Blogaversary seven years

by Diana Studer

- gardening for biodiversity

in Cape Town, South Africa

Because a blog is virtual, I am editing my way back thru old posts. Presenting my First Post from 2009 with its face and hands washed, hair brushed, with a red ribbon. My surviving blog posts have all been checked against the invitation list.

The black stork swooped in to Ungardening Pond in our Porterville garden. Imagine flying over and seeing A Frog for lunch!

Black stork 2009

I have used Blogger for both the original and the active blogs (preferring to avoid WordPress issues around security hacks).

Fever tree post from 2010 remains popular, altho I feel a bit sheepish as the trees in our old garden sulked off. I still love the shimmering lime green bark, a little like Northern silver birch trees.

Thorns of a fever tree 2010

I battle with Google Analytics as I cannot block my own random IP address so prefer StatCounter where I find the information I need and understand.

2011 I enjoy identifying sections of my garden with names, themes, stories. Come and take tea in Paradise (once was an And Roses garden)?

Rest and Be Thankful 2011

I have an embarrassment of photos to choose from for each post, so I wimp out with collages. PicMonkey skills.

Truly wild in 2012, flowers for Wildflower Wednesday from a hike in the Groot Winterhoek Wilderness Area

Everlasting at Groot Winterhoek 2012

ID our wild flowers with PlantZAfrica (new site - today I updated the links on my sidebars) or iSpot Southern Africa

2013 Biodiversity beyond our own garden in the Cederberg (in which the Ungardener is 'almost' eaten by a Cape mountain leopard)

Cape mountain leopard 2013

2013 Mountains for me please as I lift my eyes to the quiet hills.

Buchu photo using Macro in a Mason jar 2013

Exploring our National Botanical Gardens or SANParks (South African National Parks).

2014 We miss our weavers' nests (but they are chatting in the carob here. Oh she NEVER, and then what did you do ... NEVER, then ... on an endless loop!), Ungardening Pond and our mountain Elephant's Eye.

Masked weaver bulding 2014

2014 Travelling across South Africa in our little yellow Land Rover.

The road less travelled Baviaanskloof 2014

The ClustrMap on my sidebar shows with yellow dots where my readers are NOW.

2015 Crossing False Bay circling along the coast road.

From the Strand looking across to our new home 2015

(If I Google - gardening False Bay - my blog posts fill the first page, and I hope to find other garden bloggers here!) At DuckDuckGo I get a wider view with Privacy, of False Bay, but still NO other gardeners.

2016 Each week as I write my blog post, prepare the photos, write the accompanying text, then publish - I don't copypasta A Template. I consider each bit as I go and tweak as ideas and practices change. The latest tweak - the last sentence prompted by Pam at Digging.

Seven steps (2012)

I wonder if I will still be blogging with such grace and charm as YarnStorm Press (dead link in 2022 sadly)  after a decade?

'I like the fact that knitting was the way in for many bloggers. I would never have imagined that two sticks and a ball of wool could lead to so many talented people writing funny, clever, interesting blogs. All those knitters who hadn't previously connected joined up and started a huge conversation'

My blog niche would be echoing silence without the garden bloggers I have found around the world's 24/7. Thank you for reading mine and writing yours!

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