Shankill Castle

16/07/2026

🌿 Just two weeks to go until internationally renowned garden designer and writer joins us at Shankill Castle for Carlow Garden Festival! 🌿

If you've ever admired the sweeping, naturalistic planting style made famous by Piet Oudolf, this is a talk you won't want to miss. Noel has worked closely with Oudolf for many years and is one of the world's leading experts on this exciting approach to gardening.

In this special talk, Noel will take us on a practical journey into creating naturalistic plantings that are resilient, vibrant and full of seasonal interest.

✨ Be inspired. 💚 Learn from an expert.

Book now via the link in our bio (or comments), and explore the rest of the fantastic festival programme.



With huge thanks to

12/07/2026

🌿 Join us at Shankill Castle on 30th July for a special talk with internationally renowned planting designer and author Noel Kingsbury, as part of Carlow Garden Festival.

This talk will be an inspiring exploration of wild, naturalistic planting - one of the most influential movements in contemporary garden design. Drawing on decades of research, writing, and collaboration with leading figures such as Piet Oudolf, Noel breaks down how these ideas can be applied in real gardens, large or small.

This talk uncovers how naturalistic planting offers practical solutions to sustainability, climate resilience and low-maintenance gardening. Noel will focus on what this means for your own garden—how to choose the right plants, work with your soil and conditions and create plant combinations that thrive with less intervention. He will share simple, achievable techniques for building structure, extending seasonal interest and encouraging biodiversity without increasing workload.

Noel will share insights from his extensive and very influential body of work, including his books on planting design and ecology, alongside his continuing research into plant growth habits. Expect to leave with a deeper understanding of how to design plantings that are dynamic, ecologically rich and beautiful throughout the seasons.

📍 Shankill Castle, Paulstown
📅 30th July, 3pm
🎫 https://carlowgardentrail.com/event/wild-by-design-planting-inspired-by-nature-with-noel-kingsbury/

Book your place now! 🌱

04/07/2026

20/06/2026

It's amazing to think of the layers of history and change bound in architecture.

Built near the ruins of an old church, Shankill Castle began life as a tower house built by the Butler family during the medieval period.

In 1708, the house was rebuilt by Peter Aylward, who bought the land from his wife’s family. The new Shankill Castle was constructed as a Queen Anne house, set in a formal landscape.

In the 1820s, the house became what we see today as it was enlarged and castellated. An unusual polyhedral sundial given pride of place on a sunken lawn.

✨ Discover more on a tour of the house at 3p.m. Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

06/06/2026

✨Fancy a homemade meal but don't feel like cooking?
✨ Homemade cottage pies cooked by Rosie now available in the farm shop!
✨ Made with our own organic Angus beef
❤️

31/05/2026

💚🌱 Exciting developments here: we're expanding our organic veg production in the walled garden a lot this year. Doing Jim Cronin's market garden course and 's salad production course this year (both via ) is helping massively to get ourselves organised and into more efficient practices! 🌱💚
Our Farm Shop is all stocked up with a growing amount of our own and others' produce and products! 💚

21/05/2026

From a medieval tower house to the house you see today, Shankill Castle remains a living, evolving place filled with history, art, creativity and daily life.

Artist 's work can be found throughout the house, and we’re delighted to share this special corner of Ireland with visitors who come to explore its history, gardens and stories.

Join a castle tour on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays at 3pm.