By: Peter Dowdall
Mar 22, 2013
If you can get your kids interested in the garden then you are giving them a hobby and passion that will last for a lifetime. I remember when I starte...
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By: Suzie Cahn
Apr 07, 2013
"Suffer Vegetables" For most of the year you can’t keep me indoors and for most of the day I can’t sit still, but a certa...
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Margaret Atwood wrote that "in the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt". We smelled of dirt today and it was wonderful. It was raining slightly but we decided to persist with our planting session anyway. The mangetouts and sugar snap peas squatting on my south-facing windowsills have been looking uncomfortable in their tiny pots for a while now, and we figured it was probably...
“Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful” - William Morris There is a patch of land beside my driveway. According to the plans of the house it is our front garden. In reality it is a moss-filled patch of scrubland that the neighbourhood uses as an unofficial litter tray and bin. We rarely tend to it. Having initially pumped a lot of mo...
We've been making great progress with our children's planting project here in Garanbawn. So far we've planted purple magetout, sugersnap peas, marrowfat peas, and french beans into small pots and seed trays. They're currently monopolising my upstairs windowsills and are enjoying the sun so much that it's beginning to resemble something out of The Day of the Triffids up there. W...
about 5 weeks ago i sprayed very rough grass. it has died down and i have cut dead grass and raked if off. how soon can i put my hens on to the treated plot.
The wheels of our children's planting project really began turning on March 11th when our top soil was delivered. We had bought and assembled some cheap raised beds in the preceding days and had stocked up on compost, planting trays, pots, seeds etc. Now that we were the proud owners of a big pile o' dirt we started feeling energised and eager to get started. The weather helped - sun split...
Spring is here. I don’t know whether it is the stretch in the evenings or the rise in temperature that gets my green fingers itching, but either which way, no sooner is Paddy’s day over then I have an over whelming desire to get back to my garden and get growing. The first step for this is having something to grow – and for that I need some seedlings. You can buy seedling...
Our school is a small rural school in co.limerick , we have 41 students, 3 full time teachers as well as resource teachers too , we have a great community athmosphere in the school and receive great support from the parents of the students too. Yesterday there was great excitement when I told the children that we would be planting seeds , they love to get their hands dirty and enjoy the re...
In 2013, our residents' association received funding from the GIY 'Get Ireland Growing' fund to start a children's planting initiative in the Garanbawn estate in Murroe, Co. Limerick. At the time of application, we didn't think that our proposed project had any chance of success - after all, most of us had little experience of growing anything of significance and we had never h...
“Feeding Ourselves 2014” How cooperative approaches to food production and distribution can strengthen the resilience of our communities. A National Community Supported Agriculture Conference Organised by Cloughjordan Community Farm Saturday 5th of April - 10am - 5pm On Sunday the 6th there will be a Community Farm walk and meitheal for delegates who would like to stay over...
Have you ever wished for a project which relied on the human tendency to get carried away with enthusiasm at the start but then rapidly lose interest? A project which takes a small bit of work to set up put pays huge dividends? A project which saves you money week-to-week, but then has an additional large saving at the end? Then I have the perfect project for you – start a compost bin (and t...
When the Celtic Tiger first fled and the recession began to take hold, one of the only actually useful pieces of advice to be bandied about was to get hens. It might seem counter-intuitive to add to your household when you really should be downsizing, but hens have many qualities beyond providing a regular good source of protein; they mean that there is always food in the house (the eggs, not the ...
Great news TY and 2nd years have really got together and made some fantastic raised beds. They are getting the school really talking about our garden courtyard Kay has been busy with 1st, 2nd and 3rd years along with the student council in sowing seeds. They have been germinating in her polytunnel and some of them are already hardened off, they will be ready to plant out in the next week. Some...
Bye bye Birmingham. please join the Birmingham group and I can make you admins to ensure Giy Brum lives! Cs
For Sale: 100,000 euros reduced to encourage quick sale. Cottage in delightful location approx 1 km from Riverstown, County Sligo - standing on an acre of good quality well drained land - three bedrooms, sitting/dining room, kitchen/diner, bathroom - garage - timber barn - 30’ x 16’ polytunnel with 10 raised beds - garden with 25 10’x4’ raised beds, fruit trees...
We were absolutely delighted last week to receive our cheque for €1500 from the Get Ireland Growing Fund. We are all so excited because at long last, after waiting and hoping for many years to be able to develop a sensory garden here at Nano Nagle School which presently caters for over 70 pupils aged 4 - 18 years who have varying special needs ranging from Autism and Challenging behaviour t...
My veg patch has blessed me with many things over the years, but perhaps the greatest blessing is the emotional and mental wellbeing it brings. Without really probing why, I’ve long believed that the best balm for a frenzied mind or a harried soul is a day in the vegetable garden. If I have had a tough week or am simply feeling a little blue, if I am stressed or irritated, noth...
We have all been very busy in the garden over the last few weeks Had a great time last sunday collecting half a ton of seaweed. Stunningly beautifull and easy, had just had rough weather and there was a long meter high dike of it along the high water line. All the possible colours were in there, from brown to green, pink, purple, red, orange. Arms full of it, my arms and hands were...
I'm gradually writing my way through a year on the roof top veg plot, including sharing my tips and successes in urban gardening. Happy to advise anyone seeking to grow a container only plot.
http://www.smallholding.ie/blog.html
It's been almost 2 years since my last conf....eh Blog. The garden has changed dramaticaly, my veg-growing has increased and became slightly more organised... (organised, me? never) and the chickens are thriving. Started with 3 Barnevelder hens and one Fred, unspecified cock. There's now eight birds running around the backyard, scaring the neighbours cats and ruining some of my 'well-...
