Programmes & Events

The aims of the Tree Council of Ireland are achieved in many ways. Some of these are major nationwide events:

• Art Project
• National Tree Week
• Tree Day
• Balrath Project - The Outdoor Classroom

Art Project

Seeing the Wood for the Trees

In 2004 artist-photographer Thomas Jenner approached the Tree Council of Ireland for help with an art project to enable the planting of trees through the sale of related photographic artworks. Through the Tree Council, Jenner has collaborated with South Dublin County Council, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council and Coillte Teoranta in planting over 100 trees as part of artworks at three sites in the Dublin area. Further collaborations and tree planting sites are being sought for the future.

Jenner’s project pays homage to the images by the surrealist painter René Magritte (1898 – 1967), and each group of trees is planted alongside a signpost displaying the title of one of his paintings translated into Irish and English. The title of the project is ‘RE-ARM’, an abbreviation of ‘Reafforestation – After René Magritte’, highlighting, in Jenner’s view, humanity’s urgent and necessary cultural redemption with nature.

The surreal signs in the project interrupt the everyday perception of our ‘natural landscape’ as something that can be taken for granted, in the same way that Magritte’s surreal paintings interrupt the perception of the everyday appearance of things. The signs are of the same appearance as speed limit or warning signs, but with seemingly strange and incongruous words on them, such as ‘Íomhá san fhoraois / An Image in the Forest’, ‘An Smaoineamh / The Idea’, ‘Gach Lá / Every Day’ and ‘Glór an Tosta / The Voice of Silence’, all of which refer to paintings by Magritte.

Money then raised by the Tree Council through the sale of Jenner’s limited edition photographs of these signs is used to fund the planting of further trees, each group of which is planted with a new Magritte sign and photographed by Jenner as an artwork. Through this ongoing process, an inextricable connection to Nature is revealed by Jenner; it is the ‘matrix of everything, that all-pervasive structure that lies beneath scenery, landscape, place, and human history’ (Lucy R. Lippard).

 

Seachtain Náisiúnta na gCrann 2011
6-12 Márta 2011

National Tree Week 2011
6 –12 March 2011

‘Bliain na Foraoise’
‘The Year of the Forest

2011 has been declared International year of the Forest to mark the part that the world’s forests play as an integral part of global sustainable development.

Forests are important because:
* they are a vital part of global ecosystems and their continued survival is being compromised by human activities
* forest-related economic activities affect livelihoods of 1.6 billion people worldwide
* They provide socio-cultural benefits such as recreational, medical and contribute towards community development.
* Forests play a critical role in mitigating the effects of climate change and protecting biodiversity.
* together with soil forests are the world’s largest carbon sinks

The International Year of Forests will help raise awareness and promote global action to sustainably manage, conserve and develop all types of forests, including trees outside of forests. This is an open invitation to the world community to come together and work with Governments, international organisations and civil society, to ensure that our forests are managed sustainably for current and future generations.

Every two days 700 square kilometres (about the size of Co. Cork) of forest cover are lost worldwide. Conversion to agricultural land, unsustainable harvesting of timber, unsound land management practices, and creation of human settlements are the most common reasons for this loss of forested areas.

Current efforts in forest planting and restoration have helped stem some of the net loss of global forest area, but further global action is needed. The real challenge is to move beyond just raising awareness. Member States of the United Nations Forum of Forests recently adopted four ambitious Global Objectives on Forests, which included a commitment to reverse the loss of forest cover worldwide. The Forum is currently in the process of creating an international instrument on forests. However, it is only through broad public participation and by harnessing the skills and practical experiences of forestry practitioners worldwide that we can realize these international objectives and effect change.

Various activities will be organised throughout the world to celebrate the International Year and foster knowledge exchange on practical strategies to promote sustainable forest management. To help facilitate organisation of these activities, Governments, regional and international organisations and civil society organisations are expected to create national committees and designate focal points in their respective countries. The United Nations Forum on Forests Secretariat has been tasked with serving as the focal point for the implementation of the International Year of Forests.

Lá na gCrann 2010
TREE DAY 2010

"Bliain na Beithe"
"Year of the Birch "

Déardaoin, 7 Deireadh Fómhair 2010
Thursday, 7 October 2010

On Thursday 7 October 2010 primary school children in Ireland will leave their school bags at home and spend the day learning about trees in a fun and relaxed environment.

The event is supported by the Department of Education and Science. Many schools take the opportunity to participate in guided woodland walks at over 120 locations throughout the country. These walks are hosted by Coillte, the National Parks & Wildlife Service, the Heritage Service of the OPW, the Dublin local authorities and private owners.

The event is sponsored by Tetra Pak.

Each year a different tree is celebrated on Tree Day. In 2006 it was ash, one of our most common native trees, in 2007 we choose aspen, one of our rarer trees, while in 2008 it was alder, another common native tree. For 2009, we selected the arbutus, or the strawberry tree a very rare native and now it’s the turn of birch one of our most common natives.

There are two species of birch native to Ireland, downy and silver. The most common is the downy, which like silver birch is a delicate tree with fine branches and small leaves. In springtime the flowers, catkins, appear and remain on the tree and in autumn contain the mature seed. Birch is a pioneer species and will grow on poor soils but it likes sunny positions. Birch can tolerate higher elevations than any of our native trees. Birch is very good at colonising disturbed ground and is a very useful ‘nurse’ species which helps more tender species to grow. While it establishes itself easily from seed trying to artificially establish birch with bare-rooted plants is difficult as it is not a great transplanted. It is a soil improver and the leaf litter nourishes the soil and prepares it for other forest trees such as oak and pine, which, if left to nature, generally replaces it over time. This was how our forest cover developed after the ice-age. Birch woods occur widely, especially on marginal soils. It is a light demanding tree and is often found on the margins of woods and beside rivers. Birch is used frequently as an ornamental in gardens and in towns as it does not grow too large. Its small seed are prized by birds. Birch wood is not durable and is used in the Nordic county for making quality paper and it is also used for plywood. Birch twigs tied together make an excellent broom for sweeping garden paths. There are many placenames called after birch in the Irish format beith: Ballybay in Co Monaghan, Beal Átha Beithe (mouth of the ford of the birch) and Glenbeigh, Co Kerry, Gleann Beithe, (valley of the birch). The tallest tree is 25 metres.

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Balrath Project - The Outdoor Classroom:

Balrath woodland is located in Co. Meath on what was once part of the old Summerville Estate. It extends over 21 hectares and was planted in 1969 with a mixture of conifers and broadleaves, mainly Norway spruce and Oak. Remnants of older broadleaves such as Spanish chestnut, Horse chestnut, Beech and Oak are scattered throughout the wood and two grassed ridelines which run though the property favour wildlife diversity.

The Tree Council of Ireland are developing this woodland in association with Meath County Council as an "Outdoor classroom" or an interpretive woodland. When work is complete it will be used as an educational medium, through which public knowledge and awareness of trees, the woodland environment and forest management can be heightened. The Outdoor Classroom will be made readily accessible to the public and will prove an attractive venue and ideal setting for outdoor teaching and for school groups.

If you would like to download "Balrath Wood - An introduction to Irish woodlands - Notes for Teachers"
(PDF format )please click here

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Irish Tree Trivia

Elm, which was a major timber producing native tree, was virtually wiped out about 30 years ago by Dutch elm disease. It is only now beginning to reappear in our hedgerows.

A number of exotic tree species have been brought into Ireland for use in commercial forestry. Most of these, such as Sitka spruce, Douglas fir, lodgepole pine, Western red cedar and Western hemlock, come from Western North America, which has a similar climate to Ireland.

Other trees were introduced from Europe and Japan, including Norway spruce, Corsican pine and Japanese larch.

Only 10% of Ireland is forested, compared to the EU average is 36%. The current plan is to increase the percentage of Irish forests to 17% by 2035.

Coillte, the state forestry company, owns and manages over 400,000 ha (1,000,000 acres) of forest.

The current programme sets out to plant 20,000 hectares of new forests per year, but at this rate it would still take 80 years to reach the EU average of 36%.

Ireland’s planted forests contain 79% exotic conifers and 21% broadleaves.

Over 70 million trees are planted each year in Ireland

Forestry in Ireland now employs around 16,000 people. A further 14,000 farmers have also planted an average of 10 hectares each in recent years.

Forestry is now a major Irish industry worth €700million per annum, and is set to grow at 10% per annum. This should climb to over €1 billion by 2015, which will then make the industry as important as the beef or dairy industry is today.

Forests grow really well in Ireland because of our mild winters and high rainfall.

Trees take in carbon dioxide from the air and convert much of it into wood. They also produce oxygen. Every year, each hectare of Ireland’s forests takes in 3.4 tonnes of carbon from the atmosphere, which helps in the battle against climate change.

To celebrate the beginning over the new millennium, a native tree was planted for every household in the country by the People’s Millennium Forests project.

Annually two out of every five Irish families visit a forest

Every year, there are almost 8 million visits by Irish residents to Irish forests.

One third of our foreign visitors visit a forest park during their stay here.

The tallest tree in Ireland is a Douglas fir at the Powerscourt Estate in Co. Wicklow. This tree measures 56 metres in height.

The tree with the largest girth is another exotic, a Monterey cypress, commonly known as Macrocarpa. This tree is growing at Killyleigh, Co. Down, and is over 12 metres in diameter.

The tallest native tree in Ireland is an ash near Clonmel, Co Tipperary. This tree is 40 metres tall.

Most trees outlive humans. The oldest tree in Ireland? Well, this is debatable, but a yew tree in Co. Wexford is said to be over 1,000 years. Of course, the Brian Boru Oak in Co Clare is also said to be over 1,000 years.

Although Ireland doesn’t have the same tree and forest culture as you find in other European countries, the tree did feature prominently in the lives of people dating back to the ancient Celts.

Individual trees and woods were singled out as been sacred. These were known as bile and feature in many place names such as Rathvilly and Moville.

Trees feature prominently in the naming of counties, towns, villages and townlands throughout Ireland. The most prominent are: oak (Durrow, Coolderry, Dunderry); yew (Terenure, Newry, Youghal); alder (Ferns); and birch (Kilbehenny).

39. Six counties in Ireland have names associated with trees: Derry (Doire or oak); Antrim (Aon Trim or elder); Monaghan (Muineachan or ‘place of thicket’); Kildare (Cill Dara or ‘church of the oaks’); Roscommon (Ros Comain or ‘St. Coman’s Wood’); and Mayo (Maigh Eo or ‘plain of the yews’).

The tallest tree in the world is a coast redwood in California. At 112 metres (367 feet) in height, it is almost as tall as Dublin’s Spire, which is 120 metres high.

The largest tree in the world is a giant sequoia, found in the Sequoia National Park in California. It is only 83 m tall, but its volume is estimated at 1,490 cubic metres, making it a huge tree!

The oldest tree in the world is a bristlecone pine growing in the White Mountains in California, estimated to be over 4,600 years old.

Another bristlecone pine tree nearby was discovered to be 5,100 years old when it was killed by a graduate student, who cut it down as part of his research project!

The fastest growing tree in the world is said to be Acacia falate, a tree planted in Malaysia. This tree grew 35 ft 3 inches in 13 months, which is an average of 1.1.inches in height per day.

The rarest tree in the world is the Wollemi pine, which only grows in a tiny area made up of two small groves of mature trees and seedlings, found in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales, Australia.

Discovered and named in 1994, these woodlands have survived in a secluded valley for millions of years. They are protected by the Australian Government, and a specimen is now growing in the National Botanic Gardens in Glasnevin, Dublin.