COMHAIRLE CONTAE ÁTHA CLIATH THEAS
SOUTH DUBLIN COUNTY COUNCIL

MEETING OF CLONDALKIN AREA COMMITTEE

Wednesday, February 17, 2021

QUESTION NO. 9

QUESTION: Councillor F. Timmons

"To ask the Chief Executive for a report that gets South Dublin County Council to identify areas around Corkagh Park where native trees can be planted. There are still Avenues around the park that are bare and could be enhanced not to mention the depleated wood near the playground and of course the Famine Field. Will South Dublin County Council plant trees during this planting season in the park and how many?"

REPLY:

The Public Realm Section continually manage the trees and woodlands in Corkagh Park as the seasons evolve and the years pass. The trees form the living structure of the park and it is important that they are managed correctly so that they are there for generations to come. There is a wide variety of tree habitats in existence within the park which includes mature woodlands, young woodland, specimen trees, hedgerow trees, tree avenues, tree groupings and an arboretum.

Plantings to date have consisted of both native and non-native species which provides a range of diversity and interest. It is important that further plantings continue to reflect the diversity which contributes to making Corkagh Park a destination park. To determine the extent of future tree planting programmes it is necessary to undertake an assessment of what is present.

It is therefore proposed to carry out a tree survey of the old woodlands in the park. This will establish what they consist of, their condition and will help to develop a strategy for their future maintenance and management.

In addition, a survey of the famine arboretum will be undertaken. The famine arboretum is comprised of different species of trees native to the countries to which Irish people emigrated to during and since the famine. It is broken into blocks representative of the various continents and includes a wide variety of non-native species.

Planting trees along paths to form avenues is a method used to define spaces and give a sense of enclosure in the park. This has been used effectively along the oak avenue and beech avenue which guide park user into the centre of the park from the carparks located at the periphery. Not all paths are suitable for avenue planting for various reasons such as proximity to sports pitches, prevailing winds, or unsuitable ground conditions. An examination of the existing tree avenues and paths will be carried out later in the year when trees are in full leaf and if appropriate additional avenue planting will be listed for consideration for future planting.

Tree planting will next take place in the park during the 2021/2022 planting season. At this stage it is not possible to provide details of the type and quantity of trees that will be planted.  A planting programme for Corkagh Park will be drawn up and presented to the area committee in due course.