Adventures in the life of an English allotment
The weather is absurd. When I woke up this morning, it was already 20 degrees. Knowing that it would 9nly get hotter, I dragged myself to the allotment to feed the chickens. Happily, most of the girls had enough water and I planned to pop back this evening to refill with cool water. Tommy has... Continue Reading →
So today saw the temperatures rise yet again. Landlocked Crewe is absolutely sweltering in 30 degree heat. It's utterly relentless, with no breeze to lessen the intense heat. Chickens are especially prone to hear stroke and days like today pose some danger. A fresh, cool supply of water is essential as birds don't sweat. Panting... Continue Reading →
Spotting the rain this morning, I delayed going down in a fruitless effort to stay dry. As I was chatting to Phil, the heavens opened and we sprinted to our respective sheds to shelter from the pouring rain. After several minutes, it didn't seem to be stopping or even lessening. Resigning myself to getting utterly... Continue Reading →
Today was a manic day at the allotment. With no broody hens, I could finally clean out the new coop and whilst I was at it I thought I might as well do the other two. The first nest box was so much easier to clean now that Will has added hinges to the roof.... Continue Reading →
Another busy morning today saw me arrive mid-afternoon at the allotment. Upon my arrival, I walked down to the main coop to check on Millie. She seemed alright although she is clearly at the bottom of the pecking order. What was wonderful to see was that all of the girls were on the perches including... Continue Reading →
With the weather still dry, despite the promised torrential rain, I ambled down to the allotment with no particular plan. Upon arrival, I sat with Geoff and Mick the Greek and we put the world to rights. This is an absolutely essential part of allotment life - so many world issues could be solved if... Continue Reading →
A quick visit to the allotment today ended with a surprise harvest of strawberries! Over the past few years, we have struggled to get any fruit from our strawberry plants. Happily, Geoff has let us grow some in one of his raised beds. We arrived ready to give Millie a dose of cider vinegar as... Continue Reading →
So today was an interesting day. If broodiness was as infectious as Covid-19, I would have less broody hens. At home, Stratus was still sitting in the nest box, blocking Nimbus and Cirrus from getting into it to lay. I had arranged to collect six hatching eggs from Trixy's breeder this evening. As soon as... Continue Reading →
Yesterday was so busy that I completely forgot to update the blog! Mid-afternoon I ambled down to the allotment, mainly to check on the chickens and to feed them. Four hours later, I was still on site covered in dirt with several blisters on my hands. It always seems to turn out this way! After... Continue Reading →
Today we walked down to the allotment in the glorious sunshine. There wasn't a cloud in the sky. All three bantams were out enjoying scratching and dust bathing. It was interesting to see Trixy outside after her attempt at being broody yesterday. Yesterday, I had to extract the eggs she was determinedly sitting on. The... Continue Reading →
After the end of a very long and tiring week, there is nothing better than heading to the allotment for a day in the fresh air. Happily, it wasn't raining and the sun even put in a few short appearances! I checked on all the girls quickly before spotting Tracy with one of her grandchildren.... Continue Reading →
Up bright and early this morning for my Covid jab and it seemed churlish not to go down to the allotment straight afterwards. Sporting a rather dead arm, my plan was to feed the chickens before watching the world go by from the shed. The bantams greeted me with shouts, complaining about the lack of... Continue Reading →
After running a few errands around town this morning, I walked to the allotment wondering whether the rain would hold off. There had been intermittent heavy showers all morning. As soon as I arrived, I set up the stove and let the weed destroyers out. Sitting watching them is always fun and it's lovely to... Continue Reading →
Today was going to be the day that we moved the nest box from Andy's plot to ours. Quite how we were going to do it, I had no clue but it would be done somehow. When we arrived there were quite a few people on site who I felt sure we could rope into... Continue Reading →
So here we are. Mid-May and the weather closely resembles the dark, rainy weeks of mid January. It's so frustrating as this puts a hold on so many jobs on the plot. Furthermore, it means that the winter battle to keep the ground in the chicken coops from turning into a quagmire has returned. So... Continue Reading →
The skies were blue, the air crisp and there wasn't a rain cloud in sight when I arrived on site this morning. Lots of people were down, making the most of the dry spell before the inevitable rain forecast for the entirety of the rest of the week. I said hello to Geoff and Andy... Continue Reading →
This morning I walked down to the allotment armed with two large pet carriers. Geoff had asked if I could help move his girls from Andy's back into his large coop. I piled up the carriers next to the coop door and went to say hello to Steve and Geoff. We all talked about the... Continue Reading →
Occasionally, in between the rain and frantically busy days at work, I let the silkies roam the garden. It's so lovely to see them explore and enjoy time outside the coop. They continue to get more friendly and will now eat happily from a food bowl right next to me. They never stray far from... Continue Reading →
This evening, I walked down to the allotment to check on the chickens. Happily, everyone was busy enjoying the brief respite from the relentless rain of the past week. Roxy and Trixy greeted me with loud shouts and continued to holler at me until I had thrown in enough weeds to satisfy them. It took... Continue Reading →
Today was a plottering day at the allotment. One of those days where you arrive and don't really have much of a plan and spend the day drifting between little jobs. When I arrived, I immediately went to check on the girls in the new coop and say hello to Liz, Sarah and Andy. To... Continue Reading →
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