Yesterday I had the great pleasure of visiting Colette O’Neill’s gorgeous gardens at Bealtaine Cottage.
Colette and I have been corresponding for some years now (we’ve lost track of how many!) and so it was fantastic to be able to finally meet here in person and see her garden, which was a boggy monoculture with very poor soil 15 years ago.
I will be writing a more informative blog when I’m back home and on my computer (will be able to sort the 300 photos I took and share some here with you, then). For now, here are some that I have downloaded from my camera as a ‘taster’ and a link to the video Colette made of me.
My camera is a Canon EOS 6D mark ii, and I can connect wirelessly to it via some kind of magical technology and download photos but here in the gorgeous farm B&B in Co Cork where I am staying the WiFi’s a little slow, so I’ve just downloaded a few pics.
Colette has a very beautiful, interesting website BealtaineCottage.com and her lively You Tube channel with over 16,000 subscribers. The video interview with me is here.
Colette’s cottage is a work of art too.
15 years ago this 3 acres of land was just a steep slope with poor soil and no trees. It is now an incredibly abundant paradise for all wild things. Here’s a little taster of the gorgeous garden Colette created – the work of one woman.
Colette has written several books which are available from her website and which I will be reviewing soon.
It is a gorgeous day – I’m off out exploring shortly. My son Ruairi is taking good care of my garden at home!
I saw you last night Stephanie on Colette’s video , how lucky are you to get to see Bealtaine cottage , Colette and Jack . It was so lovely to see the two women who inspire me the most . I have followed Colette for years now , it’s so relaxing just sitting by the fire or when she takes you for a dander around her gardens . I would love to visit her some day ., and your book looks wonderful , I will have to invest 😃xx
Thank you Melanie. It really was such a great day. Colette is such a warm, friendly and inspiring person. I look forward to sharing more of the day with you all when I’m back in the uk
Oh how lovely, what a treat! You must have been trilled to take a wander around Colette’s woodland garden. It’s amazing isn’t it and quite incredible what she has achieved alone. Very inspirational and a comfort for those of us who, like me might only ever be able to be armchair viewers and never get to explore the woodlands and gardens. It seems quite magical there.
It certainly is. The garden has a magical energy
Oh well done Stephanie how lovely to visit this lovely garden ‘I have been watching Colette videos for years now, I am glad you could see it .maybe one day I will too (Plant based ) sue
Sue with the pink scarf 🙂
Hope you do get to visit one day
Oh ! I ,m so glad you got to meet up with Colette , I love her and Jack to bits ! She brightens up my day no end ! hugs Debbie 🙂 x
They are great. Colette’s videos touch so many lives
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