Darach & The Bluebell Forest by Siobhán Flood

An enchanting, magickal book for the little ones...

Following the end of the last big Ice Age around 10,000 years ago, deciduous woodlands took over much of the Northern Hemisphere. These woodlands are composed of trees with broad-shaped leaves including oak, ash, yew and elm.
Broadleaf forests are very rich in biodiversity.

In Ireland, the animals living in the forest include deer, badgers, hedgehogs, foxes, pine martins, squirrels, bats and frogs. Birds of the broadleaf forest include blackbirds, robins, woodpeckers, jays, treecreepers and owls.
 
In the middle layer, shrubs such as rowan, hazel, birch and holly can be found. The herb layer of the forest floor is filled with grasses, sedges, ferns and moss. There are also many insects that inhabit the broadleaf forest.

These magnificent broadleaf forests are now found only in isolated pockets due to clearing for farmland and timber for industry. As a result many native species have become endangered.
 
The pure magic of these majestic forests has inspired many artists, singers, dancers, storytellers, poets and healers over countless millennia.
 
Turn the page and meet Darach, travel with him into the old-old bluebell forest . . .