The Irish Peatland Conservation Council (IPCC) is hosting a special event in Co. Kildare to mark International Bog Day tomorrow (Sunday, July 28).
International Bog Day is held on the fourth Sunday of July each year, aims to raise awareness of peatlands, including the benefits they provide, the threats they face, and how we can help protect them.
To celebrate the event and Ireland’s boglands, the IPCC said that the Bog of Allen Nature Centre in Lullymore will be open to the public free of charge tomorrow from 12:00p.m to 4:00p.m.
The IPCC is a registered charity which works to conserve a representative sample of Irish peatlands.
Bog Day
Visitors can explore the peatland museum to learn about Irish bogs and their history and view some artefacts that have been recovered from the Bog of Allen such as bog butter.
The IPCC said that a guided tour of the centre will be held at 12:30p.m.
The wildlife gardens at the facility will be open for the public to explore. The gardens are peat-free and chemical free with composting and rainwater harvesting practised on site.
Those in attendance will also get the chance to get up close to insect-eating plants in the greenhouse, including native sundew and butterwort, as well as exotic species such as pitcher plants.
Throughout the day, younger visitors will be welcome to pond-dip in the courtyard pond and see what kinds of interesting freshwater invertebrates they can discover.
Along with hosting an information stand, representatives from Maynooth University will speak about the use of peat cores to track changes in climate over thousands of years.
IPCC will also lead a guided walk to Lodge Bog, a raised bog reserve, where participants can observe the fascinating plants living there, such as Sphagnum moss, sundews and heathers, along with learning about some of the restoration and monitoring being done on the site.