by Niamh Bn. Uí Loinsigh
Meitheamh – pronounced “meh-hev” – is the Irish word for June and means mid-summer. The growth in the fields is at its green height – grass seems to be shooting up an inch a day up to this point. In the Celtic Calendar in Ireland Brehon law dictated that all people would stop work for festivals and gather in a place overseen by the local king to celebrate. In fact, it was also forbidden to fight during the celebrations and offenders were dealt with very harshly. Now you know why we Irish like to have a good time – it was required by law – and we do like to be good law-abiding citizens! June 20 is the summer solstice, which heralds the start of summer in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the day with the most hours of daylight, so enjoy! June 20 is also Father’s Day this year.
Julianstown Tidy Towns – Our Tidy Towns group could really do with some help in getting the village ready for Meath Co. Co. Pride of Place and the National Tidy Towns competitions. There are a lot of verges and beds to be weeded and if you have an hour or so free perhaps you could give us a hand. We are meeting every Tuesday and Saturday mornings at 11 am. Just keep an eye out for the high vis jackets! Many thanks to Uniplume who have supplied a fantastic amount of bedding plants for our many raised beds, and we are gradually getting them planted up. We purchased all our Pollinator plants from Blacks Garden Centre (at a very competitive price) and they will look amazing over the coming weeks. Meanwhile our Junior Group really got stuck in and planted Dahlias, Sunflowers and Wildflowers at the woods and all down through the village. Well done and thank you all!
It’s that time of the year again when the weeds appear from nowhere!
Pride of Place Competition – Julianstown has entered the following categories – Village, Best Youth Project, Volunteer of the year, Ballygarth Manor Estate, Aney View Estate, The Lime Kiln. We wish them all the best.
Timely Tips for your garden in the month of June
- Check plants daily and water them if the soil is dry — especially newly planted fruit trees and shrubs that are still getting established.
- Harden off any remaining half-hardy bedding plants ready for planting out.
- Keep on top of weeding. Your plants shouldn’t have to compete for precious water, light, and nutrients.
- Continue to earth up potato plants as they grow.
- Pinch out any side shoots from your tomato plants.
- Harvest salad crops, and resow every 2 weeks for a constant supply of tasty leaves.
- Harden off and move hanging baskets and containers growing on in the greenhouse into their final position. If your hanging basket plants become leggy, trim off the excess to encourage bushy new growth.
- Wait for bulb foliage to die down naturally before cutting back.
- Start to pick sweet peas as soon as they flower to encourage more blooms.
Julianstown & District Community Association have spent a considerable amount of time in discussion with Meath County Council and are delighted that the council have sent the proposals for Traffic Calming in Julianstown to An Bord Pleanála and a copy of these plans may be inspected online at https://www.meath.ie/council/council-services/planning-and-building or by appointment at Buvinda House, Navan or council district office in Duleek. Submissions and observations may be made free of charge to An Bord Pleanála before 5.30 pm on Monday 12th July, 2021 and please mark your envelope ‘Construction of Julianstown Traffic Calming, Co. Meath’.
Fr. Declan – It is hard to believe that Fr. Declan has been Parish Priest here in Julianstown for the past 17 years! It is also very sad that he is leaving us but great news for Kilcloon where he will also be the administrator for Moynalvey. We wish Fr. Declan well in his new parish. Bishop Tom Deenihan has announced that Fr. Brendan Ferris is to be the new Parish Priest for Julianstown and Stamullen and he is sure to get a ‘Céad Míle Fáilte’ on his arrival on the 3rd July, 2021 from all his parishioners.
