Timoleague Educational Garden

In Timoleague Village, facing the estuary one way and Centra shop the other, there is a hand-written sign welcoming everyone to enter the gate of a beautiful garden and outdoor space. This is the Timoleague Educational Garden.

*how the garden project started *

Val and Susan were chatting about ideas to bring our community together since COVID-19. We both love gardening, so the Educational Garden project idea was born when Irish Water donated a piece of land to the school.

A note from Cllr John O Sullivan – “if you’ll allow me I’d like to outline how this came about. A number of years ago the late Kay Collins (Kevin Collins’s wife) approached me to know if Cork County Council had any piece of land that the school could use to show the children how to grow plants and other things. At the time, no land was available so that no progress could be made. However, when the sewerage scheme was completed, I noticed that the present piece of land was not required. Fortunately, I knew one of the senior executives in Irish Water. I suggested that leasing this piece of land to the school would be a goodwill gesture and a good publicity gesture for the community. He came back to me to say that Irish Water would be disposed to the idea so I put them and Norma at the school in contact and a deal was reached so I am particularly delighted to see such wonderful things happening there.”

What started as a small idea has blossomed into an outdoor school classroom complete with vegetable patches, herb gardens, a polytunnel, a cabin clubhouse, a wildlife pond, a kid’s mud kitchen, plenty of seating to admire the flora and fauna, and, of course, the incredible view of the 13th-century Abbey.

The garden is not just for the school kids of the area, it has become a central community hub to learn about gardening, sustainability, recycling, keeping old traditions and skills going for the next generation and it regularly hosts events and classes.

Of course, all of this is enjoyed with tea and cake in the cabin!

The garden is managed and maintained by a dedicated group of volunteers who work closely with the national school principal and the Tidy Towns committee. It provides a real sense of purpose for our community and allows us to take pride in our work, local area and village.

It is open each week on Thursdays and Saturdays from 12 pm to 2 pm, and anyone is welcome to drop in and join in the activities.

Timoleague Educational Garden is grateful to the sponsors and funding agencies that have supported us in creating a wonderful community space, gardening optional!