A pottering sort of day

In between the blustery showers and the usual livestock duties....bottle feeding, feeding, cleaning, watering, chick & egg checking etc. I have been pottering. Well there is only a certain amount of housework you can do without getting bored and I did that yesterday !!

I have sorted out and tidied the greenhouse. I've composted ( sounds less wasteful than thrown out) the failed cucumbers, marrows, courgettes and squash now that the second sowing looks as if though it is going to be more successful. I didn't mean to throw the marrow plants out as they were OK and I haven't sown anymore.Too late now, but my husband will never believe me.....we had a *discussion* on growing marrows at the start of the year.With such little space in the garden I thought something more worthwhile than marrows could fill the space.Oh well...
I also composted the cut and come again salad leaves. We have had many cuttings from them and the plants were beginning to look a little tired, I'll resow some more. The greenhouse radishes have also come to an end but there are plenty in the garden. I'm not sure how I've sown the beetroot, for the greenhouse has been successful. The spring onions are doing fine though. The Big Boy tomatoes are ready to be transplanted into growbags and if only the wind would drop the others could go outside to harden off. The tomatoes already planted in growbags are showing their second lot of flowers, so if I remember correctly, now need feeding?

I have candled the eggs again...mainly to check humidity levels. Fingers crossed all the Light Sussex are still looking good. I can't make out much from the darker shelled eggs but I'm sure the two I thought were dodgy, still are, although I've left them in.Tomorrow or possibly Thursday I need to stop turning the eggs and up the humidity levels, as they are due to hatch this weekend. The first hatch are still in the brooder in the garage, they will be moved to the shed, I think, as it is still too cold and wet outside and the garage scrubbed out before the new hatch go in. The incubator will then be empty ...ready for turkey eggs !! I am going to leave the Dorking eggs for now unless I get a broody hen .

On advice from others I think I may have 4 Welsummer hens, 2 cocks and as for the little one I've no idea. Not sure what is wrong with the poor thing. I wasn't expecting him to survive this long but he has, he hasn't been unwell just a runt. If he ever gets big enough he'll be for the pot.


Photo: Little one on the right and centre