MANY people recycle waste and turn lights out to help save the planet – others like the owners of Tountinna Cottage near Ballina go the whole hog and set about rehabilitating and rewilding almost two acres of overgrown fields.
Since moving to Ireland in 2019 to settle on the Tipperary hillside, Clare, a yoga teacher and Jonathan, an orchestral French horn player, have renovated the 19th century farmhouse and embarked on a labour intensive eco project. Their goal has been to achieve as much self-sufficiency as possible.
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“We happened on the cottage by chance – saw its potential and fell in love with it and with the views across the Shannon and of Moylussa mountain in Clare,’’ says Clare explaining that the location, six km from Ballina/Killaloe and an hour’s drive from Shannon airport, worked well for them.
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The cottage was habitable but in need of work while the 1.83 acre site had been neglected for decades and was completely choked by brambles and gorse.
Tackling the cottage and the site simultaneously, the couple rolled up their sleeves and set to work. “We pulled up old carpets and reclaimed hardwood flooring and the staircase, painted all the internal walls, exposed a section of stone wall and painted the window frames blue and the external walls yellow. On dry days we worked on the site and on wet ones we worked inside the cottage,’’ reveals Claire.
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They found contractors for the larger jobs which needed doing and put in a new bathroom, added two windows in the sitting room and replaced the roof on the sunroom/ dining room.
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In Summer 2022, they took the next obvious step to achieve self-sufficiency and installed nine photovoltaic roof panels.
In their early days at Tountinna, they also brought in a contractor with a digger to level the site so they could start digging and planting.
“We terraced certain parts and began planting native tree species including hawthorn, brown birch, alder, oak, Scots pine, mountain ash and hazel. We also built a poly tunnel to grow vegetables and herbs” reveals Clare.
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In the summer of 2021 they dug a pond to attract more wildlife and, last summer, introduced six free roaming hens to provide them with fresh eggs and help solve their slug problem.
The couple intended it to be a ten year eco project but are now relocating for family reasons which leaves Tountinna Cottage and its eco project in need of a new owner.
Pretty and traditional with tall blue lupins in the garden, the property has maintained much of its original character. Its 144 sq m of accommodation includes a tiled kitchen with some timber units, a sunroom/dining area as well as two sitting rooms, one timber floored with a stove and another tiled with an inglenook fireplace also with a stove.
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Downstairs there’s a bedroom and a bathroom while upstairs there is a study, a landing, a shower room and a spacious master bedroom with Shannon views.
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Like all traditional farmhouses, the property has a range of outbuildings including a workshop, a utility shed and a hen house.
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Claire is disappointed that she won’t be able to continue with the project, see the 300 trees they planted come to maturity or go ahead with plans for natural bee hives.
But she is happy with the results to date.“ Three and a half years from where we began our young trees are flourishing. We have a profusion of wild flowers across the meadow and many more butterflies, native Irish black bees, ladybirds, dragonflies and birds. In September last year we saw first hedgehogs.”
Her hope now is to find a buyer who will appreciate the lifestyle on offer at Tountinna Cottage and who will want to continue the work they have started.
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Quoting a guide of €349,500, John Phelan of Harry Brann auctioneers says it’s a charming property which offers all the joys of rural living. “We have had enquiries for a variety of parties including a few who are interested in continuing the eco project and who see it as an ideal place to bring up children.”
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: A chance to do more than recycle waste and turn out lights.