Happy New Year from Carraig Dulra
In seed time learn, in harvest teach, in winter enjoy.
--William Blake
We have been enjoying our Winter, and we had a lovely break with our trip to the USA. Its nice to be home though, and we'd like to wish everyone a belated very Happy New Year. We're looking forward to seeing many of you on the land in 2008! If any of you got in touch with us in 2007 and didn't receive a reply please accept our apologies as being our first year, some things occasionally slipped us by. If you planned to come and see what we were up to and didn't manage for one reason or another, then please get in touch again or come even better, come and see us soon. You'll see details in this Newletter of opportunities to visit.
We have been putting a new look and structures on the website so have a look around it when you get a chance and if you were on a course last year and want to contribute to the website, then check out how at http://www.dulra.org/your_experience.
We feel the community of people connected to Carraig Dulra is growing and some folk are even taking root: Lusi of Faolan is one and she will be our part-time resident willow artist through-out the year. She'll be planting a willow area, and she will be at some of our now regular volunteer days where you will get to watch her work on basketry etc.
Also check out Lusi's up-coming Willow course
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We have now added Regular Volunteer Days; they will be the 1st Wednesday and last Saturday of every month from February to October, 10-4pm. We hope this make it even easier for people to meet one another, and this will lead to developing ideas and new networks. You can come for all or part of the day, and we plan to have a big pot of hot soup on offer. Bring along something to share or a sandwich if you like.
We can remind you of the day by webtext if you would like, just email us your mobile phone number to be put on the list of regular volunteers. This way we can let you know about any changes in schedule and any particular focus for the day. Families/Home-schoolers/everyone welcome. We hope to have occasional focus for children with Lusi our willow artist or other members of our expanding community. If you have an idea, just let us know.
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Community Gardening
The group Suzie started last year has done well and the Wicklow Town garden is underway. We have expanded the section on Community Gardening on the Dulra Website and we will host a simple page for Community Gardens anywhere in the county. Get in touch if you want a page to put up simple content on: such as notices, pictures, etc.
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Cad a dhéanfaimid feasta gan adhmad?
Tá deireadh na gcoillte ar lár.
What will we do without wood - Now that the forests are destroyed?
(Excerpt from the 18th century poem Cill Cais)
We are dedicating this year at Carraig Dulra to trees, with a focus on native Irish ones. We'll send out more details on some of our tree projects throughout the year, but here's a little about our woodland project:
The land is in fact undergoing forest succession or natural regeneration by itself. As part of our restoration ecology, we are working in some areas to compliment reforestation. Gorse and bracken are the pioneers in natural regeneration, and they shelter little birch trees in their midst. Birch is one of the first trees to grow on bare soil. Traditionally criminals were "birched" to drive out evil influences on them, to renew them for the new year.
We won't be promoting that particular practice, but a birch tree is a good symbol for renewal. We have one lovely but bit lonely birch tree in the centre of the the food forest area, and a tiny one we discovered that is finding a way upwards despite being wedged between two rocks. We will be planting more native trees throughout the year in a woodland area and shelter belt. You can sponsor a tree: beith "birch", fearn "alder", saille "willow" and duir "oak" and others are available.
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Membership and Friends of Carraig Dulra
Last year, our first, we gave course participants free membership included in their course fee, and had a number of people join on open days. Some of you know that we were on a tour of the USA in Nov and Dec. We visited many exciting projects and gained ideas and inspiration. One terrific phenomenon all over the USA are CSA's Community Supported Agricultural farms. People help organic and some non-organic farms stay in business (especially close to Urban areas) by being members and volunteering on the farms. They receive produce when available, but also accept lost crops etc along with the farmer. The farmer then has money for seeds etc regardless of the weather, and can plan ahead with steady income. We do not fit the CSA concept precisely, but we will work to campaign for more schemes like this in Ireland to help keep local farming viable and sustainable, and provide local fresh food.
Carraig Dulra is a small-holding, rather than a big producer. We use our produce to feed participants on courses, volunteers/wwoofers etc, and ourselves. We operate as a not-for-profit organization (some have called it social entrepreneurship.) We still like the term "living skills bank" where we all deposit and withdraw knowledge, and skills and our members dividends are access to learning, and community connections. Our shared hope is to create a future that is sustainable.
If you would like to help us continue to share Carraig Dulra as this kind of hub, and in the ways we mention in this newsletter and website, then please consider becoming a member or friend of Carraig Dulra.
Membership €10 individual, €20 any size family.
Friend of Carraig Dulra any donation of €50 or more.
For more information see http://www.dulra.org/membership or contact us.
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Course Schedule
The course schedule is filling out, see our new calendar for details. We are repeating some of the events and courses that were popular last year, and we're also introducing some new ones.
Up-coming courses include:
Bushcraft / Primitive Living Skills
- At present both the January and February sessions of this course are full. If you're interested going on a cancelation list or in taking it in the future, please contact us, as we are building a list of people for the next sessions.
Garden Complete
- One day a month for 10 months, starting 20 Feb (Booking through The Organic Centre)
How to Run a Community Food Project
-22 Feb (Booking through The Organic Centre)
Basics with Living willow and Fedge planting
-15-16 Mar (Booking through Carraig Dulra)
Solar, Wind and Water – an introduction to alternative energy
-12-13 Apr (Booking through The Organic Centre)
Permaculture Design – an introduction
-10-11 May (Booking through The Organic Centre)
Kiln creation and basic pottery, by Potty Kent Potters
24-28 May (Booking through Carraig Dulra)
Introduction to Sustainable House Design and Construction
19 July (Booking through The Organic Centre)
Gardening and Subtle Energies
20 July (Booking through The Organic Centre)
The Tracking Project / Arts in Life (course still in development)
-2-4 Aug
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