For anyone wishing to delve deeper into the world of tiny plants, there are two special day-long workshops coming up in Glengarriff Woods. Run in conjunction with the National Biodiversity Data Centre and the Ellen Hutchins Festival, the first one is on lichens. Paul Whelan, who runs the popular biology.ie website and wrote a guide book called Lichens of Ireland, will introduce beginners to the ecology of lichens at his workshop on Sunday 19th August. The following day Dr Joanne Denyer, one of Ireland’s top bryologists, will help participants identify the mosses and lichens which characterise old oak woodlands. Both workshops will start at 10am with indoor sessions, followed by afternoon field trips to the Nature Reserve – a beautiful woodland site rich in mosses and lichens. The workshops cost €30-€50 per person (€20 for students) and must be booked through the National Biodiversity Data website: Workshop Booking
