Adventures in the life of an English allotment
I leapt out of bed this morning and dashed downstairs to check on Cirrus and her chick. From the frantic high pitched cheeping I knew that it was hiding somewhere under Cirrus. Cautiously, I lifted Cirrus off the eggs to find a tiny white ball of fluff. Unsurprisingly, Cirrus was not impressed and pecked me... Continue Reading →
This morning when I checked on Cirrus, I heard quiet cheeping coming from underneath her. Gently, I lifted up her feathers, hoping to see a chick. The eggs were there unchanged but I could definitely hear the chicks inside the eggs. I left it for a few hours and to my delight when I checked... Continue Reading →
This morning I dashed down to the allotment to help load up the skip with broken glass. The three back to back storms caused absolute havoc with everyone's greenhouses. Most of us lost some glass and a handful lost all their glass. To keep everyone safe, we have been storing the broken glass in designated... Continue Reading →
So over the past few days, Cirrus has been in the indoor coop. She has been properly broody for about a week and as broody hens need their own space, I brought her into the house. Cirrus is sitting determinedly although she keeps moving around the coop as if to find the best place. This... Continue Reading →
This evening, I checked on Trixy's remaining eggs. One had a big pip in it but nothing seemed to be happening and Trixy is spending more and more time off the remaining eggs. Choosing to help the chick, I took it out of the broody coop. Slowly, I gently removed fragments of shell, trying to... Continue Reading →
When I checked on Trixy this morning, there was a new little arrival! Light brown and incredibly fluffy, I only caught a quick look before Trixy got in the way. By this point we had hatched one millefleur and two partridge bantams. The question was, would we get anymore? After work, we did another check... Continue Reading →
After spending the afternoon in the shed wrestling with paperwork, I gave up. Granted it was much nicer to look outside and see the plot with Roxy busy foraging away. But paperwork is still paperwork. My ancient laptop battery holds minimal charge but the solar power set up meant I could plug it in to... Continue Reading →
I got woken up this morning by my husband excitedly telling me he could hear cheeps from Trixy's cage! I leapt out of bed and ran downstairs. Sure enough, I could hear a high pitched cheep! Cautiously, we tried to move Trixy's feathers to have a look but she wouldn't let us anywhere near. Later... 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 after arriving back from a couple of days away, I was curious to see how Trixy and Stratus were doing. Trixy's eggs could hatch as early as Friday - she has sat so brilliantly, it's very exciting to see if all her hard work will pay off! Stratus on the other hand is struggling... 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 →
I ran down to the allotment this morning to do two things. First to dose up Millie and second, to check on Trixy. When I arrived, Trixy wasn't to be seen in the run. A good sign. Rather than disturb her, I walked down to the main coop. Both the bantams were hiding in the... 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 →
I arrived down on site at midday today, determined to do some more weeding and cleaning out the greenhouse. When I arrived, I spent a few minutes sitting in the shed, looking at the plot. I am so pleased with how it has transformed this season. The new sections have made my life much easier... Continue Reading →
Today was incredibly exciting. There really isn't anything quite like the excitement of waiting to see if a broody has been successful. When I first arrived this morning, I spotted one eggshell so I knew Leia has managed to hatch one. Considering how she mucked about at the start, I was amazed she had got... Continue Reading →
Today I ambled down to the allotment armed with 8 beautiful salmonberry plants. A fellow allotmenter was selling them - they are rather like raspberries and grow best in pots. Upon my arrival, I found Tracy and gave her a couple as well as a handful of tiger nut seeds. Its quite late to plant... Continue Reading →
I dashed down to the allotment in the rain this morning. I don't know how the weather instinctively knows when I am stepping out the door but it always saves the heaviest rain for me walking to the allotment. By the time I arrived, I was fairly soaked. I stopped to have a chat with... Continue Reading →
Today was another long but exciting day at the allotment. Upon arrival, Tracy dragged me to see her new idea for her pond - a toad house made from an old pot, covered in turf. It looked amazing. She also gave me some Mind your Own Business plant which should spread over the logs at... Continue Reading →
I didn't plan on spending all day at the allotment today. I had a few jobs I wanted to do which I took my time over and before I had realised it, it was nearly 6 pm! My first job when I got down was to feed the chickens. The chicks were nowhere in sight... Continue Reading →
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