Festive Greetings

Firstly a very Happy Christmas to one and all.

...and Happy Christmas from Harriet as well.

I have been a complete slacker of late on the blog however I was half way through a huge piece about Nepal then all of a sudden it was the festive season! Somehow I need to get it finished off and posted as Nepal really is the most amazing place.

It has been an incredible year really with some big ups and downs. Poor little Lottie died early in the year while Cybil and Margot went to a new life in rural Bedfordshire which left us with Ruby and Harriet. We then went and got eggs from Sue in Cheshire and the girls hatched out six chicks, all of whom survived and they spent a very happy summer trashing the garden. With the arrival of autumn we had to move some of the chicks on so the speckled Sussex, the blue silkies and Eggnog the black Orpington bantam went to new owners and we remain with Ruby, Harriet and Stella the buff Orpington bantam.

It's been great fun rearing the chicks though my husband's stress rate did go up somewhat at times and I'm glad to say that we couldn't have had nicer people have the birds when we moved them on (thank you Ros and Annie). Not sure if we will do it all again in 2010 though we probably will, I'm very much in love with Orpington bantams and hubbie wants at least another silkie to keep Harriet company.

Doris in the snow at her new home

Both Ruby and Harriet went through a major moult after going broody. Harriet is now back in almost normal feather however poor Ruby looks half plucked, not the best look in all this highly seasonal but cold weather. Stella has grown into a beautiful chicken however she is still very stand-offish but slowly getting the idea that we aren't that bad. Needless to say we are getting NO eggs, it's very odd having to buy them and even the organic free-range eggs are poor in comparison.

Girls in the winter garden

Christmas Day and the first day the lawn hasn't been covered in snow for a while so the girls were out and having a good feed on the grass (what remains of it) and also dined on treats such as fresh sweetcorn, mealworms, finely chopped apple and a little bit of wholemeal bread - I think they enjoyed the day.

Well this is the last blog of the year (unless I get the Nepal one finished off) as France beckons for the New Year so to you all - a very happy and prosperous New Year

Santa's Special Sussex Bantam - Merry Margot

The festive season is well and truly upon us now. A week of Christmas parties has left me bereft of normal liver functions, sleep and chicken contact, bless those girls they have been keeping busy without us. I do have to say that baby Jesus has lots to answer for but definitely keeps the UK bar and restaurant trade very busy for a month.

Our Christmas chick on this occasion is Margot. Please note the highly festive tree fern in the background, antipodean version of our very own festive fir.

Margot looking lovely in the garden behind a festive tree fern

We have been amazed at the increase in egg production. We have continued the lighting regime, merely an hour extra in the morning and allowing the girls to get out and scratch through the borders at every opportunity really is paying off. Last night we were away staying at the Sloane Square Hotel (and very lovely it was as well) which meant that the nestbox wasn't checked for 36 hours.

What a shock we had when we got back home. 5 eggs! which means that there have to be at least three hens laying.

Needless to say that Cybil is top layer and Harriet we are 98% positive on number 2 layer but who is number 3?
Bets on, its a difficult call however we think that it could well be our cover girl this evening, Margot.

A quick note on internet purchasing. I ordered a "pecka block" and some 4 egg egg-boxes from Flyte So Fancy http://www.flytesofancy.co.uk/index.html. Can just say that the service and goods well deserve a mention as they were ordered on a Monday evening and were with me Wednesday morning - so thank you!

And finally - HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my gorgeous fella, 39 today (old git in the making)

Seasonal Cybil

     Okay, so even I have to admit that the photographer and image builder went a little overboard here! Still, with what looks like a clutch of festive baubles instead of eggs Cybil is still cranking out 6 eggs per week.

     Yesterday was truly grim, 24 hours of very heavy rain. The girls had to spend most of the day in the run as it seemed pointless letting them out just to get very wet and very muddy. Still, I went and cleaned out the night shed so they did have an hour but were very easy to get back in - mealworms and corn in a nice dry run or scratching around the borders and lawn in the deluge?

Cybil with seasonal spheres and Santa headwear

     Despite having 4 feeders in the garden we have a complete lack of garden birds visiting. In previous years we have had a good selection of birds including blue, coal and great tits, robins, hedge sparrow - you get the idea. This winter we a bereft of small birds! We have the occasional blackbird and a plucky robin but that seems to be about it! I did add some food to the bird table (we usually feed just from hanging feeders due to previous problems with squirrels) but the only birds to eat off there was a magpie and a very fat wood pigeon. Some long-tailed tits and the occasional goldcrest put in an appearance in the trees at the bottom of the garden, ring-necked parakeets and crows are also seen over the house but never visit. In the 5 years we have been here we still have to see a house sparrow! So where have they all gone? 

Great tit at a feeder - not in our garden unfortunately

Ho Ho Harriet

Party season has now kicked off full time now - fortunately the girls have complete party outfits!

Today driving up the M1 from London to Whipsnade it was snowing and once up on the Downs there was a generally scattering of the white stuff.

In recognition of this today's photo is of the hen version of a snowball, Harriet, looking resplendent if not somewhat slightly grumpy.

Cybil laid again, currently running at 6 eggs per week. Why or what triggered mid winter laying? Answers on a postcard (actually just leave a comment)

Ho Ho Harriet in festive pose

Festive Fowl

Okay, my lovely partner has been playing around in a festive manner so over the next week or so we'll have a few photos of the Girls in Christmas mode. I am of course useless of any kind of pun however please add comments if you can do better on a photo title (listeners to Capital FM breakfast show with Johnnie Vaughan and Lisa Snowdon should be a dab hand at this!)

In honour of David Beckham, Ruby appears in panto as "Goldenbells"

The real "Goldenballs"