April 2008

My favourite breakfast (click to enlarge), with the first egg appearing only a week after I’d got the chickens. Having disappeared inside the chicken coop, Zebra (Paige’s chicken) started rearranging the hay including throwing some over her back, & then commenced with some strange clucking noises. Suppose I’d make a few strange noises if I tried to lay my first egg!

Since then the daily output has risen to at least three eggs a day, normally four. I’m now supplying several families & occasionally friends.

There’s only been one breakout so far. One of my allotment neighbours commented how friendly Izzy’s chicken was when she wandered across on several occasions. I’ve trimmed her primary feathers & that seems to have solved the problem.

And the grandchildren are slowly warming to the chickens, although Izzy’s a bit uncertain after one pecked (or, as I tried to convince her, kissed) her. Paige didn’t need any time to get up to speed. She took command right away & batted chickens away when she got fed up. Recently taken to watering them with the watering can!

Finally finished the storage bin & positioned it at the back of the shed, as shown in the picture on the right. It’s working well since I can store all the chickens’ food etc plus garden utensils. No surprise the chickens know there’s something tasty in there!

Prepared & planted an asparagus bed, which will take at least 2 years before I can start eating the spears. Planted more seeds… tomato & sunflower, lettuce, spinach, sweetcorn & wallflowers… last year’s wallflowers doing really well by the front door at home!

The vines arrived & Barry & I spent a Sunday morning planting them & fixing the support poles. By the end of the month it looks like all is well & the buds are growing as shown on the left.

Although there was another fall of snow early in the month, towards the end the sun at last shone through & the weather was really pleasant. Cue the shorts as shown below; intention is for uninterrupted exposure of the kneecaps for the next four months. Haven’t shown the full photo for fear of face plus kneecaps being just too much for any human being to take in at once!

Managed to get the frost sensitive garden plants out into the cold frame, giving me more room in the shed to plant seeds. Even more room available when my daughter Beth started to take a fancy to the nicest plants & migrate them to her own garden! Only discovered this when I thought I recognised a few of the particularly healthy plants on her own patio! Annoying!

Thanks for reading my blog. More photos from this month below, & you can leave a comment by clicking ‘Comments’ right at the bottom of the page.

John




This month's photos (click to enlarge)
Laid eggs
Double yolk egg
Izzywho looking in bin
Planted spuds
Rest of side plot to dig
Area for fruit
Flag flies over the allotment
Front of shed
Asparagus bed
Becky's bed
Beth's bed
Lettuce
Beetroot
Broadbeans
Tomatoes & sweetcorn
Inside of shed
Two birds sitting
Onions or garlic?
Wandering chickens & wandering path

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