Open Gardens

Sometimes something comes along at the perfect moment. It’s been almost three months since our beloved Mary passed away and somehow it feels like we should be doing more to keep her memory alive.

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So when her husband Michael heard that we could open her private garden to the public as a fundraiser for the Irish Red Cross, he – and we – felt it would be the perfect way to honour her memory.

Mary’s legacy is evident everywhere I look – in her hat-making and painting, in her house and all her baking utensils, that now only gather dust. But her legacy is most evident in her beautiful garden which covers 1.5 acres and features over 150 varieties of flowers, shrubs and trees. As you can see from the photos below, the gardens run through the old village centre, with an old granary and a little cottage as the most visible remains of a road that no longer exists.

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If you’re a garden enthusiast or just fancy a day out, please come along this Sunday 13th July to stroll in her beautiful garden. We’ll be serving tea and buns and there may even be some live music! The garden (in a little town land between Gortaganny & Ballinlough, Co.Roscommon) will be open from 12 noon until 6pm. For more information check out facebook.com/events/624187704355270 and if you decide to take a spin this way, DM me on twitter or email me leavingcertenglishnet@gmail.com for directions / GPS co-ordinates.

If you love gardens but Roscommon is a bit of a trek too far, do keep an eye on your local paper for details of open gardens in your locality – or better still, host an open garden fundraiser yourself! You can sign up here on the Irish Red Cross page.

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p.s. Of all the things I’ve ever posted here, I can freely admit that this one has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with Leaving Cert English. Or Junior Cert English. In fact its only connection to the subject may be the fact that it’s written in English.However, as this is my main portal for communication with the online world, I’ll plonk it here anyway and hope to be forgiven. It is the summer holidays after all!

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