February felt quite spring-like round here, which was nice, as we have since retreated back into winter again. I even got a few things done outside. The chicken run Poor neglected chicken run. We've been meaning to build an extra extension for at least 18 months, and somehow it still hasn't quite happened. Still, in February we had a few dry days and I did at least get a few holes dug. I bought ten foot posts, because I originally planned this as more of a fence, without a roof. However, the bird flu situation means that the chickens are likely to be in the run for six months of every year in the future, so I want them to have as much space as possible. I've dug all ten holes now, as deep as I can. Now I need to figure out much to cut off the posts, and how to fit them all together. It's going to involve acquiring more wood, but we're going to have a a good root round in the garage to see what we've already got first. The chickens themselves are doing well, and the new ladies are growing in confidence. I'm pleased with how we split an area of the run off for them this time - it's far less ramshackle than we've done before, and it's really easy to use. We started a bit of supervised mingling in February too, letting the new ones into the main part of the run for an hour at a time. The older ladies were NOT impressed with the newcomers, who were boisterous and very enthusiastic about food. The older ladies didn't fight back, but rather retreated to a corner, sulking. Slowly, they're all learning to live together, although there's still some caution when it comes to food. Sunshine had to come into the house for a bath as her backside was a little grubby, but after a wash her bloomers have returned to their usual glorious state. In the garden I wasn't planning on doing anything much with the garden in February, but some friends arrived, and their small children expressed an enthusiasm for digging, and I wasn't going to turn down free garden help. We stayed out in a light drizzle for an hour or two, weeding and digging, and cleared far more than I'd thought we would. A lovely start to the season. Elsewhere in the garden, the rhubarb was starting to grow. The weather was still mild a few days later, so I grabbed my secateurs and a pruning saw and tackled this coppiced sycamore, which has been encroaching on the footpath for a while. It's not really clear from the pictures, but it looks much better now, and there are some long, straight branches which are potentially useful as beanpoles or similar. It felt good to make progress. Often in the garden, as with housework, I feel like I'm doing something that's just going to need doing again in a few weeks. Of course this will grow again, but this is the first time I've cut it back since we moved, so I'm hoping I've got a few years til I have to do it again. Clearing and restocking the pantry We also tackled an inside job in February - sorting out the pantry. This isn't a separate room, it's just the area by the back door - we call it 'the offshot', but it's kind of a utility room, and it's the main way we enter the house. These shelves house the bulk of our food store, and they'd got into rather a muddle. We cleared everything off, wiped and reorganised, and did a bit of a restock. I love looking at the food stores of homesteaders, particularly in the US - some of them have such a glorious array of canned ingredients and meals. We're never going to have that, and our pantry certainly isn't pretty, but if necessary, we could probably eat for a few weeks from it (although we'd have to get rather 'creative' with our meals towards the end, and I'd definitely miss cheese). We didn't get anything else significant done to the house in February, and I'd definitely like to change that in the coming weeks. Tree guards Our little woodland is starting to grow again, and it's lovely to see the buds poking out of the top of the tree guards. Some of them haven't made it, and I didn't want to leave the guards standing in the fields unnecessarily. I've been asking around for a while, and finally found a community project who would take a few. As it happened, they weren't quite the right fit for the types of trees they had, but with a bit of alteration they did the job. I spent a morning planting trees with the group too, which was lovely. It was nice to be outside, and to see a new bit of parkland I'd not been to before. Other than that, February was the usual round of work and cafes. We had a few days of being on strike, so my goal of working fewer than half of the days in each month was fulfilled, albeit not in the way I intended...
It was good to see some sunshine though, and to spend some time in the garden. Slowly, it feels like summer might eventually appear on the horizon.
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Hello!Sit down and make yourself comfortable. I'm Jenni, and I write here about our new foray into country living, which includes growing food, knitting, baking, wandering around the fields, and seeing which local cafe serves the best cake. Categories
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