Have you ever wondered why people say 'touch wood' to ward off bad luck?

On 23^rd February, President Mary McAleese launched 'National Tree Week' organised by the Tree Council of Ireland and supported by O2 and Coillte. In recognition of the 25^th anniversary of National Tree Week from 1^st – 7^th March 2009, the theme this year is 'Our Trees – Our Culture', celebrating the important role trees have played in Irish culture throughout history. Have you ever wondered why people say 'touch wood' to ward off bad luck? The answer is that the Celts worshipped trees and believed they could ward off evil spirits by touching the wood of the tree.

Over 500,000 trees have been planted as part of National Tree Week during the last 25 years and once again, this year, Coillte has supplied an additional 15,000 trees for planting, which will be distributed to schools and community groups by every local authority nationwide.

Throughout the week there are events taking place in each county, including:

• Tree Root Protection System Demonstration in the Botanic Gardens in Glasnevin on 2^nd March at 10am
• Tree Planting Ceremony with Brendan Smith, TD, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food in Dun na Rí, Cavan on 7^th March at 11:30am
• Forest and Seashore Walk in Ards Forest Park in Donegal on 4^th March
• Launch of Coillte Forest Park in Curragh Chase by Minister Tony Killeen on 2^nd March at 11:30am
• Woodland Wonderland Interaction Walk for Primary School Children on 2^nd March at 11am, in Boyle, Co Roscommon
• For details of  events in your area visit  www.treecouncil.ie

Speaking at the launch President McAleese said: "I would like to congratulate the Tree Council of Ireland, a voluntary organisation formed to promote the planting, care and conservation of trees, for the work that they have done over the past 25 years. When they began the conservation and protection of trees we knew far less about their importance in protecting our environment.

I am particularly interested in the role that trees have played in Irish culture through the ages. From place names and people's names associated with trees, to poetry, ancient writing and phraseology revering them, trees have played a unique part in forming the rich tapestry of Irish culture."

Helena Mc Gorman, President, Tree Council of Ireland, said: ". We selected the theme 'Our Trees – Our Culture' in celebration of the often-forgotten role that trees play in creating who we are. Furthermore, today the importance of trees in protecting our environment, and repairing some of the damage that has been done to the earth is even more relevant. The aim of National Tree Week is to highlight the role trees play in cleaning the air, preventing the build-up of greenhouse gases, providing renewable energy and providing a source for building and furniture."

David Guinning, Chief Executive of Coillte said "Coillte is delighted to continue its sponsorship of National Tree Week and I believe that trees and wood have played an important role in our culture in the past.  They will play an increasingly important role in the future, in terms of our use of sustainable products, leisure and recreation activities and in relation to renewable energy."

Tony Hanway, Director of Consumer Sales, O2 said: "O2 is delighted to be a sponsor of National Tree Week, having first partnered with the Tree Council of Ireland six years ago. Ensuring that we conduct our business in an environmentally sustainable manner is a key priority for O2. Among the range of environmental initiatives we have undertaken in recent years are switching over to the use of green energy, reducing and recycling our waste and building awareness of environmental responsibility among our staff and customers. We also aim to provide customers with more opportunities to be environmentally friendly. Most recently O2 ran a campaign to promote the recycling of old mobile phone handsets."

-ends-

For Further Information Please Contact:

Ruth O'Byrnes – Q4

01 4751444 / 086 0558331

Tom Byrne – Coillte

01 – 2015231

Sarah O'Neill - O2 Press Office

086-7713159

 

John Mc Loughlin – Tree Council of Ireland

086 250 6022

 

Editors Notes:

Q: Have you ever wondered why people say 'touch wood' to ward off bad luck? 

A: The Celts touched trees as they believed it warded off evil spirits. Our Celtic ancestors worshiped trees, they had sacred groves and single trees, these sacred trees have survived today at Holy wells 

The earliest form of writing in Ireland was Ogham, a tree alphabet, which can be found carved on standing stones. This had twenty letters, each corresponding to one of our native species. The protection of trees also formed a core part of our ancient legal system, the Brehon Laws.

Our sense of place finds expression in our place names, which today identify towns, villages and town lands, many of which come from trees and woods - of the 62,000 place names on the island of Ireland 1,200 are associated with oak.

Names in Irish such as Cullen or Cullinane come from Cuillen – holly, Darragh or Mc Darragh from Dair (oak), Quill from Coill (wood) as well as Irish names in the English language, Ashe and, Woods.

Yeats praises the hazel wood and Kavanagh the beech tree. Trees also have a place in the works our major prose writers and playwrights, for example George Moore, Flan O'Brien, Brian Friel and James Joyce, the latter personalising virtually all species known here in his description in Ulysses of the marriage of the Chief Ranger of the Irish National Foresters to Miss Fir Conifer.

The ash is of course inextricably linked with our National Sport - Hurling and is annually celebrated in the All Ireland finals. Up to 500,000 hurleys are used each year and the ash is one of our most prized trees. Hurley making is one of the last of our cottage industries.

To view this year's winning poster please click here