As we approach the end of the year many of us start thinking about goals for the future. A few of the obvious keep popping into my mind but I’m quite enjoying the Christmas cocoon and not quite ready to pin down any in particular for 2013 just yet. The time will come soon enough, perhaps when our children return to school and there’s some quiet time in our home once more. For now I’m enjoying every moment of the here and now and pondering over lessons learned during the past 12 months.
One aspect of my life that I’ve particularly enjoyed over the past few years has been blogging. Being chosen as a finalist in the 2012 Ireland Blog Awards in two categories was a particular highlight… In an order that’s impossible to choose between, I blog for me, I blog for my business and I blog for you. I enjoy blogging so much I started a new personal blog this year which you can find here.
In case you missed some of the Greenside Up posts, here are the top 10 blogs that you looked at in 2012 starting with the most popular:
Slugs ~ How to get rid of them organically
A huge problem this year and fingers crossed we don’t see a repeat of the slug invasion during 2013! If we do, you’ll know what to do without automatically reaching for the slug pellets!
A lovely recipe when strawberries are in season but do use the best ingredients as the cheesecake might not set if you opt for cheap and cheerful.
How to Make Mini ScarecrowsThere was so much rain this year, perhaps you were all looking for indoor projects but this one is fun for young and old alike.
How to Make Comfrey and Nettle Fertiliser
If you’re gardening organically making your own fertiliser is great for your vegetable garden and free!
Polytunnels and Greenhouses – Is cheaper better?
From my own experience I can wholeheartedly say that vegetables grown under cover fare much better in the Irish climate than those grown outdoors. I’ve been asked many times over the past year for advice and with budgets smaller, many of you have been building your own polytunnels and greenhouses. This post came as a result of questions asked on twitter and facebook looking for your feedback.
How to Make Dandelion HoneyZwartbles posted the recipe for dandelion honey on twitter and Foxglove Lane provided this beautiful image for the recipe that was replicated on my blog. Did you try it? Once it was made correctly, I was surprised how tasty it was!
Gardening with Kids – How to Make Recycled Flowers
I was delighted to see that many of you are looking for ways of reusing your rubbish and these flowers certainly brightened up our own dull garden at times.
Teenagers – Doing it For Themselves
2012 was the first year I worked with teenagers and children having spent my previous two years in business teaching adults. What a revelation! Teaching the Bridge Boys from Goresbridge about flowers and vegetables and seeing the end results was tremendously rewarding. Take a look at the post for pictures of a fantastic bench the boys built. Their achievements were mentioned in the Sunday Business Post as a result of this post.
Could the American Dream Be Wrong?
My personal favourite as this blog post was written whilst the children and I were spending some precious weeks with Mr G who was working in the U.S. for most of the year. This piece provoked some insightful and thoughtful comments.
An excellent crop for beginners, broad beans can be eaten in many ways. This post describes several of them.
Thank you so much for reading and taking the time to comment, it’s very much appreciated. I hope these and other posts have helped you in some way. I’ll be out of hibernation in the next week or two filling the pages with many more for a busy gardening year in 2013.
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