May Bush still blooms in Laois after 55 years
Lexi Nelson, Síomha Nelson-Heffernan, Kathleen Lynch, Dan Lynch and family friend and Mountmellick Camera Club member Charlie White, pictured with Dan's 55th May Bush at Capard in the Slieve Blooms. Photo: Stan Henderson
FOR the 55th consecutive year dairy farmer, traditional Irish heritage games champion and community giant Dan Lynch from the Ridge of Capard in the Slieve Blooms put out his decorated May Bush, on the eve of the first day of summer, to deter malicious evil spirits from his farm.
The May Bush is an old Irish custom marking the arrival of summer in Ireland and is closely associated with the festival of Bealtaine which celebrates fertility, growth and protection.
On the eve of Bealtaine, Dan spoke to the at his home about his May Bush tradition, which spans several generations, before talking about his impressive sporting achievements which began 70 years ago in his native Luggacurren.
A May Bush is usually a small tree or branch of whitethorn, hawthorn or rowan and is put up on May Eve, 30 April, at dusk. This timing is significant because it’s believed to be a turning point in the year when the Faeries, Pishogues, Witches and Shapeshifters are especially active.
The May Bush remains in place throughout the month and is often erected near farmhouses, in yards or beside gateways where the cows would pass. The purpose of the bush is to protect livestock, ensure a good milk yield, protect the cream, water wells, safeguard crops and keep bad luck away from the household.
On May Eve, Dan was joined by his daughter Kathleen, her partner Gene Heffernan, his granddaughters Lexi and Síomha, family friend and Mountmellick Camera Club member Charlie White and Dan’s nephew Micheál Clear, who hung up the last tie that his late father Mick Clear from Rosenallis wore before he passed away last October.
The May Bush was well decorated with ribbons, painted and natural eggshells and wildflowers. Kathleen and her daughters had arranged eggshells into garlands, which they hung onto the branches.
Dan said: “Where I was reared in Luggacurren, my father always put out the May Bush and so did his people before him and their people before them. When I moved to Capard 55 years ago, I brought the tradition with me.
“On the night before the first of May I put out the May Bush. We always had one in the yard here every year but in later years I moved it out the grid gate, so that people could come along and tie ribbons and eggshells and different things onto it throughout the month.
"The tradition is that evil spirits won’t take the cream of the milk or take the butter because the milking season is coming and it also ensures that we have a better crop of potatoes and other vegetables. May Bushes ward off the evil spirits.”
When asked about his medals, trophies and cups for a variety of traditional games, Dan was happy to display them and to have some pictures taken while he proudly held them.
Dan explained: “My first experience of sports was when I was going to school and won a medal for my parish team, which was St Joseph’s in Ballyadams. I won medals in 1956 and 1957 and then we won the cup in 1958. That was the end of the GAA end of my sports.
“In 1958, I won two medals for cross-country running, two more for track running in 1961 and then another two for field running in 1962. In 1987, I won the winner’s trophy for wellington throwing for Luggacurren and won it again in Clogh in Kilkenny in 1989. I won the sheaf throwing in Ballylinan in 1991, which was sponsored by a local pub called the Horse and Coach.
“In 1996, as the anchorman in the Rosenallis tug-of-war team called Pull Nationwide, we won the cup in Ballinakill - against Ballinakill. We used to travel the country with tug-of-war competitions and that was one of the toughest pulls that we ever had but we brought back the cup out of it.”
Dan was also coach of the Rosenallis tug-of-war team for many years, as well as its anchorman. He also achieved excellence in sheaf throwing and weight throwing and he became highly regarded in traditional events, competing at festivals such as the Hughie Bracken Threshing Festival where he earned significant honours and stacked up the trophies and cups.
On top of all of this, Dan competed and won in the Millennium Cup for sheaf throwing in 2000, when he went up against top competitors from all across Ireland. He finally won by throwing a 14-pound weight over the bar, which was set at 24 feet high.
Dan’s connection to the land was just as strong as his sporting pursuits. He has been a dairy farmer for over 40 years and cut turf on Spa Bog near the source of the River Barrow near his home.
The mighty Dan Lynch is well regarded for community leadership and has always been deeply involved in local organisations. He is chairperson of Rosenallis Pioneer Total Abstinence Association and a founding member of the Slieve Bloom Association which celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2025 as featured in this newspaper last May. Amongst lots of other hobbies and achievements, Dan also enjoys social dancing groups.
