Leigheas na gCrann: An Ethnobotanical Medicine-Making Workshop
with Maura Brennan

Part of the Soil Project with Kasia Kaminska

Leigheas na gCrann invites us to explore the ancient relationships between trees, medicine and healing within Ireland’s indigenous culture. Drawing on ethnobotany, Irish folklore and historical medical manuscripts, this hands-on medicine-making workshop will explore how trees such as oak, birch, willow, elder, yew, blackthorn and hawthorn have been understood and used for
healing, nourishment and wellbeing. Ireland’s learned medical tradition preserves a rich record of tree-based remedies, while folklore records show how plant knowledge continued in local communities into much more recent times.

We will also explore the rich plant communities supported by these trees, from woodland flowers and herbs to the fungi and lichens that live on, beneath and alongside them. These relationships reveal the forest as a living community, where trees, plants, fungi and other organisms are interconnected and contribute to the health of the wider ecosystem. Through guided observation, storytelling and practical exploration, we will reconnect with this living heritage and consider how traditional knowledge can inspire a more reciprocal relationship with trees and the natural world today.

Note: We will meet outside the Parade Tower for a short walk in the Castle Park at the beginning of the workshop. We will then return to the Learning Centre in Butler Gallery to continue the workshop. There will be moments to pause, sit and rest throughout the walk and the paths are all even, well surfaced and accessible. Suitable for adults of all ages and abilities - older attendees are especially welcome.

About Maura Brennan:

Maura is an educator, forest school practitioner, herbalist, wild food forager, forest therapy guide and founder of The Acorn Project. She leads projects in community seed saving, forest school, nature connection and place-based learning programmes. She is passionate about sharing traditional skills and using plants for food, medicine and crafts. She has trained with weavers
and herbalists across Ireland and completed a 9 year Herbal apprenticeship. She loves to work in collaboration with communities, organisations, schools, artists and individuals. She is passionate about connecting people to nature through plants.

About Kasia Kaminska:

Kasia Kaminska is an artist living in Co. Kilkenny. Her practice spans photography, print, publications and public engagement. She works with plant based analogue photography processes and sustainable darkroom methods as well as foraging, gardening and growing. Her practice is led by issues of eco-social concern and she often works in collaboration with others and in socially engaged contexts.

Recent projects include Know Your Hedgerow with The Acorn Project / Kilkenny Leader Partnership, Forage+Light with Samuel Keane and Mermaid Arts Centre, and Wilderland, a Creative Ireland Climate Action project with Elaine Harrington and Materials Matter in Co. Mayo. She holds a BA in Photography from TUDublin and an MA in Social Practice from LSAD, TUShannon.

For more on the Soil Project see here: