Poetry Field Trip to the Botanic Gardens with Jane Robinson

Course Summary

A Poetry Field Trip to the National Botanic Gardens where participants will focus on drafting their own new poems based on first-hand encounters in the gardens. This outing will be bookended at the Irish Writers Centre by 1) a morning workshop on poetry and ecology; and 2) sharing of new work in the afternoon. Taking inspiration from scientific field trips, this poetry workshop aims to encourage an approach to writing based on first-hand observation and outdoor noticing. Transport will be provided by the Irish Writers Centre.

Course Outline

This workshop is based around writing outdoors to encourage first-hand engagement with the environment. The physical act of writing on paper en plein air is part of the experience, so participants should come equipped with a hardcover notebook and a 2B pencil even if they normally draft new work digitally. The poetry field trip will go ahead in any normal Irish weather, please wear appropriate clothing.

10am:    Meet at the Irish Writers Centre for a one-hour workshop and discussion of poetry in relation to ecology and the natural environment.  You will read selected poems from the literature and be given maps and suggestions to start you on your day of outdoor writing.

11.15am:   Transport to the National Botanic Gardens where you will be encouraged to explore independently or in small groups: engaging with your surroundings, taking field notes and drafting new work. Jane will be on hand for discussions and encouragement as needed. Are you interested in horticulture (the walled garden), native trees, exotic species (the palm house), early Irish agriculture, seasonal ponds, etc. or in the wild birds, insects and other animals who visit the gardens? What is the relationship between native Irish fauna and exotic plant species? What will you record in your field notebook? Will you find a fallen petal or feather that sparks off a new poem? Or will your day be centred on a human relationship? Diverse responses to the brief are encouraged.

Self-timed Lunch break:   Please plan to bring your own lunch or take a lunch break at the pleasant cafeteria in the Botanic Gardens.

2.45pm:   Transport back to the Irish Writers Centre.

3.15pm:   Workshop discussion of the experience. Sharing of new work.

Course Outcomes

A day outdoors devoted to the craft of poetry and to drafting your own new poems. Participants will take away some new knowledge of poetry, nature and ecology; also, the beginnings of a field note book in which outdoor observations and relationships form a basis for drafting new work. The workshop participants may find in one another a community of fellow-writers with whom to continue the journey.

Jane Robinson’s collections, Journey to the Sleeping Whale (Salmon, 2018) and Island and Atoll (Salmon, 2023), as well as other poems and essays, reflect her deep ecological awareness. With a doctorate in Biology from Caltech, Jane is also a recipient of the Shine-Strong, Red Line Book Festival and Strokestown Poetry Awards. Several of her poems have been set to music. Some recent work is published in the climate editions of Cold Mountain Review and The Stinging Fly. She is the editor of Kilkenny Poetry Broadsheet 2026.

Booked out? To be added to the waiting list for this course, please email bookings@irishwriterscentre.ie.