To The Burren and Back!

Here’s an account of my visit to The Burren, an astounding limestone expanse on the western coast of Ireland, and my return to my garden in full fall mode.

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The Burren is a land of fascinating careen and plant ; an dumfounding Brobdingnagian stretch of limestone rock breed a large area on and near the westerly coast of Ireland , where one can find over 700 types of plant .

I had read about the Burren before I went to Ireland , however nothing really prepares you for the actual being there and seeing the geology , landed estate formations , endless stone , and amazing flora that outlast there .

Burren derives from the Irish wordboireannwhich mean a jumpy stead or cock-a-hoop rock . The Holy Writ is used as a common name for anyplace in Ireland where there are lots of limestone rock and roll . As unripened as we think Ireland is ( and think me it is unripened ! ) there is an equal amount of rock .

The world-wide area ( not exact — just to give you an idea ) where “ The Burren ” is located is on the key west seacoast of the island facing the Atlantic Ocean ; going north to Galway Bay ; south about to Ennis , not quite to Shannon ; and to the eastern United States it meets the Gort lowlands . I find that the Aran Islands , specifically Inishmore , where we stay overnight , has the same limestone rock formation and plant as that of the mainland Burren .

Specifically , this stone was formed by glacier ( beginning some two million years ago ) , sliding across its surfaces ; the most recent glaciation occur about 14,000 years ago . These vast areas of limestone , with scraped - bare surface and both horizontal and vertical fractures , are the unique area that is known today as the Burren . Comprised primarily of limestone ( calcium carbonate ) , it is strong and repellent to erosion , however it does unfreeze ( albeit slowly ) in weak , acidic water like pelting . This karst , which is a term for a landscape composed of soluble rocks formed by weather , is full of cracks , indentations and pools . They are finally widened and deepened by the precipitation ( which fall out approximately 260 days a year there ) . These crack cocaine , mistake , formations , etc . have names like grike , kaminitza , rillenkarren , rinnenkarren , scallop and slickenside . And in these cracks are the industrial plant somehow take hold and grow , while the pans or pools hold water and sometimes , life forms .

The Burren fit right down to the sea and there are awing tidepools and the plant there are a bit more windswept . Along the drop ’ edge , some of the rocks are covered with seaweed and Branta leucopsis and there are many cormorants and seagulls diving and fishing and floating . I spent hours looking at the limpet , ocean vegetable , small Pisces and crabs , and tiny purple jellyfish that were less than an inch across .

Back on the mainland , we push for hour through seemingly never - ending limestone landscapes , stopping to just look at the vistas , and of course to photograph them . The amount of plants that produce in the Burren are staggering , and the way in which they develop are like nonobjective painting , sometimes escape in lines vertically , diagonally and even perpendicular to one another . There is a unique mixture of wild plant from gentian that produce in the alps , typical temperate geographical zone raging bloom , as well as fern and orchids from southern climate . I was there for the autumn blooming works and surely hope to recall someday to see the Burren in spring bloom !

Back at abode in the fall garden

Before I left home I was picking juicy juicy tomato plant and harvesting Basil of Caesarea and when I got back , the last of the summertime - advanced tomato were model on the kitchen counter . As the daytime get shorter and the night get cool , the summer crop are coming to their conclusion . Although I savour the spill weather , the work inwards and the ending of the full - musical scale summer horticulture activity always draw me feel a bit melancholic . The tomato plant vines are drying up , however the bell peppers and chiles are still bear a lot of yield . If you have any fleeceable tomato left on the vine , be certain to reap and bring them in before a frost .

We have been make lots of salsa and eating chiles in everything from eggs and sandwich to beans , soups and stews . This is the time of year where our chile tolerance level is high-pitched and I jokingly say that we are running with the big dogs . Woohoo ! I just bought a gallon of white wine vinegar so that I can pickle some pepper — green jalapenos , serranos and blistering banana tree black pepper — the excess - red-hot bright orange habaneros will be treat on their own . The oven has been going on gloomy for days , drying the red mature Chile .

We ’ve gathered the winter squash to stash away in the coldroom and I attend forward to soups and oven laugh at squash soon . I care using winter squash better than pumpkin vine for pies , cakes and muffins . I will give you a formula or two for those presently .

I still have yet to get my last harvest of annual herbs cut and hang to dry and process into aromatic paste for the deep freezer . I have quite a bit of basil , lemon balm and lemon vervain , Mentha spicata and red gum that I take to garner soon . The viridity and brassicas that I plant about five or six hebdomad ago are doing well and we are harvesting the leaf for soups and wilt greens .

An easy way to prepare greensI’d like to share a recipe for a preferent andeasy path to gear up special K , adding garden garlic and chiles too — this way we get to enjoy the last of our garden premium in the same dish ( not to mention packed full of vitamin and minerals ) ! My family like their greens tossed with pasta ; add a little saucily grated cheeseflower and maybe splosh on a few pine nut and you ’ve have a great veggie main trend .

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The Burren, on the western coast of Ireland, is well worth a visit.Photo/Illustration: Susan Belsinger

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