Fingal County Council, with the help of Swords Tidy Towns, has completed a wonderful makeover on an over-grown area next to the entrance to Highfields estate on the Forest Rd in Rivervalley. Our group was involved in this project from start to finish.

Thank you to our members George Mongey and Mary Maxwell, who photographed the various stages of this collaborative project.

By Hilary Klompenhouwer

Another successful annual community archaeological dig has come and gone. This was our fourth season at this important Iron Age site. It ran from July 19 to August 2 at Drumanagh, followed by 7 days of post-excavation at Swords Castle.

Once again “serial diggers” like myself in the over 65 year-old plus category were delighted to be still able to dig and mattock and do trowelling in the trenches.

These digs attract people from all age groups and different backgrounds. Some of this year’s youngsters are studying archaeology at university or are considering taking a course.

Others had taken annual leave from their jobs to spend time learning about all aspects of a dig from enthusiastic and patient professional archaeologists.

Once again Heritage Officer/Community Archaeologist, Christine Baker, did a sterling job in organising the dig. Ministerial consent was granted; funding was obtained from FCC; geophysical surveys were done, three other professional archaeologists were contracted, and applications from amateur enthusiasts were dealt with.

Christine ensured that the temporary cabin and chemical toilets were in place on time. There is no running water or electricity on site. So all participants dug out their flasks and lunch boxes, and came prepared.

Antiseptic handwashes and sun lotion were provided, as were cakes and biscuits from visiting archaeologists.

The recent rain did make it easier to break up the top layer of grass covering the two trenches. The sods were put aside until the last day of the dig, when all the sieved soil was returned to the trenches. Within months the site will look undisturbed.

On day one aerial shots were taken by a drone. 

It’s always amazing to see how quickly team work develops every year. More seasoned volunteers give practical tips to new recruits. The professionals ensure that every volunteer is introduced to every aspect of the work including safe mattocking/digging; how to trowel; the importance of spotting items such as pottery during the sieving process, and putting finds associated with each level of the trench into the appropriate finds tray. 

Irish weather being what it is, it’s rare to have two to three weeks of dry, sunny weather. This year we had a couple of particularly challenging days. On one occasion, we had to call a halt and finish by 2 pm, as it was becoming too slippery.

Whatever the weather the laughter and wonderful conversations flowed, and excitement was shared when items were unearthed in a trench or during sieving. This year all of the finds were from the Iron Age, including pottery shards and animal bones from the third century AD.

Post excavation took place as usual in Swords Castle, where there’s running water. Volunteers sat in tents in the grounds of a castle built in 1200, and washed bones from domestic animals that had been buried in Drumanagh for almost two thousand years. 

This is certainly a unique experience!

Early next year Christine Baker will invite the volunteers to a talk about this year’s dig. By then she’ll have some feedback from specialists about our findings. They may be able to enlighten us about the strange pits, that were uncovered this season.

By Catherine Napper McDonagh

I volunteered to compose my debut report for our team coordinator, Ramune. Much like myself, Ramune juggles a hectic schedule as a working mam. However, since I’m currently on summer break from my education-related job, I find myself with a bit freer. In light of this, I extended an offer to distribute water kits to fellow team members. In the process, I had the opportunity to catch up with Ramune and also provided the kits to the other members of the Swords Tidy Town freshwater team.

As I write this, I’m sitting in on a rather damp and blustery night. Storm Betty has made its presence known on our shores. Despite it being August, the atmosphere outside feels more akin to a winter’s evening, albeit without the biting cold. Given the adverse weather conditions, it’s possible that our testing scheduled for this weekend might need to be rescheduled to Sunday, primarily for safety considerations. Just moments ago, I posted a message in our WhatsApp group, and we’re all engaged in a lively conversation about the weather. I joke, “My sunflowers seem to be waving at me through the window, such is the strength of the wind.”

We find ourselves a few months into the testing phase, and I must say it’s been a remarkably smooth and enjoyable process. My involvement in this project stems from my prior experience with water testing during the Water Blitz events in 20/21. However, this project represents a more significant commitment as it requires monthly testing. Interestingly, the testing dates often coincide with times when I’m occupied with my responsibilities as a caregiver for my mom. This scheduling quirk, though occasionally challenging, has its silver lining.

The monthly testing routine compels me to carve out time for myself, encouraging me to venture to my two designated testing locations. Whether the weather is gloomy and damp or the sun is beaming down, these outings consistently have a positive impact on my mood and well-being.

The two locations I monitor are situated within a bustling local park affectionately known as “The Jacko,” officially named the Ward River Park. This park is under the management of Fingal County Council, and excitingly, the council has recently announced plans for its expansion, extending further into the valley towards Knocksedan and Ushers Lake. This expansion promises to bring new opportunities and challenges for our water testing efforts, and it’s a testament to the importance of our work in maintaining the environmental quality of these cherished local resources.

In my scientific observations, I’ve focused on monitoring the river’s water levels. Storm Betty had a significant impact on the country, including flooding and power outages. I’ve noticed a notable difference between water levels in May and August. While May had relatively stable levels, August saw an increase, likely due to the aftermath of Storm Betty. This highlights the dynamic nature of our environment, emphasizing the importance of ongoing monitoring to understand and respond to these changes, preserving our local water resources.

The water level differences between May 2023 and August 2023 are significant. These changes can be attributed to shifting weather patterns, including the aftermath of Storm Betty. Additionally, a recent report by Met Éireann highlights how such variations in weather patterns and temperatures are affecting river levels. This report recommends that future planning and government policies consider these findings, emphasizing the importance of ongoing water level monitoring. Furthermore, news reports about Storm Betty’s extreme rainfall reinforce the significance of these observations.

References

Carla Mateus, Barry Coonan, ‘Estimation of point rainfall frequencies in Ireland’, [other], Met Éireann, 2023-03-29, Technical Note, 68, 2023

Carlow Weather Forecast and Details (2023). Available at: https://www.carlowweather.com/?fbclid=IwAR2ENJTBn3jRgBCoNz5N3pMzw3k6PMRCkMgetEweTNaWLyMj0D0fjut6N44 (Accessed 20 August 2023)

Fingal County Council (2022) New plan to develop a major park in Swords outlined. Available at: https://www.fingal.ie/news/new-plan-develop-major-park-swords-outlined (Accessed 16 August 2023)

Hilliard, M., Johns N., Kelleher O. (2023) ‘Storm Betty: Widespread flooding in Cork as heavy rain and winds take hold’. Available at: https://www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2023/08/18/storm-betty-orange-weather-warning-issued-as-storm-to-hit-south-of-country/ (Accessed 19 August 2023)

Kelleher, O., Lucey A. (2023) ‘Storm Betty: ‘Like being attacked by a sea monster’ – clean up and power outages continue’ Available at: https://www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2023/08/19/storm-betty-50000-homes-and-businesses-without-power-as-floods-and-falling-trees-cause-disruption/ (Accessed 20 August 2023)

McAuley, Eimear (2023) ‘Storm Betty: Matches cancelled and emergency teams on standby as spot-flooding hits’. Available at: https://www.thejournal.ie/storm-betty-ireland-6146422-Aug2023 (Accessed 22 August 2023)

Met Éireann (2023) 12 hour rainfall radar. Available at: https://www.met.ie/latest-reports/recent-rainfall-radar/12-hour-rainfall-radar (Accessed 20 August 2023)

Moloney, Eogan (2023). ‘Storm Betty brought heaviest rain ever recorded in an hour for one Irish County’. Available at: https://www.msn.com/en-ie/news/national/storm-betty-brought-heaviest-rain-ever-recorded-in-an-hour-for-one-irish-county/ar-AA1fBSU8?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=d553f2cf1dec43b6bdf201e08835a96c&ei=21 (Accessed 22 August)

The committee of Broadmeadow Community Garden  invited other local community groups to attend a talk on bee keeping to be held on their premises on Saturday, August 12, 2023. Members of STT, Swords Women’s Shed and Swords Woodland Association, including Councillor Joe Newman, turned up on the day for this fascinating session.

Michael Kelly, who has been a member of “Fingal North Dublin Beekeepers’ Association” for over 40 years, spoke of his group’s pride in the purity of the honey produced by our native dark honey bee, called apis mellifera mellifera.

His group contributes to academic research at Maynooth by sending their findings from pollen traps at the bottom of their hives, which show the variety of food sources found by their bees. 

The Bremore group (a subgroup) focuses on perfecting the art of rearing queens. Local tradition says that beekeeping was first introduced into Ireland in this area by St Mologa, a seventh century Irish saint.

Michael used a glassed in section from one of his hives to show us the workings of an actual hive. We could see the hexagonal cells filled with honey or with brood. 

He uses a pen to mark the queen with a colour and number in order to track her history. She can expect to live for up to five years. Can you spot number 70 amongst all the worker bees?

From April to late July, Michael goes through his hives every 7 days to ensure that there are no new queen cells. (These look like a monkey nut.) These cells would indicate that his bees were about to swarm. This hasn’t happened to him yet!

The top third of his hives have a metal barrier to allow only worker bees to enter. Honey deposited here is for his own use. He freezes some of this to ensure that there’ll be food for his bees in the harsh winter months, when their sources of food are scarce. 

Michael ensures that all of his hives are kept at least six feet apart, so that his bees will remain within their own home. Mixing of bees could allow diseases to spread. 

Michael’s enthusiasm and ability to answer all of our questions made this a really enjoyable experience. 

To learn more about his group just google www.nihbs.org

Thank you to Ros and her committee for their warm hospitality,  and for the opportunity to learn more about our native bees. 

On the 8th of July, our hard-working volunteers Georgy Hughes and Matt Cullen completed their work on the Best Business Window and Frontage Awards. Having looked at various business frontages and windows throughout the town over the last few weeks, they judged that the awards should go to following businesses.

The Swords Tidy Towns Perpetual Cup for overall Best Business Window and Frontage went to the Arch Pub on Main St, the Gold Medal Cert was also awarded to the Arch Pub. The overall winner trophy was accepted by Desi Lawlor Proprietor of the Arch Bar, their Gold Cert award was accepted by Philip Gelling. 

The Silver Medal Cert for Best Shop Window and Frontage went to Cupcakes and Counting on Main St, the award was accepted on their behalf by Beatriz.

The Bronze Medal Cert for Best Shop Window and Frontage goes to McNamara’s Pharmacy Main St, the award was accepted on their behalf by Lisa.

Swords Tidy Towns wish to congratulate all the winners in this year’s competition and extend a big thank you to all of the businesses who took part. We look forward to seeing you all enter again next year, good luck.

Swords Tidy Towns were awarded the outright winners for the Fingal Horticultural Society’s Best Floral Display trophy today which we shared with FCC last year. Mary Maxwell who is one of our long time members accepted the trophy on our behalf.

This would not have been possible without all the hard work of our wonderful volunteers throughout the year, well done everybody. Congratulations to John Halpin who coordinated the event on a wonderful show. A big thanks to our amateur photographer George Mongey for the beautiful pictures.

This year’s STT’s summer social was due to take place outdoors on Saturday, July 15. Unfortunately the weather was not in our favour, so plan B came into operation

A large group of us had a wonderful evening of wine, pizza and song, sitting amongst our potted plants in our large polytunnel, while the rain lashed outside.

It was a great opportunity to relax in each other’s company during this particularly busy time of the year. Members have been working on Wednesday evenings as well as on Saturday mornings for several months now. Some have also been out individually on other days during this judging period.

STT Chairman Ken Duffy and Grace Dunne, our housing estates liaison officer, were involved in the setting up of Holywell Residents’ Association. 

Recently Ken was approached by representatives of Circle Voluntary Housing Association in Holywell, who wanted STT to participate in their latest community event on July 11. This group offers social housing to people nominated by local councils from their housing lists. Circle wanted to make their tenants aware of local community groups and of opportunities for further education.

On the day, there were activities for the children. Adults had the chance to chat to representatives from Fingal Council, to advisors on further education and training, and also to members of recreational and voluntary groups. 

Four of our members attended this event.

On the 29th of June, 2023, four members of our STT committee attended the presentation dinner for the 2022 Regional Tidy Towns winners held in Trim. Many congratulations to Trim Tidy Towns for putting on such a brilliant award ceremony. We were presented with our 5th in a row National Silver Medal. The night was very much appreciated and enjoyed!

A representative of MSD Biotech in Swords contacted our chairman recently. He was arranging volunteer hours, as the company likes to give back to the community. We gladly accepted their offer of assistance on two dates with two different teams of their employees.

On Wednesday, May 24, six STT members met up with the first enthusiastic group, who were ready to tackle the weeding on North St. It was a big task, but we made short work of it. We appreciated their great teamwork and sense of humour.

On  Thursday, June 1, we met up with the second group at Spittal Hill. Our flower beds and the surrounding area badly needed weeding. Once again the teamwork was amazing and fun was had by all. There was even time to tackle some of the weeding on Rathbeale Road. 

STT appreciate the wonderful assistance of both volunteer groups, and we would love to work with MSD Biotech again.