The Hedgerow Project

21/07/2024

What wild plants have found their way into your garden?
Rosebay Willowherb outside my kitchen window.

27/09/2023

tattered leaves,
autumn-singed,
waiting for the wind.

perfect buds,
tightly curled,
biding until spring.

06/03/2023

Here’s a date to pop in your diary! This is a fabulous opportunity to come along and learn about the wonderful birds in our locality. All welcome.

19/03/2022

The fab Jo is leading a foraging walk in Kinsale this weekend.

29/01/2022

Here's a wee blessing for those of you planting trees. (I think this one will be an annual repost).

A Blessing for the Trees just planted
And the Humans tending them

May the land welcome you.

May you gently
Ease your way
Into the community
Of life
In this place.

May your roots grow
Deep enough
And wide enough
To balance and ground you
Through gales
And storms.
May they draw
the nourishment
You need to thrive.

As they wrap themselves
Around rock
and twine
Amongst neighbours
May they reassure you
That you do not
Grow alone.

May you have both
Strength and flexibility
In balance.
May you stretch
Your branches
Tall and wide
And unfurl your
Glorious leaves
To honour
The sun,
And the night sky.

As you grow
May you be a
Sanctuary for those
That need it,
May you be
A source of shelter,
Nourishment
And protection.

May your seeds
Be carried to fertile ground
And may you have a great
Forest of descendants.

May you feel the
Awakening of spring,
The abundance of summer,
The release of autumn,
And the rest of winter.

May the winds strengthen you,
May the rains cleanse you,
May the sun enliven you,
May the dark rich earth nourish you.

May you grow old
In good company,
And when the end
Of your days comes
May you
Feel the loving embrace of the land
That welcomed you.

Jen Wallace

07/10/2021

07/08/2021

Today I was tending our land with a scythe, and am totally taken with the simplicity, the gentleness of it; the deep relationship and focus it engenders.

19/07/2021

This weekend we caught a glimpse of the benefits of rewilding from a moth perspective.
Our local mothguy set a moth box in our ARK ( a field that has been rewilding for the last 3 years) two nights ago.
When we opened it in the morning with the kids we found and released 150 macro moths (we couldn't count the micro ones). We counted 35 different species, including a few rare finds. It is the greatest quantity and variety he has come across locally.

Thank you Dara Fitzpatrick for a wonderful moth filled morning.

12/05/2021

We walked through
A woodland
The 5 year old and I,
Stick swords in hand,
Chatting about the
Movement of the plant life,
The miracle of the leaf
Making food from sunlight,
The surge for the gap in the canopy,

It's a war, he says.
I pause.

The great forest replies gently
No, it's not like that at all.
Have you forgotten
My love?
All this wonderful life
Is us.
We are not here to compete
Or battle,
But to grow,
To heal,
To nourish,
To share,
To die
To decompose
To feed.
Each playing a part in the whole;
Repairing the wounds,
Co-creating
Life
And beauty.

Do you remember?

11/04/2021

A Blessing for the Trees just planted
And the Humans tending them

May the land welcome you.

May you gently
Ease your way
Into the community
Of life
In this place.

May your roots grow
Deep enough
And wide enough
To balance and ground you
Through gales
And storms.
May they draw
the nourishment
You need to thrive.

As they wrap themselves
Around rock
and twine
Amongst neighbours
May they reassure you
That you do not
Grow alone.

May you have both
Strength and flexibility
In balance.
May you stretch
Your branches
Tall and wide
And unfurl your
Glorious leaves
To honour
The sun,
And the night sky.

As you grow
May you be a
Sanctuary for those
That need it,
May you be
A source of shelter,
Nourishment
And protection.

May your seeds
Be carried to fertile ground
And may you have a great
Forest of descendants.

May you feel the
Awakening of spring,
The abundance of summer,
The release of autumn,
And the rest of winter.

May the winds strengthen you,
May the rains cleanse you,
May the sun enliven you,
May the dark rich earth nourish you.

May you grow old
In good company,
And when the end
Of your days comes
May you
Feel the loving embrace of the land
That welcomed you.

Jen Wallace

14/02/2021

💚

This day, and every day.... ❤️🌎❤️🌎❤️🌎❤️

11/02/2021

Some of the 420 native trees we planted on the land here 2 years ago (thanks to Trees on the Land).
The alders are the biggest of the bunch at over 5 foot now.

16/12/2020

In January I will be offering a four week program where we will work together deepening our awareness of ourselves as part of the community of life.
Beginning the 5th of January there will be 4 online sessions (keep your camera off if you like) on Tuesday evenings 8pm to 9pm GMT. There will also be optional exercises for during the week.
The four week program costs 20 euro. Places are limited and can be booked by messaging me.
In gratitude
Jen

31/10/2020

Oiche Shamhna shona daoibh.

31/08/2020

Native insects need native plants. Buying pollinator friendly plants is missing the point.

What is not understood in traditional wildlife gardening is that focus on feeding birds and pollinators like butterflies is not enough. The reproductive cycle has to be understood if you want to have a new generation of these creatures, if they are to survive. Birds don’t feed the young on seeds or berries, they feed them on approximately 20% insects and 80% caterpillars/larvae. The larvae are not present unless the host plants are present in your land. They are very plant specific. They are generally specialists in only one plant, each larvae species, so without the wild host plants (native weeds, grasses, shrubs and trees) the larvae (such as caterpillars) will not be present and the birds will not reproduce. Insect populations have dropped around 75% worldwide and the loss of host plants is massive. Hence the serious reduction in bird populations, amphibians, small mammals etc (this and chemicals of course) . We have been trained to pull out the weeds and import lots of pretty plants that have nothing to do with the delicate balance of life in a native ecosystem.
Build an Ark , not a garden. Set your land free.
www.wearetheark.org

Photo of Burnet moth, whose larvae are in a specialist relationship with birds foot trefoil. No birds foot trefoil = no burnet moth larvae.

13/05/2020

Let's leave some of the newly rewilded places stay wild.

29/04/2020

Some more information on the May Bush...it might be a nice way to brighten up your community this weekend.

Bealtaine in Ireland 2014

29/04/2020

This weekend is the start of May, the old festival of Bealtaine.How about decorating a fallen branch or stick and putting it outside your home in the tradition of welcoming summer and bringing a smile to neighbours faces?
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10222883203974388&id=1405942740&anchor_composer=false