I LOVE FREECYCLE!!!!!

Got a chook house off the freecycle today. Many thanks to the lovely couple in Newport who offered it.

It needs a clean and I'm going to put some new felt on the roof, then it will be ready for occupation.

Have also attached a pic of one of the chooks. She decided to sit on my shoulder and with a bit of contorting I managed to get a pic of her.

More chook pics and a quick update. Also, I have uploaded a video of one of my girls fertling about on her nest. I was waiting for her to actually lay an egg, but she wasn't going to oblige me.

Getting lots of digging done, when the bloody hens let me. Have come close to decapitating a couple with my spade because they all want first crack at any worms that may be unlucky enough to be spotted by them. I left the spade for a minute and they got it surrounded, looks as though they are waiting for it to do something.

They are still laying the odd egg whenever they feel like it, but as I'm not expecting much over the winter, so any I get is a bonus. As for odd, I was fairly surprised to find the large one, weirdest looking egg I've ever seen, almost feel sorry for the hen that laid that one. Got a pic of the chicks, they have been moved to the big greenhouse to give them more room. Also, a pic of a poser, was trying to get a close up to show feathers re-growing, and a pic taken from inside the run, while they were all outside.

The straw/chicken manure pile I've been building next to my shed is now being spread over the ground I have dug, I'll let the worms do some of the work over the winter, but I'll dig the rest in before planting in spring.

Got to sort out the girls some sort of roof on the run due to the dreaded bird flu. Got to make sure wild birds can't get in and put all the feeders inside. The good thing is, good hygiene should protect my birds according to the DEFRA website.

Not much going on plant wise, may be inspecting my swede soon though, a couple are big enough for a single meal.

Spring cabbages are doing ok, need to construct some sort of tunnel to protect them if I put them out, because I was late getting them sown and I don't want the weather to get them before they get established.

What worms are for!

Well, the ex-bats have finally learned what to do with worms bless 'em. For the past couple of days when I have been working on the plot I have let them out to roam and they have thoroughly enjoyed themselves scratching about and catching worms. The cheepers have been moved into the big greeenhouse to give them some more room, but I don't quite trust them out and about yet.
Harvested a huge amount of Jerusalem Artichokes today, cooked a couple up to see what they are like and found that they are not quite my cup of tea. Will keep some tubers to grow them again as I think they make lovely plants and provide my chook run with a bit of screening. The rest will be offered on seed swaps and freecycle I think.
Got some more tidying and digging done. Slowly getting the place more presentable. Took a couple of chook pics today.

General Update

Well, the plot still looks like a bombsite but at least it is safe for another year. Got my rent notice last week, got to go to the office and pay for the coming year. Works out about £29 which is quite reasonable given the size of the plot!
Chooks are doing well, egg laying is tailing off but feathers are re-growing and they are starting to look less 'plucked'. Worried about my chicks as the bigger girls have started ganging up on them and one of my little Marans may be under the weather. She sounds chesty, its the only way I can describe it, going to treat the babies to a marmite sarnie tomorrow, give them a vitamin boost. The littluns have started staying in the shed a lot, staying out of the way, but at least it keeps them out of the cold as much.
Was sitting in the shed talking to the girls, as you do, when one came in, settled herself down on the nest and started straining..... and kept on straining. I was getting quite nervous and beginning to think that she may be egg bound when a look of sheer relief came over her face. When I saw the egg I knew why!

Got a fantastic bargain from B&Q. A 6'x2' greenhouse by £20. It was an absolute bastard to put up given how small it is. but it is going to provide extra valuable space for young plants in the spring and toms/chillies in the summer next year.
Got a few new pics as well.

Cheers

Wrapping up

Well, lost toms and late spuds to blight, beans are finished, got a few bits in the ground but mostly I'm trying to clear up the mess from where I hardly got down here over the summer and prepare some ground for my overwintering plants.

While clearing out and de-lousing the chook house I saw a funny little thing on the floor. Closer inspection showed it to be a wee lizard, only about 2 inches long and dead cute. Took pics then let it go outside.

Cleaned out greenhouse and the area around it. Going to take some slabs out of greenhouse and open up some beds for toms and chillies next year. If I clear out the shed over the winter, I can use that for potting and sowing and keep the greenhouse for growing on.

Jeepers Cheepers and Ex-Bats

Well, due to the depradations of Mr Fox I lost my last two girls and can quite honestly say that I was gutted in a resigned sort of way. I have had a month without girls so decided to check out the Battery Hens Welfare Trust to look into adopting some of those. Found out that there was a rescue happening on 6 Oct so put my name down for 12 then spent the last month rebuilding part of the run and fortifying it.
Have also got 4 chicks, a Light Sussex, 2 Marans and a Silkie. The wee ones were first out yesterday morning and showing the big girls how its done!
The ex-bats have been laying fairly well, and with winter approaching, I will enjoy them for as long as I get them before the girls rest up over the darker months. I have been told that the babies will lay next spring.

Some pics.

Pictures

Some pics of my cucumbers that are doing far better than I ever thought they would. Already had one, and even if do say so myself, they are pretty tasty.
Another pic shw my mystery tomatoes. I found tomato seedlings in my daughter's snail tank (African Land Snail) and planted them up. They have set some fairly impressive trusses of fruit. Hope they taste as good as they are looking when they are ripe.

Finally, some pics of my wonderful girls. They are still under house arrest until I have electrified the run, but when I am on the plot I allow them to come out and range which they enjoy. I enjoyed it too, until I found one of them having a dust bath in my brussels sprouts bed, but they are forgiven because of how much they have been through lately.

Cheers
Kirsty

Not entirely allotment related

But brilliant all the same.
My faithful hound will soon have company on the lottie. She has become the proud and exhausted mother of 5 fat and healthy puppies one of whom we are keeping. He has been named Max and photos of him and his Mum on the allotment will be posted when they are taken. He's not quite four weeks old yet so he can't come out to play till he's bigger.
His brother and sisters are being homed locally by people we know, which means we will keep in touch with all of them and see them grow up.

Veg stuff

Well, I have lost a load of tomatoes to blight, but some that are in pots and grow bags seem to be doing okay.
Loads of runner and french beans coming along nicely, I'm picking every other day. Leeks doing well and I have pumpkins and squash starting to form.
Checked out the sweetcorn, can see the flowers starting to come at the tops of the plants, hopeful I may have some cobs to harvest this year.
Got my PSB in and netted it, that is flourishing and the other day took home a lovely sweet summer cabbage home for tea. Have also got my January King and Savoy cabbages out. Going to sow my spring cabbages soon.
Weather has been perfect for brambles and nettles, its a full time job trying to keep on top of them, but getting there. On the plus side, am able to pick fat juicy blackberries from along the fences on my plot. Greengages on the tree are ripe, off to get some of them soon. Hope I've got enough jars for the jam I'm planning.
Got an apple tree on the plot that I'm also keeping an eye on, be having those for apple jelly soon as they're ready. Got a little while to go yet though.
Salads and spring onions have been cropping well. Got a reasonable haul of shallots, which have been pickled. Overwintere onions did well also.
Not too chuffed with the garlic, bulbs not very big, some did not split at all, flavour good though. Going to see if I fare better with overwintering garlic.

Thanks for listening
Kirsty

Not- so-fantastic Mr Fox

Its been a busy time since my last post on this here blog. We got the burned out sheds pulled down, obtained some enormous pallets and built our girls an extension to the run. It took about a fortnight to get it done.
Really high walls, figured it would keep our girls safe. Not so. An orange menace managed to get over and help him/herself to a tasty meal of four of my chooks. I had two survivors who did not get touched at all because they had managed to get themselves into a part of the run foxy could not reach and another two who were in deep shock and I did not expect them to survive.

I took my poorly two home and tucked them up in warm boxes in the downstairs loo. For a day or two I had to syringe water down their throats to keep them hydrated (when they survived first 48 hrs I got hopeful)
Meanwhile down at the run, Steve and I roofed the run with chicken wire, closed and wired up all gaps and really thought we had cracked it. Fox came back and took another one. A clean kill, no body and no mess.
My poorlies stayed at home with me for a week being hand fed marmite sandwiches and generally cossetted. When they could stand and walk and eat mash ok, I took them back to the run and put them in the house.
Went back down at dusk looked in the run, no chooks, looked in the house, no chooks. Went home in a bit of a state told Steve what had happened. Convinced it was theft. He went down there armed with a big stick, took another look in the house and found my two girls, they had snuggled right up in the corner and I just missed them in the dark.
Did some more wiring up of the run, even the tiniest of gaps were not left undone.
No sign of foxy for a week or so. On 25th Jul, decided to treat myself to a new hen, went up the road and bought a beautiful Lavender Araucana. Let her settle in for a week or so, then got some new bantams. Two days later. Sunday just gone, fox came back and took all four of the new girls.
Thats it now. I'm going to sort out some electric fencing and get myself a gun. My two girls have now started laying and they are under house arrest in the new house until I have completely proofed the run. The house is a 7 x7 shed, so they have plenty of room and it's ventilated so they don't get hot. No new hens for a while, not till I'm sure I can keep them safe.
Will post pics when I can upload them

A lot has happened lately...

Have not been on for quite a while now as I have been fairly busy, but the last week has been memorable to say the least. On the good side, I acquired two new hens via the freecycle off a lovely couple who live close by. Just as they start getting settled in, my allotment is hit by a bit of a tragedy (in my eyes anyway).

Went down to feed my girls on Sunday afternoon to find that their nesting shed, the one next to it and two other completely destroyed by fire. My bantam has been killed but the others survived with singed feathers and they have been in shock for a couple of days. Hens are starting to recover from the shock and I have spent the last couple of days with Steve starting to clear up and building a new house for the girls.

Called the police when I was able to speak straight and they said fire brigade thought it started around 7pm Saturday night. Unable to say whether it was deliberate or kids having a nose around and an accident as a result of dropped fag ends etc. I did ask if it could have been a lightening strike what with the storms we had but was told this was very unlikely. Have uploaded some pics of the damage. Pic number 4 is where the girls used to nest.

Thanks for listening

Kirsty

New pics

Have had some harvests at last. Finally beginning to feel that I'm getting somewhere with the plot. The chooks are doing well, got fruits showing on the toms, and have had some lovely sweet baby new potatoes cos I just couldn't wait any longer to try them. Were lovely with a green salad picked fresh from the plot. Just working now to get plants in the ground and get the rest of it tidied up and keep it tidy.

Its a jungle out there!

On the plot that is...
Well, last time I posted we were in the middle of a wonderful heatwave and I was unable to do much cos the ground was like rock. Then it rained..and rained and rained - you get the picture.

As a result of all the wet stuff I now have brambles and nettles springing up all over the place which I now need to cut down and tidy up. On the plus side my almost empty waterbutts are now nice and full.

Been getting work done and plants out as the ground is much easier to dig. I'm not very organised, but given the state of the plot 6 months ago I don't feel I'm doing that badly. Have harvested loads of lettuce, spring onions are coming on, tomatoes are doing well also, got first fruit forming on the Sun Baby toms. Have dug up a couple of spuds to see what was there, still tiny, so leaving them a bit longer.

Chooks are doing great. Laying like mad, got a broody Rhodie, so put some fertile eggs under her. If successful, they should hatch in about 4-5 days as she has been sitting on them for almost 3 weeks.

Will post pics another day, getting square eyes.

Kirsty

Saturday and Sunday

Blazing sunshine and ground like concrete. Lovely. Managed to break my fork, so a new one has been duly purchased.

Got quite a few photos to put on, so here they come in no particular order. Have got some pretty little strawberry pots from Tesco for less than £4 each, so of course I HAD to go out and purchase 12 strawbs to put in them! His lordship has given his gracious permission for me to place them on the side of his precious pond, but if his fish take a fancy to my fruit, theres gonna be trouble!

My spuds are beginning to poke their little green heads above ground. Had to get a pic for the family album. The old lawnmower has been brought back into service as somewhere for my sweet peas to grow. They're starting to get a bit taller now, I'll pinch them out when they are big enough.

The swings have been put up for Lauren. I no longer get the 'I'm bored' chorus. She plays, I dig and plant, everybody's happy. I'm not worried about the space it takes up cos a few of the sheds have been marked for demolition which will give me extra planting space next year.

Have sneaked in a small pic of my little front garden as the tulips are all coming out and it was looking rather pretty after I had given it a tidy up and put in the plants I got at the show t'other week.


Have sown more runner and french beans, having Scarlet Emperor (runner) and Blue Lake (french). Herbs have been sown, currently growing on are Marjoram, thyme, Coriander, Dill, Parsley and Tarragon. Lettuces that are catch cropping between the spuds are doing well. Have planted out a short row of young pea plants. Need to get some more started off now. Tomatoes of all varieties are romping away in the greenhouse, have planted up 3 tumbler plants into a hanging basket. Going to plant some basil in there with them when its big enough.

thanks for listening
Kirsty

Muddling through

My resolution for next year (next week?) - be more organised! Steve commented on the rather haphazard way I'm doing things on the plot so the time has come to draw up a plan of things that need doing and get them done. Have had a poorly foot for a week or so, but plan to get going on the heavier work now its better.
Have been sowing lots of seeds lately, and they are sprouting in a satisfactory way. Been spending lots of time taking care of the chooks and generally getting to know them. They are laying loads of beautiful eggs which means I have enough to share with friends and family.

Arran Pilot spuds are coming up, nice to see some green on the bare earth. Jerusalem artichokes are growing nicely. Have popped some Webbs Wonderful lettuce in on the patch where the Pentland Javelin are as a catch crop, they should come to maturity before the spud plants get too big and shade them.
Runner and French beans are coming up nicely, plan on putting them out around the end of the month, depending on the weather and getting then hardened off.
Beans frame has now been constructed, plan for tomorrow is to get space ready for the peas and get them in as well as to get a successional sowing in.
Tray of lettuces that I sowed a couple of weeks ago has now been pricked out into pots. Surplus went down to the girls for an afternoon snack. When they see me coming, I get mobbed at the gate, definitely associated me with food now!

Got tomato plants coming out of my ears. Decided to keep 6-7 of each variety and then sell the rest off at a boot sale. Any pennies could then go towards any bits and pieces I need on the plot.

My Big Jim chilli plants are doing nicely. Had to rig up shade in the greenhouse so my plants didn't fry with the weather we've been having lately. Capsicums are starting to get going also.

Had a lovely time at the East of England Garden Show last week. Won a goodie bag!! There was an area there where a couple of experts were doing a gardeners question time kind of thing. They were answering questions from the audience, and also asking us questions so that we could win little prizes. We bought a goodie bag that the sponsors had put together with mags and seeds etc in there, which entitled us to join in the competition. Had to answer 3 questions correctly to win the prize - and I did, was ridiculously chuffed. Had to choose between a goodie bag or some all singing, all dancing wellies. Went for the bag cos it had some interesting looking books in it that I wanted to read as well as other bits and bobs for house and garden plants.
Also got some new plants for my little front garden at excellent prices which meant I absolutely had to spend all day Saturday pottering about, tidying up and bedding down my new babies. Its quite fun seeing what you can do while hopping and trying to balance on one foot while bending over wielding a trowel.

Thats probably not all, but can't remember everything.

Thanks for listening to my ramblings
Kirsty

Will put latest pics on when I get them uploaded from my phone.

Some cultivated land at last

I have to admit I did a little victory dance at the thought of having a small patch of ground cultivated at last. These beds contain my spuds, Pentland Javelin and Arran Pilot. Got another bed to dig about the same size for the Red Duke of York and then that will be all my earlies in.
Time to go shopping for seconds and maincrops now.
Have sown half of my sweetcorn today, have gone for Lark. Will sow the rest at the beginning of May.
Was poking around in the greenhouse today, another tray of salad has germinated, along with the Asters that I have sown for my front garden. Canes arrived from garden warehouse last week, so need to get my bean frame built and plan where my peas are going to go. Need to get my successional sowings of these on the go pretty soon. Need to rethink the brassicas, because I'm going to grow extra cabbages and greens for the chooks, reckon I need a larger area for these but the logistics of netting this are giving me headaches.

Plans for this week, if I get enough time are to sort out a place to grow tomatoes outside and get the bean trench dug and a frame up.

Thanks
Kirsty

Its been a busy week...

Introducing the girls. Last Friday, we got our first hens, 4 Warrens who settled in fairly quickly and produced their first eggs for us on the same day. Was more excited than the kids when I found them in the nest.
Steve has now finished building the big run for them so they can move around and scratch to their hearts content.
On Wednesday we added to the feathery family with two Rhode Island Reds and a Bantam. A bit of scrapping at first while the pecking order was established, but they all seem to have settled down again now. Attached some pics.

Thanks
Kirsty

Springtime?

Been taking more photos! While staking my pea plants with a taller cane, I was happy to find a flower. Just the one so far, but at least it means that I'm not quite the kiss of death to plants that I used to be!

A couple of photos showing my greenhouse staging rapidly getting filled up with pots of seedlings and my 'greenhouse within a greenhouse' designed to give my tomato plants a bit of extra protection.

Pleased to announce that we finally have some life showing on the mushroom kit. The tiny white blobs on the compost are going to be chestnut mushrooms when they grow up. Other half so chuffed with himself, I reckon he thinks he's Percy Thrower reincarnated!

Finally. the Jerusalem Artichoke bed. Dug, edged and the tubers are in. Have earthed them up in case of frost because some had started sprouting. Spuds are going to go in on the right of the artichoke bed, and to the left is where the chooks are going to go.

Thanks
Kirsty