Creating Environment and Powering Down!

Posted May 20, 2016

Filed under beauty, Bees, care for the earth, sustainable gardens, Sustainable Living, Trees, Wild Flowers

Most of the energy we use at home comes from burning fossil fuels.

Using less energy means burning fewer fossil fuels and putting less carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

Over the past twelve years I have endeavoured to reduce not just my own carbon footprint, but that of Bealtaine Cottage and gardens.

When first planting the forest gardens it was important to keep the paths open, so mowing once a week during the growing season was a huge task!

That issue is now almost resolves as the trees have shaded the paths…

and dropped lots of leaves to create quite a dense mulch.

I am now tackling the long grass area that is the frontage of the gardens onto the road.

I began this task about three days ago, sculpting as I prepared a strip into which I planted.

Planting is diverse and from my own Nursery where I grow trees, flowers, shrubs, herbs and vegetables.

It has always been important to me to keep this neat and attractive as it is an encouragement to passers-by to consider Goddess-Inspired Permaculture in a positive light!

This is the stage I am at today. I simply strip back some grass and turn the sod upside down behind the strip…then plant!

The end result will be that there is about half the amount of grass to mow…so half the amount of fossil fuel used!

Best of all will be an extended feeding ground for the Bees!

That’s what I call a result!

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Magical Days

Posted March 11, 2015

Filed under Cats, Gardens, Permaculture, Spring, vegetable garden, Wild Flowers

Gardens in Spring are one of Nature’s great delights.

Here at Bealtaine Cottage the back door remains open and the sun streams in.

My grandson, Dylan sips tea, whilst nearby, Charlie sleeps on the rocking chair.

It is days like these that are idyllic to recall, as the days of Spring and Summer stretch out before us.

Sammy-Bear sits by the open door, enjoying the strong sunshine.

Somewhere in the scheme of things, as the days lengthen and the early morning birdsong touches our souls, a deep sense of optimism pervades the humdrum of everyday life.

Animals react to Spring with displays of joy.

The image of the Spring lamb are there for all to see, but look at the behaviour of other animals…

And the Earth itself…I can smell the grass growing…it’s an earthy, green, living smell that intoxicates!

As I walk among the Potager beds in the garden, I notice how the Purple Sprouting Broccoli is regenerating, almost as fast as I can pick the small sprouts.

In the tunnel, Calendula flowers on last Summers plants…a welcome reminder of the flowers to come and oh, they smell so sweet!

Buds on the Peach tree are beginning to thicken.

This was a broken tree I rescued from the waste of a big store.

It’s taken four years to nurture it into a strong tree and this year, maybe, just maybe, I shall have some fruit!

The Kale has over-wintered well, keeping me supplied with plenty of this rich food through the dark months.

Now, as almost all the leaves have been harvested, it begins to sprout abundance all over again.

Time to feed and water well!

This Celery was planted and stem harvested last Spring.

It has regenerated and will provide yet more nutrients for juicing!

Spring flowers, beauty to behold…feeding the spirit as I work in the kitchen.

Flowers on the Ribes bushes have opened.

These will be ready to feed early awakening bees.

Wood, stacked in Wigwam shape to air dry before being cut and moved to the barn.

There is so much wood here at Bealtaine that I am never going to get around to coppicing more than about 25%!

Taking the time to bend down and look closer to the Earth, sights like this remind one there is another world below our view, reacting to the energy of Spring.

I hope you make time to go out into Nature and find repose with her, for these are days of Spring magic…Magical days indeed!

The Tipping Point Moment

Posted July 4, 2014

Filed under Abundance, Angels, Bealtaine Cottage, Earth, Family, Gaia, Garden, Inspiration, Life, Personal, Spirituality, Wild Flowers

“Right now over 70% of the world population is convinced that something serious has to be done about the dangers facing the planet. …Most of humanity wants to know how to make the change. It’s one of those tipping-point times where things can change unbelievably fast…”

~ Paul H. Ray and Sherry Ruth Anderson, The Cultural Creatives

Words of wisdom.

Words of vision.

The coming times; a glimpse of what’s to come.

These times are infused with uncertainty and fear.

Many people deal with this by switching off.

The Tipping Point has arrived.

Most of us know this to be a truth.

We know it deep in our hearts.

There is a panic among those who hold power over us.

This is manifested in the shifting sands of policy as things appear to fall apart.

Our governments have sown the seeds of chaos…in what they have done and what they have failed to do.

The most insidious, Machiavellian, duplicitous human beings are rampaging and corralling us all into dark times.

“Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.”
― W.B. Yeats, The Collected Poems

For several years, as I have written this blog, and photographed the exquisite and the beautiful that is Mother Earth, I have attempted to inspire and encourage a return to Mother Earth.

For those who dwell close to her, quickly find the connection to life and spirit they have searched for, and in the finding is birthed a renewed sense of humanity, compassion, goodness and joy.

These are the values we have, as humans, innate within us.

The intuitive, intrinsic, spontaneous gifts of the Divine which make us as one.

Those we have elected as Trustees of Our Planet are conjuring wars, corruption, hatred and despair; thrusting us into the darkest of times.

As the falcon turns, hold on tight to what you know to be the truth.

_____________

Bealtaine Cottage is free and has over 850 blogs, as well as over 3,500 photographs.

Bealtaine Cottage Good Life is a mere 12 euros per year and allows me a small income, to keep doing what I love doing most…writing about Mother Earth and photographing her.

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Bartering

Posted June 28, 2014

Filed under Bealtaine Cottage, Garden, Life, Lifestyle, Permaculture, Thrift, Uncategorized, Wild Flowers

Bartering home made wine for time spent fixing my computer is fantastic and affordable…this afternoon was spent in the company of two friends, who did great work for me, in return for some giggle tonic; what happens when you drink this potent Blackcurrant wine.

Jack has just returned with me from his early evening walk.

He is in desperate need of a brush as he’s moulting all over the place!

He gets all soppy when I brush his coat.

Sheepdogs are very loyal and just a wee bit crazy too!

A cottage garden gets away from all sense of colour co-ordination, as you can see here!

Many of the perennials are starting to go over a little bit as the height of Midsummer has passed.

This can be a good time to cut back on some in order to get a late summer blossoming too.

The Geranium thrives on a twice yearly cut back.

This little Fig tree grows well in a half barrel, being squashed into a tight corner with other plants and even a Rose bush; Figs thrive in tight spots!

There was a time when Ireland was dotted with little white-washed cottage, all proudly hosting red Perlagoniums on their low window sills every summer.

Sad to think those days of simple living have passed and people are no happier really!

Ox-Eye Daisies run riot all over the top part of the gardens, thriving in the limestone gravel with carefree abandon! So often dismissed as weeds, these wild flowers are undemanding and drought tolerant.

Nasturtiums are coming into their own and the bees are having a real feast.

An outdoors coffee table and chair…why not?

Otherworldly…

Posted June 15, 2014

Filed under Abundance, Country Living, Earth, Eco-Living, Ecology, Inspiration, Ireland, Life, Lifestyle, Nature, Permaculture, Spirituality, Summer, Thoughts, Wild Flowers

Sunday afternoon…picking flowers in the gardens.

This feels like the full, quiet days before giving birth…

The force of the full moon can still be felt in the stillness of the late afternoon air.

There is an otherworldly feel to it all… Time appears to stand very still.

Bees continue in a frenzy of work on this side of the Solstice.

I have often felt a slowness as time ascends towards Midsummer…it’s as though Mother Earth is not yet ready to let go…

Evenings merge with night as daylight seems eternal in the west of Ireland…Ox-Eye Daisies reach up toward the sun, basking in summer.

Returning from Belfast and the soft hum of the city to this place of quiet solitude, this otherworldly paradise of sights and scents…

Far back from the lane, this little cottage nestles into silence, a place of tranquil tolerance, a timeless existence at midsummer.

Wood Pigeon and Cuckoo call a mantra of hypnotic sounds…a lazy Sunday afternoon…

Ground Elder, the bane of many gardeners, is allowed her magnificence here, frothy lace adorning a mantle of green. Ragged Robin dances by the wheels of an old bike.

Himalayan Musk stands sturdy by the wooden porch.

Astrantia unfolds it’s papery petals in an unending delight of pinky white and green.

Bees delight in Jacob’s Ladder as it ascends to heaven…

And blue Jacob’s Ladder adorns the kitchen table in a cottage lost in time…

Bealtaine Cottage has a brand new website…it’s called Bealtaine Cottage Good Life…TO READ MORE, PLEASE SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEW WEBSITE.

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The Permaculture Challenge

Posted May 23, 2014

Filed under Bealtaine Cottage, biodiversity, Ecology, Garden, Gardening, Gardens, Inspiration, Ireland, Permaculture, Thoughts, Uncategorized, Wild Flowers, Woodland

This is the tenth anniversary of Bealtaine Cottage Permaculture Smallholding.

It’s hard to believe that ten years ago this was a desolate cottage on three acres of the poorest agriculture land imaginable.

Wet, north-facing, thin, dauby soil promised little in the way of growing.

It was a challenge few in their right minds would have contemplated, let alone sink their life savings into, as well as borrowing from the bank!

But, I fell in love with the land, for it looked immeasurably forlorn and abandoned.

My approach was simple…it was holistic, nothing was separated or apart…all was connected and that included being connected to me, as the new caretaker and caregiver.

I have never taken a Permaculture course, but read every book on the subject and applied the principles. As a teacher I had created environmental gardens in primary school grounds in London, bringing Mother Nature to children living, in many cases, remote from Mother Nature and all her wonders!

In the early days I was physician and surgeon, intensive care nurse and visitor, channeling all my energy and hope into the sick land.

Working on my own was a blessing, for the land took all my time and love.

After ten years, this once barren little place is one of the most fertile and productive pieces of land in all of Ireland…in fact I would like to issue a challenge to The Botanical Gardens in Dublin and it is this: Bealtaine Cottage has more biodiversity in it’s flora and fauna than the Botanical Gardens, Dublin!

Visit and prove me wrong!

*******************

And in the beginning there was only this…

Follow Your Bliss and the Universe Will Open Doors

Posted May 2, 2014

Filed under Bealtaine Cottage, Cats, Cottage, Country Living, Fairies, Garden, hens, Inspiration, Permaculture, Spirituality, Summer, Uncategorized, Wild Flowers, Woodland

Looking out on a May evening…

Making a decision is always the most difficult part of moving forward.

In deciding, one simply puts it out there, for the Universe to pick up.

That is what I have done here at Bealtaine Cottage…the next move comes from that energy.

Sammy-Bear takes a seat…

The sale may, or may not happen…but the planting of trees will move forward.

The feeding system I have devised and constructed for the hens…an old pipe and tin, firmly secured on the wall of the hen-house!

I have done what was asked of me and agreed to the sacrifice.

What happens next is synchronicity and the will of Divine Energy…The Forest of Bealtaine will happen in the same magical way as Eden emerged here at Bealtaine Cottage.

Food is poured in to the top of the pipe and emerges from the feeder at the bottom as the hen peck!

As my friend, Rosie, on Twitter, pointed out to me this morning…“Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors for you where there were only walls.” -Joseph Campbell

Bealtaine has begun here in the west of Ireland.

Down the steps into the may gardens

Planting is under way of crops and even a few more trees, though mostly the trees are in pots awaiting a forest!

Sedge in bloom to the left of the steps.

Walking around the gardens this morning I snapped these pictures…

Through the Fairy Wood…

Foxglove in Spurge on the woodland floor…

Fairy Wood at Bealtaine Cottage

Sedge in the Fairy Wood

Stopping by the Silt-pond

Willow in the Bog Garden

Warm,Naked Earth

Posted April 14, 2014

Filed under Bealtaine Cottage, Bees, Birds, Climate, Earth, Inspiration, Ireland, Lifestyle, Permaculture, photography, Self-Sufficiency, Spring, Thoughts, Wild Flowers, Woodland

The naked earth is warm with Spring,
And with green grass and bursting trees
Leans to the sun’s kiss glorying,
And quivers in the sunny breeze.
~Julian Grenfell

…except, in Permaculture gardens, little is naked, most is covered, yet the earth beneath the green mantle warms just the same.

April has set Spring firmly in place, with early sunrise and birdsong to lift the dullest spirit!

The boys awaken to the sunshine…

Honesty comes into flower…

Ribes sets the bees buzzing…apparently the Bumble Bee is losing numbers here in Ireland, as well as the UK, but certainly not at Bealtaine Cottage…the place is abuzz!

Amelanchier is coming into flower…yet more of the succession planting for the bees!

The playhouse is being transformed into a hen house…an upstairs~downstairs hen house to suit the due pecking order!

I’ve been busy with the brush and wood preservative, making sure that this little house sees another 10 years!

Chard has over-wintered well in the tunnel and will keep producing right up until the newly sown Chard is ready to pick…so very easy to grow!

Photinia, Red Robin has opened its new leaves…a burst of red!

Perennial Poppy has weathered the frost well!

Quince is in flower against the barn.

These gigantic shells have been moved to hang on sticks driven into the earth, making a contrast to the emerging green!

Spring is bursting forth into a riot of greens, as the first Cuckoo of the year heralds its summery arrival…earlier than last year!

The Fairy Wood is a mass of lime green Spurge!

The Lavender-painted Barn takes on a new look, making a wonderful backdrop to Spring.

Newly painted benches are ready to withstand another year of crazy Irish weather!

Primroses emerge in places where birds have dropped seed!

And the warm earth, no longer naked, continues to push forth magic!

Ascending Towards Midsummer

Posted April 7, 2014

Filed under Bealtaine Cottage, Climate, Cottage, Country Living, Garden, Inspiration, Ireland, Life, Lifestyle, Nature, Permaculture, polytunnel gardening, Spirituality, Spring, Wild Flowers, Wildlife, Woodland

This is not colour enhanced, but the vivid colours between storms here in the west of Ireland!

The buds are still thickening, yet the life is visible in the stems, sky and emerging green…isn’t it simply wonderful to be able to witness the Spring as it progresses, slowly, tentatively through the landscape?

This is the skyline above the Arigna Mountains, with a Rainbow, flopped over the ridge of the hill!

I watched this from the window, then rushed out with camera in hand to snap the moment!

I feel blessed to be a part of the Spring, waking earlier, walking for longer and working in the tunnel in my dressing gown!

Showing some wonderful garden visitors around over the weekend, reminded me of the reasons why I write and talk about Permaculture and the simple way of life…it lifts my heart to be a part of it!

As we walked the land and into the Fairy Wood, the sight of all this bright green Spurge ignited a passion for woodland in us all.

The Celandines are so bright and golden as to seem unreal…but that is the wonder of Nature, Mother Earth…too beautiful!

There is work to be done too, but all to the beat of the weather…weather-proofing all the wood around the cottage.

Lavender is the colour, soft on the eye, but tough and resilient!

Excess donations to the website renewal were used to pay for the wood preservative…so bless you one and all, Friends of Bealtaine XXX

My right arm hurts from all the painting, but it was in desperate need!

The heavy rain we get in Ireland can ruin buildings if they are not looked after!

I watched this small slug acrobat his way onto the potting table in the tunnel…on a long thin thread, like a spider!

So, that’s how they do it!

Geranium is coming into leaf and exploding green under the apple trees…a good companion plant for keeping weeds at bay!

Bumble bees are in busy flight all across the gardens.

The light grows in intensity, day on day, fading into the west way after nine o’clock in the evening.

On a clear day, the heat can be quite intense…

…as the sun continues its ascent towards Midsummer.

Blessings to you all XXX

___________________________________________________________

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Bealtaine Cottage Calendar 2020

This calendar celebrates the magic of Bealtaine and the evolution to a Sanctuary for Life. The Hare was viewed by the ancient Celts as being the link between this world and the Otherworld-a supernatural world which is directly linked to nature. The Hare is known for being able to run between our world and the 'Otherworld'. Shapeshifters are widely known in Ireland to take on the form of the Hare. This is told in the famous story of the Celtic warrior Oisín. The Hare guards both the entrance to and exit from, the Fairy Wood at Bealtaine. The Calendar, which features over 50 photographs and all the Celtic festivals, includes Postage and packing WORLDWIDE and can be posted on your behalf as a gift, from Bealtaine Cottage, Ireland. (Pre-orders now accepted)

€16.50

M	T	W	T	F	S	S
« Oct
						1
2	3	4	5	6	7	8
9	10	11	12	13	14	15
16	17	18	19	20	21	22
23	24	25	26	27	28	29
30	31

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Gardens in Spring are one of Nature’s great delights.

Here at Bealtaine Cottage the back door remains open and the sun streams in.

My grandson, Dylan sips tea, whilst nearby, Charlie sleeps on the rocking chair.

It is days like these that are idyllic to recall, as the days of Spring and Summer stretch out before us.

Sammy-Bear sits by the open door, enjoying the strong sunshine.

Somewhere in the scheme of things, as the days lengthen and the early morning birdsong touches our souls, a deep sense of optimism pervades the humdrum of everyday life.

Animals react to Spring with displays of joy.

The image of the Spring lamb are there for all to see, but look at the behaviour of other animals…

And the Earth itself…I can smell the grass growing…it’s an earthy, green, living smell that intoxicates!

As I walk among the Potager beds in the garden, I notice how the Purple Sprouting Broccoli is regenerating, almost as fast as I can pick the small sprouts.

In the tunnel, Calendula flowers on last Summers plants…a welcome reminder of the flowers to come and oh, they smell so sweet!

Buds on the Peach tree are beginning to thicken.

This was a broken tree I rescued from the waste of a big store.

It’s taken four years to nurture it into a strong tree and this year, maybe, just maybe, I shall have some fruit!

The Kale has over-wintered well, keeping me supplied with plenty of this rich food through the dark months.

Now, as almost all the leaves have been harvested, it begins to sprout abundance all over again.

Time to feed and water well!

This Celery was planted and stem harvested last Spring.

It has regenerated and will provide yet more nutrients for juicing!

Spring flowers, beauty to behold…feeding the spirit as I work in the kitchen.

Flowers on the Ribes bushes have opened.

These will be ready to feed early awakening bees.

Wood, stacked in Wigwam shape to air dry before being cut and moved to the barn.

There is so much wood here at Bealtaine that I am never going to get around to coppicing more than about 25%!

Taking the time to bend down and look closer to the Earth, sights like this remind one there is another world below our view, reacting to the energy of Spring.

I hope you make time to go out into Nature and find repose with her, for these are days of Spring magic…Magical days indeed!

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Sunday afternoon…picking flowers in the gardens.

This feels like the full, quiet days before giving birth…

The force of the full moon can still be felt in the stillness of the late afternoon air.

There is an otherworldly feel to it all… Time appears to stand very still.

Bees continue in a frenzy of work on this side of the Solstice.

I have often felt a slowness as time ascends towards Midsummer…it’s as though Mother Earth is not yet ready to let go…

Evenings merge with night as daylight seems eternal in the west of Ireland…Ox-Eye Daisies reach up toward the sun, basking in summer.

Returning from Belfast and the soft hum of the city to this place of quiet solitude, this otherworldly paradise of sights and scents…

Far back from the lane, this little cottage nestles into silence, a place of tranquil tolerance, a timeless existence at midsummer.

Wood Pigeon and Cuckoo call a mantra of hypnotic sounds…a lazy Sunday afternoon…

Ground Elder, the bane of many gardeners, is allowed her magnificence here, frothy lace adorning a mantle of green. Ragged Robin dances by the wheels of an old bike.

Himalayan Musk stands sturdy by the wooden porch.

Astrantia unfolds it’s papery petals in an unending delight of pinky white and green.

Bees delight in Jacob’s Ladder as it ascends to heaven…

And blue Jacob’s Ladder adorns the kitchen table in a cottage lost in time…

Bealtaine Cottage has a brand new website…it’s called Bealtaine Cottage Good Life…TO READ MORE, PLEASE SUBSCRIBE TO THE NEW WEBSITE.

SEE:

To access the site once donation is confirmed just click on the message I send.

Share this:

Like this:

This is the tenth anniversary of Bealtaine Cottage Permaculture Smallholding.

It’s hard to believe that ten years ago this was a desolate cottage on three acres of the poorest agriculture land imaginable.

Wet, north-facing, thin, dauby soil promised little in the way of growing.

It was a challenge few in their right minds would have contemplated, let alone sink their life savings into, as well as borrowing from the bank!

But, I fell in love with the land, for it looked immeasurably forlorn and abandoned.

My approach was simple…it was holistic, nothing was separated or apart…all was connected and that included being connected to me, as the new caretaker and caregiver.

I have never taken a Permaculture course, but read every book on the subject and applied the principles. As a teacher I had created environmental gardens in primary school grounds in London, bringing Mother Nature to children living, in many cases, remote from Mother Nature and all her wonders!

In the early days I was physician and surgeon, intensive care nurse and visitor, channeling all my energy and hope into the sick land.

Working on my own was a blessing, for the land took all my time and love.

Visit and prove me wrong!

Share this:

Like this:

Making a decision is always the most difficult part of moving forward.

In deciding, one simply puts it out there, for the Universe to pick up.

That is what I have done here at Bealtaine Cottage…the next move comes from that energy.

The sale may, or may not happen…but the planting of trees will move forward.

I have done what was asked of me and agreed to the sacrifice.

What happens next is synchronicity and the will of Divine Energy…The Forest of Bealtaine will happen in the same magical way as Eden emerged here at Bealtaine Cottage.

As my friend, Rosie, on Twitter, pointed out to me this morning…“Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors for you where there were only walls.” -Joseph Campbell

Bealtaine has begun here in the west of Ireland.

Planting is under way of crops and even a few more trees, though mostly the trees are in pots awaiting a forest!

Walking around the gardens this morning I snapped these pictures…

Share this:

Like this:

The naked earth is warm with Spring,And with green grass and bursting treesLeans to the sun’s kiss glorying,And quivers in the sunny breeze.~Julian Grenfell

Share this:

The naked earth is warm with Spring,
And with green grass and bursting trees
Leans to the sun’s kiss glorying,
And quivers in the sunny breeze.
~Julian Grenfell