Growing up Fast

This morning I ambled down late to the allotment to feed the chickens. With all the major works completed on the plot, it was nice to just go down and enjoy doing very little!

Leia and her chicks are still busy enjoying exploring. When I arrived Leia had taken her chicks outside, leaving me in peace to change the water and top up the food without fear of being eaten alive! She has definitely started to chill out again and I even managed to hand feed her today. The combs on the chicks are growing quickly as well as their feathers. Steve and Phil’s leghorns have large combs even on the hens so it will be interesting to see when we can confidently determine which sex the chicks are. As yet, none of them are standing proud on their legs but it’s extremely unlikely that all five chicks will be pullets.

In the main coop, all was quiet until I appeared. Then the cry went up, and the sunflower seeds clamoured for. Today Aggie accidentally got caught in the rush towards the treats. Finding herself surrounded by the older girls, she leapt up over my hand and arm to hide behind me. It was rather an impressive jump! I tried hand feeding Tommy and Cassie but they were less keen. Tomorrow, I will make sure I spend some more time in the coop with them. I discovered three eggs in the small best box and there might be another laid today as Pop was in there when I left.

In the afternoon, we drove to my friend’s house to pick up another load of tree trunks. Mary had also looked out some lovely sandstone rocks for us to start our rockery off. Despite the sandstone being very crumbly, it has a beautiful red colour which will contrast well with other rocks. Between us we lugged all the logs and rocks onto the veranda so I can organise it all tomorrow.

Then it was back into the car to drive to Creag Mhor Poultry to pick up two ferns for the stumpery as well as a half tray of succulents for my new project. It turns out to be quite hard to find the turning into the farm but we found it in the end! By now it was getting near tea time, so we drove back to the allotment, dropped off the plants and headed off home.

So the plan for tomorrow is to organise the logs, making sure three are within easy reach for when the mushrooms arrive. I will then plant both ferns, leaving space for a couple more that I have ordered. Ideally, I also need to find Rachael and see whether I can swap some of my new succulents for some of hers as she has quite a range of different varieties. I also need to source a staple gun, weed fabric and some compost from town to make a start on my new succulent project!