Thatch

Thatcher at work

Harry McEvoy of Martry, Kells repairs his thatched roof. His thatching fork is stuck in beside him

by permission of Geraldine Tallon

Thatcher at work
by permission of Geraldine Tallon

Thatcher at work

Harry McEvoy of Martry, Kells repairs his thatched roof. His thatching fork is stuck in beside him

by permission of Geraldine Tallon

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Over most of the country a layer of sod was placed on the roof timbers to support the thatch and provide a good seal, much as underfelt is used nowadays. The sod, or scraw, was cut in strips less than a metre wide by about 6 cms thick and would have a close mat of roots for strength and durability. These sods were laid unbroken from eaves to ridge with the grass surface upwards. They overlapped at the ridge on the side away from the wind. They overlapped laterally too, the sod on the windward side projecting over the adjacent side on the lee. These sods were bound to the timbers with cord and the thatch, normally of corn straw, was laid over them. A few eastern areas, including County Meath, used no sod and the undercoat of thatch was secured directly to the timbers with straw rope or cord.

Materials used for thatch include the straw of wheat, oats, barley and rye. Flax is also used, as is reed.Certain tough grasses are used in some mountainous areas. Rushes make a bad substitute as they curl upwards with drying. In poor times recourse was also had to heather, potato stalks, weeds and such like covering. Even sods, or scraws, on their own were used. The straw of machine harvested corn is unsuitable for thatching and this became a problem with increased farm mechanisation. The expert thatcher preferred his straw to be cut by sickle or scythe and to be threshed by hand. The best type of all is the straw from which the corn has been removed by hand-scutching as the "barrel" of the straw remains unbroken. Also grains of corn remaining in the straw would attract birds and vermin, resulting in damage to the thatch over a short space of time. For this reason, and also as a preservation, it is usual to spray the thatch with sulphate of copper (bluestone). Flax and reed thatch should last about twenty years; straw eight to ten years with wheat and rye better than the other kinds; rushes or grass would last from three to five years.