Are you age proof? A lecture taking place today, March 24 led by one of Ireland’s leading geriatricians, Professor Rose Anne Kenny (pictured), will examine new insights into the area of ageing medicine. With over 35 years of experience and a best-selling book, Age Proof, Professor Kenny is President of the Irish Gerontological Society. During the (free) online lecture she will reveal why and how some people have a lower biological age than chronological age; the role played by food, genetics, sex, physical exercise, cold water, expectations, friendships and much more. Her research questions whether science can teach us not only to live longer lives, but also to live fitter, healthier and happier ones. Entitled, “You are as young as you feel”, the lecture will be chaired by Professor Rose Galvin, lecturer in physiotherapy, from the University of Limerick, who will joined by panellists including writer Éilís Ní Dhuibhne, Tania Banotti, head of Creative Ireland, Professor Michael Cullen, associate Professor of Endocrinology in TCD school of Medicine, Donal Denham, former Irish Ambassador to Lithuania, and Claire O’Dwyer, an award-winning sea swimmer. The online lecture takes place at 3pm on www.broadcastonline.ie. 

Farm experiences are trending and one of the most interesting is that at Killarney Urban Farm – Ireland’s first hospitality hydroponic urban farm, growing for and servicing bars, restaurants, and hotels in Co Kerry. Guests who book the new “Killarney Urban Farm & Taste Experience” will be given a tour of the hydroponic towers (while enjoying a cocktail) as well as the opportunity to taste some of the ingredients grown (in the form of canapés), in the process savouring all that the Killarney Urban Farm represents – hyper-local freshness, sustainability and innovation. The experience continues to The Tan Yard (pictured) for a three course meal, with the option of a wine or beer pairing. Each of the dishes on this menu features ingredients produced in Killarney Urban Farm paired with local farmers and suppliers. Priced at €65 per person, to book visit www.thetanyardkillarney.ie. 

Want to indulge in an afternoon of interior design? American photographer Jessica Glynn, and author of Beachside: Windsor Architecture and Design (featured on thegloss.ie) and award-winning interior designer, Geri O’Toole will host a fun afternoon sharing stories and tips at Mount Falcon Estate, Ballina on Sunday, March 27 from 2pm – 4pm. Glynn recently moved to Kilmovee, Mayo from Palm Beach and has photographed some of the world’s most impressive homes. O’Toole is a Limerick-based interior designer who has designed homes in Ireland and the UK. Admission is free but donations to raffle in aid of Mayo Hospice are welcome. To attend RSVP to: events@Mountfalcon.com.

As our thoughts turn to gardening – both inside and out – designer Emmet Bosonnet of Kopper Kreation, Dublin has created some pretty copper planters. Formerly plumbing fittings that have been adapted as planters, these are industrial in design. The copper is hand polished to a natural finish that will age and develop character over time. They come with a small cacti or succulent: €20; www.kopperkreation.com. 

There’s a special performance of Music for Galway in An Taibhdhearc on March 29 at 8pm, when viola player Nathan Sherman and percussionist Alex Petcu (pictured) take to the stage. The programme, based around Luciano Berio’s Naturale, is a world of hypnotic sounds, street vendor songs, yearning melodies, and joyous dances. Berio’s work uses Sicilian folk music as its inspiration, and is a reflection on the joys, and often harsh realisms of life. The concert will also include the world premiere of Iarann, a work inspired by St Brigid, by the Dutch-based Australian composer Kate Moore. Tickets are from €6 for students and children to €20; www.musicforgalway.ie. 

The first concert of Farmleigh House Cultural Programme 2022 takes place on Saturday March 26 at 7.30pm, and will feature eight young students who are currently engaged in the Young Artist Programme at the Royal Irish Academy of Music. This programme, designed to nurture high potential pre-college talents, is for two years with an option to further re-audition if under 18 at the time. This concerts offer classical music lovers the opportunity of witnessing the very beginnings of the careers of those who will become the outstanding talents of the future. Featured in the presentation will be music by Haydn, Chopin, Liszt and Piazzolla. Tickets, €12, can be purchased from the Motor House information centre at Farmleigh or via www.eventbrite.ie. 

For some post-shopping coffee and cake, The Ivy Dawson Street is celebrating Mother’s Day with a carefully crafted dessert designed to please the palette and the senses. The limited-edition Tulipa dessert (€9.95), incorporating a white chocolate mousse, raspberries, meringue, petals, and a warm chocolate sauce, which resembles a tulip flower, is available from Friday, 25 to Sunday, 27 March. To book a table visit www.theivydublin.com. 

Chef Adrian Martin has launched a new Irish tasting menu in The Wildflower Cellar at the recently opened Wildflower Restaurant on Dublin’s South Richmond Street. The ten-course menu, which also includes snacks and surprises, is in line with Martin’s commitment to use the most sustainable sources as well as local suppliers. Dishes include fermented Ballymakenny potato bread with cultured butter; Flaggy Shore oyster with roasted Koji butter and meadowsweet; quail egg, cabbage ash, and bacon; chicken skin, foie gras and fermented blackberry; milk ice cream with green gage and burnt sage granita; elderberry soufflé with fig leaf; seaweed and rhubarb custard tart with wood sorrel and meringue. Irish wines on offer as part of the dining experience include Highbank Orchards Organic Irish Apple Wine, Wicklow Way Wines Blackberry and Elderberry Wine, and a sparkling Cabernet Sauvignon ‘Lusca’ By Llewelyn’s in Lusk, Co Dublin. The Wildflower Cellar ten-course tasting menu is served on Friday and Saturday evenings from 7pm, priced at €100 (the wine pairing menu is an additional €55). Guests in the upstairs dining rooms can choose from a five-course a la carte dinner menu, €70, served from Wednesday to Saturday, while lunch service is 12 noon to 3pm Thursday to Saturday at €40 per person. There will be a special Sunday lunch for Mother’s Day, on March 27; www.wildflowerrestaurant.ie. 

To mark Daffodil Day on March 25, Centra and Jess Redden, pharmacist and lifestyle influencer (pictured) are encouraging people to “Take Part and Take Back from Cancer”, supporting communities as they raise funds and give hope to cancer patients and their families. Centra has been a supporter of the Irish Cancer Society for 13 years and from March 24 – 27, customers can choose to tap and donate at the till – all donations will go directly to the Irish Cancer Society enabling them to provide crucial support services such as the Irish Cancer Society Freephone Support Line, the Volunteer Driver Service, the Night Nursing Service, and the free Counselling Service. In 2021, the generosity of donors, fundraisers and volunteers allowed the Irish Cancer Society to provide 14,394 counselling sessions for patients and their families through the Remote Counselling service and at Affiliate Cancer Support Centres, 7,323 nights of Night Nursing, 13,035 Volunteer Driver service journeys and over 22,500 supporting and comforting conversations though the Support Line and Daffodil Centres. Those who can’t make it into a Centra store this weekend can donate to by visiting www.daffodilday.ie.

Still not sorted for Mother’s Day? There’s still time to order one of three posh hampers from Adare Manor, which are sure to impress. The “Breakfast in Bed” hamper, €125, is the equivalent of room service – at home. Included is a jar of Adare Manor honey, raw and straight from the hive as well as the hotel’s own handmade granola, baked in small batches by the Carriage House culinary team. There’s also a pot of strawberry and Champagne jam, and another of the Adare Manor breakfast marmalade. An Adare Manor candle in its signature scent and a beautiful canister of 1832 signature tea are all beautifully packed and tied up with a ribbon. All you need to do is pop on the kettle and heat up some croissants! To order visit www.shop.adaremanor.com. 

Breast Cancer Ireland is launching a podcast called “More Than A Lump” on Thursday March 24, which demonstrates through honesty, humour and sometimes sadness, the real-life stories behind the disease and the ways in which a diagnosis can impact on the wider support circle of friends and family. Guests on the first series of the podcast include Professor Arnold Hill, one of Ireland’s leading breast surgeons and chairman of Breast Cancer Ireland, health coach and wellness speaker, Georgie Crawford and her mum Siobhan, BCI patient supporter and male breast cancer survivor Dara McDonough, and BCI Ambassador, teacher and new mum Emma Cassidy amongst others. The podcast is entirely free and available to download across all the usual channels; www.breastcancerireland.com. 

Holder: The new “Blossom” collection from Ireland’s Eye knitwear; www.irelandseyeknitwear.com.