The Shiels Houses, Carrickfergus
Date: 13 December 2006
No. of trees planted: 10
No. of people involved: 6
When we arrived at the Shiels Houses, we were immediately impressed with the location. The buildings were designed by Charles Shiels in the 19th century and originally provided housing for community members who were having some difficulties. The site continues to do so today. The grounds were designed to be nature-friendly and had many features to help make the place self-sustainable.
Some of the grounds have been sold off, but some parkland still remains with a rare strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo) and a monkey puzzle (Araucaria araucana) as reminders of the old times. Today it is the home of an active retirement community. Led by Christine and Bob Harper, the community has very ambitious plans of helping the grounds back towards their ecologically friendly beginnings.
As part of these plans, the community applied for some trees to encourage wildlife in the area. Our team joined the community to plant 10 new trees which included oak, ash, rowan and downy birch. After the hard work we all went for a tea, soup and a snack provided by the community. Hopefully the trees we planted will help the community to reach their goals improving the biodiversity of the area.