The Carlow Nationalist & Leinster Times - 24th January 2007

Last week’s gales proved a windfall for Lisnavagh

“It’s an ill wind that blows nobody any good” goes the proverb and this was certainly true for Tree Care Ireland and Lisnavagh Timber Project, when last week’s high winds resulted in damage to several old trees within Lisnavagh’s 250 acre woodland.

Emily Bunbury, marketing director of Lisnavagh, told The Nationalist that Tree Care Ireland runs tree surgery courses right on the estate, so the damaged tree limbs were cut away expertly by the surgeons* to be used by the Lisnavagh Timber Project which supplies hardwood timber to furniture makers around the country.

The Lisnavagh Estate is not far from Baltinglass-proper after turning left for Rathvilly.

The Timber Project operates from the 19th century farmyard presently undergoing restoration. Most Irish hardwood is taken from the estate with the rest being sourced from traceable and sustainable Irish hardwood plantations. But there is much more to Lisnavagh than wood.

Lisnavagh House, a Victorian mansion set in its own fourteen acres of gardens, has been launched as, what is claimed to be, a perfect wedding and function venue. Emily Bunbury said that the Estate was about to announce the date this spring for an Open Day, in conjunction with LPM Bohemia, a UK marquee company.

The house, with the grounds and the marquee, can be utilised as part of a wedding package which includes the mansion’s six en-suite bedrooms and four interconnecting function rooms, not least its oak-panelled library complete with roaring fire, the room being capable of swallowing up 80 guests with ease.

Managing such a large 1,000 acre estate is rather like throwing money down a bottomless pit, unless ways can be generated to make ‘outgo’ remain less than ‘income’.

The story of how William and Emily Bunbury are contriving to bring this about will be told on Sky’s Discovery Real Time channel on Wednesday 28 (10pm). On the programme, Dr Jeanne Bolger and Jay Bourke visit the estate, talk to the Bunbury couple and explore their hopes and dreams for the future while identifying strengths and weaknesses of their marketing intentions.

Bolger is Senior Vice-President of Licensing and Global Acquisitions for Johnson and Johnson and Bourke is a leading club, pub, hotel and restaurant operator. Viewing the programme might prove of great value for other bud-ding Baltinglass-region entrepreneurs.

You will find more details about the Lisnavagh Timber Project on its website www.irishwoods.com ..

It seems that the Bunbury clan is an enterprising lot. For, over and above what has been described, Sasha Bunbury, another member of the clan, runs her own design company Farm 21 from the Farmyard complex. Historian Turtle Bunbury is enjoying best-seller status with his book Vanishing Ireland and brother-in-law Tom Sykes has just launched his book What Did I Do Last Night - A Drunkard’s Tale in Ireland and the UK

General information about Lisnavagh is on www.lisnavagh.com or by calling 059-916-1473

*Footnote: Speaking of gales, an apt cartoon appeared over last weekend in an international paper. It depicted a crowd of people viewing a tree that had blown down across the road. In the background is a frantic figure waving and shouting “Let me through! I’m a tree surgeon!”

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[Sourced from http://www.carlow-nationalist.ie/community/story.asp?j=30661]

Visit the Irish Woodturners Guild website - click here.