realboyle photo taken in Derreen Wood May 2013
Ronan wrote: Sean, I had a walk this morning [1st May] in Oakport (Bluebell Wood). The colour is at its best now, and the bells are within about 3 or 4 days of being fully open. I estimate they will be at their best this coming Wed or Thursday.
They will probably hold their colour for about 5 days before becoming paler. The fragrance just now is magnificent. They seem to be ahead of the emerging Beech trees this year.
I went from there to the wood in Rockingham, between Kilbryan and the Beech Walk (between the 2 archways). There, for some reason, both the Beech and the Bluebells are at their absolute peak today. This wood is best entered by entering the Forest Park at the main entrance off the N4 (at Helen Lavin’s Guesthouse). Park in the first lay-by on the left, and the bluebells begin immediately inside the barrier.
Obviously, the site at Rockingham is a ‘warmer’ site, resulting in the season being earlier there; this is not just a 2016 phenomenon — I have noticed it every year.
Regards
Ronan O’Conghaile