GARDENS AND SANCTUARIES
"Trees are sanctuaries. Whoever knows how to speak to them,
whoever knows how to listen to them, can learn the truth.
They do not teach learning and precepts, they preach,
undeterred by particulars, the ancient laws of life." ~ Hermann Hesse
To see 'Sanctuary the Vision' at Magourney,
click here!
One of the central visions of Veriditas Hibernica is to
help people to reconnect with the natural world and to step
into care-taking our plant kin and ecosystems so that we can
co-create a healthier future with them. As people engage
with this work they reconnect with themselves and discover
who they actually are.
As people start to sense how far we have moved away from
our rightful place in the web of nature there is a desire to
seek the way back to the place where we feel at home and
feel understood. People sense that it is time for us to step
back into community with the other species on the planet; it
is time to find ways to reclaim our true role, to help in
the restoration of this land and her inhabitants of all
species.
It is not sufficient to say that ecosystems will heal
themselves if left alone; we are at the point where people
need to start being proactive in the process; the earth
will heal itself in its own time span, but it is necessary
for us to wake up in order to ensure that we survive.
Active engagement in this work helps us to reclaim our
place, our cultural heritage, look at old crafts and
skills with fresh eyes and see how to incorporate these
into 21st century living. We are not talking about a
return to the Middle Ages, rather of how to bring about
a new Golden Age where the knowledge and wisdom garnered
over millennia is resurrected. We are talking about
learning to place proper value in recent innovation, but
not at the expense of our heritage; how to create a new
epistemology /cosmology which sees how to incorporate
the new sciences with the old crafts to the benefit of
all species. Each region needs to build its own methods
and culture for what is appropriate for the species and
habitats in that location; we can look at what is
happening in other regions but we also need to listen to
our own.
In Ireland we are fortunate to have:
- An abundance of water; although we have polluted
much of it there are still some areas where it is
possible to drink ‘wild water’.
- A relatively deep fertile soil, although we have
broken down the mycrorrhiza, diminished the soil flora
and fauna and reduced the soil structure and
micronutrients by modern farming techniques in many
areas.
- An ideal climate for plants to grow and a rich
natural web to thrive.
- A diversity of indigenous and naturalized plants
that can sustain a rich range of animal, insect and
other species.
- The ability to how to build a relationship with the
natural world which will ensure social, economic and
environmental sustainability for all species.
We need to honour those who have been carrying on this
work already, often with little recognition, and see how
we can support the whole process of recreating the true
Veriditas Hibernica.
Planting, restoring, and preserving sanctuaries
for plants is a way of bringing ourselves back into a
healthy relationship with our allies, the plants. By
co-creating habitats with them we start to reclaim the
knowledge of our proper place.
A sanctuary is a place of safety and refuge, a place for
contemplation and nourishing the spirit. A plant
sanctuary is a place that provides a haven for plants to
live and establish a healthy community with other
species. It is a habitat where plants can restore or
preserve their biodiversity and build a web with the
rest of nature.
Although the primary focus is on providing a sanctuary
for our indigenous and naturalized plants they do not
live in isolation. Thus, a sanctuary will also become a
place of refuge for bees, butterflies and other insects,
for worms and other soil living species and larger
wildlife such as birds and mammals. It also becomes a
place that feeds the human soul; when we are in a
sanctuary our gut instinct tells us that this is a place
where we can feel at home.
Size is not important; a sanctuary can be small (a few
square metres) or vast (thousands of acres). The ethos
is to work with nature, feel what the plants and the
land are saying, welcome native species and fall into
the rhythms of the plant world. It takes care + time and
the willingness to sit and observe, to listen as well as
put in the physical work; it is a process of co-creating
with the earth and the plants. This sort of feeling and
sensing, of listening and observing has nothing to do
with sentimentality. This sort of feeling means that we
do not project our own issues onto the landscape; rather
we engage all our senses, our knowledge, our instinct,
our whole being to perceive how does it feel?
Stewardship of a sanctuary requires that one works with
the rest of the web of nature, rather than imposing
one’s own ideas. Remember that the natural world will
balance itself given time; planting sanctuary is about
humans reconnecting into that web.
“It is their journey too” ~ Julie McIntyre
At present we do not certify sanctuaries but we are
happy to list people who are setting up projects in line
with our Guidelines for Establishing a Sanctuary
(see these in the Articles section)
especially if the place is sometimes open for others to
come and enjoy or if there are educational endeavours
such as plant identification walks etc being run. We are
also happy to list land consultants who work with these
principles and suppliers of equipment, plants, seeds
etc. Contact us
if you would like your details listed in our resources and links section.
LAST WORDS: THE WAY IT IS by WILLIAM STAFFORD
There’s a thread you follow. It goes among
things that change. But it doesn’t change.
People wonder about what you are pursuing.
You have to explain about the thread.
But it is hard for others to see.
While you hold it you can’t get lost.
Tragedies happen; people get hurt
or die; and you suffer and get old.
Nothing you do can stop time’s unfolding.
You don’t ever let go of the thread.
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