Adventures in the life of an English allotment
Ambled down late to the allotment this morning to sort out the chickens and in theory to do some weeding... You can guess what happened about the weeding. I quickly fed the chickens and checked on the mite situation - fairly under control but more dusting needed. So I left them to their food and... Continue Reading →
On first glance, this seems a silly title for this post. Anyone who has been following this blog will know the hives have been on site for over a month and I have been regularly helping with the weekly hive inspections. But today was different. Today I did the hive check! Well, not all of... Continue Reading →
After a manic two weeks at work, we are finally within shouting distance of the end of term. This means freedom and lots of time to spend down the allotment to make up for abandoning it these last couple of weeks. This morning, not only did I feed the chickens, but I have tried a... Continue Reading →
Two balls of fluffy cuteness! Mum is still very protective but the chicks seems to be exploring their enclosure more today. I didn't stay too long but you could just spend hours watching them both!
So my husband went down to feed the chickens this morning while I was at work and managed to get photographic evidence of both Molly's chicks! So there are definitely two! It's not brilliant to get only 2 from 12 eggs but everyone has struggled to hatch eggs this year for some reason. Molly is... Continue Reading →
A massive day of works at the allotment today! We went down fairly early, determined to make serious inroads into the weeds and to sort out the mite problem plaguing the coop. Whilst the hubby fed the chickens (a difficult task when they always get under your feet and try to climb into the food... Continue Reading →
This was so exciting, I thought this warranted an separate post! Molly's eggs have reached their due date and we have two beautiful Welsummer chicks! It's lovely to see Molly's hard work pay off and she looks like she will be an excellent mum. We are still down on chicks as none of Polly's hatched... Continue Reading →
Walked down to the allotment this morning to find our remaining two quail have died overnight. So ends our flock of quail. I spent some time cleaning out the quail coop and drowning it in anti-mite spray to make sure it is clear ready for quail in the future. It look a good while to... Continue Reading →
My long-suffering other half popped down to the allotment this morning to find that the mites were back with avengence. So there is tomorrow mornings jobs - dust the chickens and totally redo the nest box with anti-mite spray, yet again. I am going to have a good long search more more effective anti-mite solutions... Continue Reading →
Sadly we have to concede defeat on Polly's eggs. Several days overdue, she was still stubbornly sitting on them. She has been an excellent broody and hopefully next year she will be able to hatch her own chicks. In the meantime, Geoff has put her back in with the other chickens whilst we hope that... Continue Reading →
Popped down after work to check on Polly. Here she is. No signs of chicks yet. If nothing happens by tomorrow we are unlikely to get any despite Polly's excellent work
Being Sunday, it was hive inspection day! Phil was back, dosed up on painkillers due to his back injury and was put in charge of hive inspection by Steve. Steve has led the previous hive inspections and decided it was time for Phil to get some practice. Hive 1 on Phil's plot has been massively... Continue Reading →
Today I pottered down to the allotment determined as ever to do lots of work. I failed as usual! First job was to sort out the chickens in the main coop. Once all fed, watered and eggs collected, I left them to have a look at Polly. Today should be the day we have new... Continue Reading →
Popped down to help Steve check the hives today as Phil has sadly done his back quite badly and isn't able to come down. I was on secretary duty to record how the hive was working. Carefully, Steve dismantled the hive, checking for brood frames (new eggs and larvae kept here!). There were significantly more... Continue Reading →
The heat is unbearable at the moment - the plants are not the only ones wilting in the punishing heat! I should add that heat waves in the UK are not actually that hot (mid-high 20's) but the humidity that comes with it is stifling. We fed the chickens this morning, making it vitally important... Continue Reading →
Yesterday we went down to the allotment to keep checking on Polly and Molly as well as water the plants in the greenhouse - we didn't do much else so here are some photos to enjoy instead.
This afternoon, after escaping from work, we pottered down to the allotment. Today's aim was to plant out some of the jungle currently residing in the greenhouse. I had a quick check of Cliff's chicks who are growing rapidly. It was difficult to get a good look at them as Mum was very protective. We... Continue Reading →
On Sunday, we went to the allotment to feed the chickens, check on our two broody chickens and to clear some of the weeds that insist on growing in our plot. The chickens were happy to see us (or pretended to in order to get food) and they are back to laying in the small... Continue Reading →
On Friday, I picked up the Welsummer eggs we ordered from the post office! We now have to wait 24 hours for the eggs to rest before putting them under Molly. Yesterday, Geoff put the eggs under Molly, and managed almost the entire exchange of old hoarded eggs for the new ones without Molly going... Continue Reading →
Popped down to the allotment after a long day at work to check on the chickens - especially Polly and Molly! Both broody chickens are stubbornly sat on eggs with an attitude modelled on a combination of Hilter, Trump and the ex-President of Gambia, Jamaeh. I dread having to move Molly tomorrow but it has... Continue Reading →
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