StreamScapes Project, Doohamlet

Well done to everyone who participated in the 'Streamscapes' project in Doohamlet in June 2015. The event was run by Monaghan County Council ad facilitated by Doohamlet Tidy Towns and the DDCDA. The aim was to increase awareness of the range of wildlife to be found in our waterways, how water quality affects it and what we can do to improve water quality.

The day started out with a workshop with 5th and 6th class students from All Saints National School. An evening session was then held for all members of the public and we were delighted that over 50 people turned up on a bright sunny June evening. The event took place at Doohamlet Community Centre and Community Garden. Kick sampling was done in the river running through the Community Garden (known as Major Lough Stream) and a wide range of fish, insects and invertebrates were found, including stonefly and mayfly nymph, young trout, eels and evidence of large crayfish (and alas their predators, as what was found was some shell remnants!). Overall we are proud to have found that the species found indicated a water quality rating of 4.4 out of a possible 5.

The workshops were run by the friendly and knowledgable staff of the Coomhola Salmon Trust, based in Cork, We were also delighted to hear they had very positive feedback about Doohamlet, where they based themselves for their week long visit to Monaghan;

"'StreamScapes’ produces aquatic & biodiversity awareness initiatives as part of wider efforts to stimulate public engagement in water quality issues around Ireland.

Monaghan County Council and the Department of Environment produced a pilot project on public engagement on water, and invited ‘StreamScapes’ to be the delivery agent for this aspect of the project. As both Doohamlet National School and Community Association (Tidy Towns) were part of this project, the StreamScapes Team decided to base themselves in Doohamlet for the week.

This proved to be a delight...we stayed in Connolly’s Guesthouse (also B&B and nice Lounge Bar) in the village where our hosts Alexis and Marion Connolly provided us with a comfortable, bright and airy self-catering apartment for the week.

Doohamlet National School was the first stop for the project on Monday morning, 8 June, and the StreamScapes teaching staff (Stephanie & Aaron) took the enthusiastic students down to the local stream to learn about the biodiversity and the ‘bio-monitors’ which live in the stream.

In the evening a Field Trip was produced for a large group of Tidy Towns and Community Group members and local interested residents, followed by a meeting in the Doohamlet Community Centre. It was clear to see how active the local group is; a fantastic community centre and the group had taken an overgrown section of stream next to the centre, cleared it and replanted it with sensible plantings, provided stream-side path and benches and a very clever ‘Insect Hotel’.

We enjoyed our time in Doohamlet immensely and would recommend it to anyone for a great holiday base...in the heart of County Monaghan!"

Many thanks to Bernie O'Flaherty and Aileen Gavin and all at the Environment Section of Monaghan County Council for giving us the opportunity to run this very enjoyable and informative workshop in our community, and thanks to Mark Boydan and his team at Coomhola Salmon Trust.

Photo 1: Doohamlet National School students surveying and sampling their local stream. Note river walk, ‘Insect Hotel’, and community centre in background.

Photos 2 & 3: Doohamlet Community Association taking part in evening field trip and discussing local water quality issues.

Doohamlet Gardeners Travelling to Monaghan, 15th September 2012

After 15 weeks, 60 local volunteers, over 70  volunteers in total, many long Saturdays, some long weekday evenings and lots of determination and co-operation, the Doohamlet Biodiversity Garden is almost finished.

Our garden has definitely proved Community Spirit is alive and well. People have worked side by side with great results, and the results are obvious. The garden is much bigger than originally planned, and the amount of work required has been a lot more than we ever imagined.
We've had all types of people involved; tradesmen, craftsmen, children, labourers, supervisors, bosses, drivers, helpers and most importantly Tea and Lunch makers, turning up each and every week to get the project finished. The success of a project can be measured by whether people still want to take part as the project draws to a close. We had new people turning up all the time, and in week 15 almost 10 new people came along to help. We think the garden has been a great success!
Now we're nearly there, and 1 or 2 more weeks will see the garden finished. We're planning a celebration to thank everyone for all their hard work - more details on this will follow.
Although we still have some work to do on our own garden, next Saturday we're planning to put our Community Spirit to good use somewhere else.
A similar garden project place has been taking place in the Wellness Centre in Monaghan over the past 15 weeks too. They are developing a sensory garden at their facility on Rowantree Road in Monaghan Town. The garden is very similar to ours in a lot of ways, but they have a bit more work to do before it's finished. They really want to finish the garden so that users of the centre can start using it. At a DDCDA meeting on Tuesday night it was suggested and agreed we should support them.
The Wellness Centre in Monaghan is a Not-For-Profit facility which hosts a wide range of support services for Body, Mind and Spirit. Alcoholics Anonymous, parents of special needs children and cancer support sufferers are just a few of the groups who meet there. On Thursdays, 50 women from Crocus Cancer support meet there. They also provide counselling and holistic therapies, and are in discussions with some other support groups about extending their range of services.
The Wellness Centre Garden will be there for all users of the Centre. It has shelters and outside rooms where people can sit and talk. It has quiet areas for relaxation. Scented plants and herbs stimulate the senses. The fencing and woodwork has been painted in soothing shades of green. So far, the volunteers at the Wellness Centre have done a fantastic job, but there's still jobs to be finished;
- Kerbing Cobbles need to be laid in concrete along the paths
- Concrete bases need to be installed in the shelters
- 10 tons of woodchip needs to be moved into place and spread (mostly using wheelbarrows)
- Woodwork on Pergolas needs to be finished
- Walls need to be plastered.
These are all jobs we have done before in our Community Garden. So lets put our experience to good use in Monaghan.  
If you can help at all, even if you have not been able to help out at the Doohamlet Garden, please come along to the Wellness Centre, The Grange, Rowantree Road, Monaghan (Just off Hospital Hill) This Saturday, 15^th September, any time between 9.30am and 4pm.
(Please note; there will be no formal get together at Doohamlet garden this weekend)

This project is part financed by the European Union’s European Regional Development fund through the PEACE III Programme funded through Monaghan PEACE III Partnership.

Doohamlet BiodiversityGarden Project Starts This June Bank Holiday weekend!!

Doohamlet Biodiversity Garden Project Starts This June Bank Holiday weekend!!

Lets all hope the beautiful Summer weather continues into the weekend, as the biodiversity garden project starts at Doohamlet Community Centre THIS SATURDAY, 2nd June. Gardener Barry Kavanagh will walk us through the plans for the garden. Then for the next 10 weeks on Saturday mornings between 9am and 1pm we'll all have to lend a helping hand to get the garden built. Don't worry if you can't make it this Saturday or any other week, or even if you can only give an hour or 2 - people are free to come along and help out when it suits them. We want to get as many people involved as possible, whether it's doing some digging, planting or even helping to serve refreshments. Families are welcome (but children must have a parent/guardian with them and be supervised). Don't worry if you're not from Doohamlet - we welcome all the help we can get and we don't bite! Please wear appropriate clothing (which hopefully will include sunscreen) and footwear and bring along some tools.

So come along on Saturday 2nd June 2012 between 9am and 1pm, get involved and learn about biodiversity and nature.

This project is part financed by the European Union’s European Regional Development fund through the PEACE III Programme funded through Monaghan PEACE III Partnership.

Doohamlet's New Biodiversity Garden

Great news - Doohamlet is getting a Peace III funded biodiversity garden!

The new garden will be developed alongside the river at Doohamlet Community Centre and is a great opportunity for people to get involved in a hands on project. The garden will enhance our area and provide a valuable recreational amenity.

People of all nationalities and religions, from inside and outside the area and people with no gardening experience to people with the greenest of fingers are encouraged to participate. We want all agegroups to take part, from grandchildren to grandparents (Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult).

The Doohamlet garden is one of three different gardens being developed under the Monaghan Community Forum ‘Hands Together’ II Project. The other gardens are located in Monaghan Town and Donaghmoyne. Horticulture Students from Dun Laoghaire Senior College are currently designing garden layouts for the gardens - we are then given the opportunity to choose the best design for Doohamlet. We will then all work together to enact the plan with the help of a professional gardener to create our very own biodiversity garden.

You are invited to come along to a public information evening about the project in Doohamlet Community Centre on Monday, 26th March 2012 at 8pm. This will outline how the project will be rolled out and give more information about the background.

On Saturday the 31st March 2012 the students from horticultural college will present their proposals for the development of all 3 gardens during a planning day in the Glencarn Hotel. The planning day will run from 10am until 4pm, and Carmel Brennan, Monaghan County Council's biodiversity officer will also give a talk about biodiversity. Refreshments and lunch will be provided during the day.

On Monday the 16th April 2012 we will have a final planning evening in Doohamlet Community Centre to locally discuss the designs developed by the students of Dun Laoghaire Senior College and to decide on the best proposal for Doohamlet's garden. Over the following weeks a professional gardener to help us build and plant Doohamlet's new biodiversity garden. Dara MacGabhainn of Monaghan Community Forum will be facilitating this project - click here for more information.

Everyone is welcome to participate in this exciting project, whether you want to be involved in heavy lifting, planting plants, taking photos of the developing garden or simply to make a welcome cup of tea for the workers. Remember - Many Hands make Light Work!

Please come along to Doohamlet Community Centre on Monday, 26th March 2012 at 8pm to find out more.

This project is part financed by the European Union’s European Regional Development fund through the PEACE III Programme funded through Monaghan PEACE III Partnership.