Gosh, hasn't time flown - half way through the year already.
It's been a busy few day between the summer solstice & mid-summer's day - the utterly improbable has actually happened. We now own our "little piece of England". It's taken about 18 months but it's ours!!! It's a long term project so I'm thinking about setting up a separate blog to chart the changes - from overgrown ruin to restored building/s with lovely gardens.
The hens are laying well but we are regularly selling out of eggs. So after much debate an order has been placed for 6 more pullets - all being well, they will be available at the end of July. In the mean-time our properly broody hen has been sitting for just over two weeks. I cant quite remember why, but she only has two eggs. Luck may be with us & we'll have 2 hens but to be honest I'd be glad if one healthy cockerel arrived!
Still on the theme of time passing - my little grey mare is soon to be 10 years old. I remember her as a spindly-legged bay filly - ahh. The poor girl has developed summer mud-fever again but it's well under control so should be gone in the next few days. The irony is we got through the whole winter without a hint of mud-fever - well I suppose it was a very dry one.
Plants, plants, plants every where!! The beans have made it to the tops of the poles, the sweet peas are in full magnificent bloom, the squashes are in flower & the pineapple lily has a very promising bud. The veggie patch is planted up & as the new potatoes (just being harvested) come out there is a waiting list of plants to go in! I'm experimenting with sweetcorn this year as I'm sure we are in for a long HOT HOT HOT summer. A combination of growing seeds in pots & being given some trays of plants means we have nearly a 100 brassica plants growing - not bad for someone who dislike a vast majority of the brassica family! But the hens love them as does Mr PoppyM - I'm way too soft.
