explanation for the gardens at Bealtaine Cottage having evolved through a similar understanding of the natural world and the supreme forces of Nature. 
This is no ordinary Permaculture garden as you can see, but one deeply nourished and inspired by the Goddess. 
For me there is a spiritual, otherworldly, ethereal force at work and play here.
This is the rational (for me) way of explaining the extraordinary growth and extreme revving-up of biodiversity that has happened at Bealtaine.
All beyond my control…not that I ever wanted to control this magnificent force! 
As I re-emerged through my journey with Mother Earth, I came to an intuitive understanding of the need to stop digging Her…to let Her be! 
So I mulch and cover Her with as much tenderness as befits the Great Mother. 
You will never see any of Her precious skin exposed. 
Her mantle remains in place. 
And so this brings me to the second part of this story… 
The wonderful success of No-Dig Gardening… 
And here is the first of over twenty photographs and the story of growing success at Bealtaine Cottage, Ireland…continued over at Bealtaine Cottage Good Life… bealtainecottage.org
