Yesterday saw a whole bunch of us interested folks going to explore the arboretum at Ardnagashel in Glengarriff, West Cork, but apart from admiring the wonderful trees we also received lots of information on the seaweeds and lichens along this stretch of coast. Ardnagashel was established by the Hutchins family and it was as part of the Heritage Week of Ireland that these activities took place, in memory of Ellen Hutchins (1785-1815)who was a remarkable Irish Botanist. The talks on the lichens and seaweeds were given by Howard Fox, who is the State Botanist (National Botanic Gardens) and by Maria Cullen. This ‘life’ introduction to the seaweeds and the lichens of the coast of Bantry Bay was so very interesting. a true first introduction in this field for me. Later in the afternoon Madeline Hutchins (Ellen’s great great grand niece) took us through the forested area of this garden and…
The healing properties and potential of nature have always been known, but are finding a “comeback” these days, with hip terms like forest bathing now being recommended from psychiatrists’ couches. The book “Nature Cure” presents a personal re-discovery of the benefits of nature. Richard Mabey is one of the UK’s finest nature writers. The first… Continue reading “Nature Cure” book review by Denzil Walton→
On these heat rash inducing days when all I want to do is take showers and more showers, it’s extra nice to look at beautiful things within a cooled museum. Every time I visit the Museum of Latin American Art, I’m rewarded with something new, fun, and thought provoking. This time I went for The… Continue reading Cool Art 4 Hot Days at MOLAA by da-AL→
