Ben Bulben Mountain near Sligo shrouded in heavy mist.
As the Earth breathes the waves move in…and out again.
Deserted beaches are so appealing…
So much seaweed… I wish I’d brought a bag.
The weir at Clarendon Lock just outside the village of Knockvicar.
Beautiful!
Daffodils about to bloom…these should be in flower for St. Patrick’s Day.
Lots of growth on Summer flowering plants in the background.
Tete a tete still in flower. Poached Egg plant, in front, survived the mild Winter.
Hot chocolate in Sligo…did’nt realise the “large” would be quite this big! We managed it though!
First Peach blossoms in the polytunnel. I will hand pollinate these when all the blooms are out. Not enough insects yet to do the job.
The first forage…picking Wild Garlic in Lough Key Forest Park.
Made Wild Garlic and Parsley pesto. Delicious with pasta and home-grown salad.
Planting Foxgloves with local school children. The teacher told me the old local name for Foxgloves is Fairy Fingers.
Click on pics to enlarge.
Took this pic at Serpent’s Rock on the Sligo coast. There are several acres of limestone covered in fossils here, a fascinating spot. I think this one looks like a person wearing a headress.
In May we went to see Freda Kahlo’s paintings at the Museum of Modern Art in Kilmainham, Dublin. Nearby is the beautiful walled garden.
Early June saw a rare event this Summer, blue sky and sun. This pic was taken in our back field. There are a hundred young Ash trees planted here.
Ganesh, remover of obstacles, arrived around Summer Solstice time. A present from our friends Debra and Paul who live in Clare.
The end of June saw a new resident, Freddie, the new puppy. He is now happily ensconsed here and fits in well with our other 2 dogs. He will be a year old next month.
Nasturtiums, regardless of weather, they never fail to produce their jewel like flowers which of course are edible and elevate the appearance of a salad.
Driving back from Sligo I always like to stop by Lough Meelagh where this beautiful folly never ceases to fascinate. It was once part of the Kilronan estate.
Went to visit this lovely area near Grange, Co. Sligo a few days ago. It was fairly windy so it was quite “fresh” coming to evening.
As you enter you can go right to a stony beach or left to an area of solid rock that must cover a few acres. This solid rock area is really beautiful, well the whole area is, but this is strikingly, amazingly beautiful.
The limestone is littered with fossils, each one so beautiful and intruiging.
Depressions in the rocks hold little pools of water with the most amazing bright green algae.
Fossilised coral.
A little Sea Campion growing in a rocky crevice,
and this fab fossil made up of so many little tubes. Such a beautiful fascinating place. I shall return!
Travelling around Ireland one sees many strange and wonderful things. This sign on the road between Dowra and Blacklion is for me very odd. It is meant to depict a dead Yellow Bittern. Someone did a drawing of a bird then turned it upside down! It just does’nt work for me. The story behind it is that a couple of hundred years ago Cathal went for a walk by nearby Lough Mc Nean on a very frosty morning, trapped in the ice was a dead Yellow Bittern which moved him to write a poem on the experience.
This Pine Tree blew over in a storm last year and has been in this position ever since. It is still alive and growing! Seen near Sligo. Wonderful!
This cross is in a garden I recently visited. The owner saw a similar cross in Armenia, liked the design, did a sketch of it then made it on his return home. When he dies it will mark his burial place. Weird or wonderful? I’m not sure if it’s either!
This object is in the same garden as the cross. I find it rather menacing. Weird!
Fossil on a rocky beach in north Sligo. It looks like a headress to me. There’s also a face if you look closely. Wonderful!
Finally a sight this is now very rare in Ireland. A water pump. At one time these were a common sight in all parts of the country. A few up and downs of the handle and fresh spring water was yours. Sadly this one is missing a handle so it is only an ornament.
arignagardener 