Grow your Easter Lilies now for 1916 centenary

GREEN, WHITE AND ORANGE fingers are being encouraged to get busy and start planting Easter Lilies at home in time for the centenary of the 1916 Easter Rising.

The first Easter Lily badges were designed by Cumann na mBan back in 1925 to raise money for the Republican Prisoners Dependants Fund and to honour the sacrifice made by the men and women of the 1916 Rising.

Now the Christy Dixon Sinn Féin Cumann in the Dublin north inner city neighbourhoods of East Wall and North Strand have commissioned a commemorative Calla Lily pack they are selling at just €3 a pack from local TD Mary Lou McDonald’s advice centre at 60 Amiens Street and the Sinn Féin Bookshop at 58 Parnell Square, Dublin 1.

The packs feature a brief history of the Easter Lily and four Calla Lily seeds (along with growing instructions. The perennial seeds can be planted this year and will be in full bloom for 2016.

Peter Lynch, Chairperson of the Christy Dixon Cumann, told An Phoblacht they’ve called it the ‘Grow it with Pride’ campaign:

“For many years now, republicans throughout the country have been asked to ‘wear it with pride’ and our cumann felt that the centenary of Easter 1916 needed to be marked in a special way and thus the ‘Grow it with Pride’ campaign was born.

“We want the Easter Lily to grow strong and visible in gardens and homes throughout Ireland in time for the 100th anniversary of this momentous occasion in Ireland’s history.”

The initiative can be taken up by other cumainn as a fitting way to grow awareness and raise funds. Contact [email protected]