By Oliver Moore

Monaghan has created a Dispersed Urban Orchard

How do you make the most of a town with lots of nature, but which is literally all over the place? Monaghan town has lakes, rivers, canals, and Ireland’s most-visited Coillte forest nearby.

Locals came up with an idea to turn gardens into habitat corridors, as Emer Brennan from Monaghan Tidy Towns explained: “Much of the land breaking up the habitats had been built upon with housing estates of various sizes. However, those housing estates all had gardens, and back gardens too. So, we came up with the idea that, with the co-operation of local residents, we could develop spaces for apple trees all through the town.”

In 2015, residents were offered low-cost native apple trees from Irish Seed Savers. Families planted them in their own gardens, creating a “Dispersed Urban Orchard” (DUO) across the town, which is is great for pollinators, said Emer.

The project drew up a map showing participating households and it quickly gained momentum, winning the All-Island Pollinator Award in 2016. Since then, DUO has expanded into housing estates, GAA clubs, and schools, embedding biodiversity in everyday community spaces across Monaghan town.

19 Clare churches turned into biodiversity havens

Launched in 2023, the Nature Clare Church Biodiversity Project is an initiative that encourages churches in the Banner County to return 30% of their grounds to nature by 2030, following a call by bishops for more to be done for biodiversity. The project is led by Clare County Council’s biodiversity officer Barry O’Loughlin and is supported through funding from the National Parks and Wildlife Service.

Working with the dioceses of Killaloe, Tuam, Limerick and Killaloe, the initiative has engaged 19 churches (17 Catholic, two Church of Ireland) across Clare. The work involves planting fruit trees and setting up nest boxes for swifts, barn owls, and bats, pollinator-friendly planting, bird feeders and educational signage.

Communities have come together to deliver this – involving parishes, schools, farmers, and local groups such as Tidy Towns and Men’s Sheds, along with BirdWatch Ireland, Irish Seed Savers, and the All-Ireland Pollinator Plan.

Training has been central and it covers orchard planting, pollinators, bats, and bird ecology – equipping priests and parishioners to sustain biodiversity efforts long-term.

The project has become a national model, inspiring similar initiatives in seven other counties. As Barry O’Loughlin, Clare’s Biodiversity Officer, said, “Church grounds are central to community life and by restoring them for nature, we also restore awareness, skills, and collective stewardship.”

Limerick rediscovers its apple heritage

Cracking Light Productions creates socially engaged art that connects people and the environment. Their first orchard project, Appletown, in 2023, was connected to efforts to facilitate a just transition towards decarbonising Limerick by 2050. While embedded with Limerick Civic Trust, they worked with 120 community employees managing 90 acres of green space, rediscovering the city’s heritage as once home to 1,640 acres of orchards. Two mini-orchards of heritage apple trees from Irish Seed Savers were planted, reconnecting community and landscape.

Ballymun dreams up orchard songlines 

In 2024, Orchard Songlines with Axis Ballymun composer Tom Lane and poet Jessica Traynor engaged 14 young people to map Ballymun’s past and future through memory, music, and song.

The project created four original songs and planted a new orchard of heritage apple trees. As Maeve Stone of Cracking light puts it: “The trees will hold the songs, and the songs will sing the story of the place.”

* The webinars can be viewed on the website thevillage.ie and a publication based on the discussions has also been produced – all about apples of course.