Colette O'Neill… Author, Publisher, photographer. Creator of Goddess Permaculture.
My birthday has passed. It was a wonderful day and here I am in a new year of my life, another journey around the sun! It’s been an extraordinary journey so far and, as usual, it’s been a wonderful time for casting the occasional, cursory glance over my shoulder to the past. To this end, […]
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It has been some time… “Summer afternoon—summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.” ~ Henry James Just as the rosebuds are swelling, early Summer makes an appearance. It has been a long cold Winter and Spring. Euphorbia has brightened the veranda with its vivid lime […]
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Origins of Yule The great Festival of Yule, beginning at the time of the Winter Solstice and lasting for a full twelve days, summed up the cycle of the Celtic year. The word Yule, according to the Venerable Bede, came from the Norse word Iul meaning ‘wheel’ and suggested that this was the time when […]
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The bright red of the Ruby Chard will add colour to the Samhain feast! In Celtic Ireland, Samhain marked the division of the year between the light (summer) and the dark (winter). For me, the customs of my ancestors are important to acknowledge and continue. This time of tuning into the seasonal shift and preparing […]
Read MoreToday, I was feeling just a teensy bit down. It’s a rare experience for me. Life is so full on here at Bealtaine, that positivity fills the day, running from one task to the next and looking forward to a brief sit down and a cup of tea. But today, something caught up with me…a […]
Read MoreLooking back at the year…February photographs February was mild and the Daffodils in the gardens of Bealtaine came up without damage Ribes bushes throughout the gardens filled the air with a heady scent, enticing the Bees out from hibernation. Mizuna flourished in the tunnel, providing a green salad for the table throughout the winter months. […]
Read MoreFreezing fog surrounds Bealtaine Cottage. Despite the cold, part of the day has been spent outdoors, tree-planting and dog walking. Missy decided to remain indoors. She has gotten rather snuffly again as she struggles with her condition. She craves the warmth and sleeps a lot, bless her! Once outside, adjusted to the cold with lots […]
Read MoreOne of the many apple trees at Bealtaine Cottage, laden with fruit on this glorious September day. As the nights draw in and the apple harvest swells, we realise Samhain is near. Autumn is making it’s progress through the beautiful Arigna Mountains and the valley where Keadue nestles near the Castle of Kilronan…a place swathed […]
Read MoreAt certain times today, as I was working outside, I had a distinct sense of Autumn. The way the sun shone on a plant, the smell from the earth around my feet…it was quite tangible. The growing cycle in the west of Ireland adheres very much to the old Celtic calendar. It is easy to […]
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