The Hens are Innocent

Posted by Simon

I have been extremely busy over the last couple of weeks. Fencing, moving soil and various other works in the garden. One section that I was fencing was solid concrete so this had to be broken up and removed. Then this area needed filling with soil so nothing was as easy it should have been. We have also been coppicing over at our friends. This helps them clear a field and gets us firewood for next year, plus bean poles, pea sticks, hedge laying materials and a much needed washing line pole.

I have also carried on with the play/boule area. It now has a post and rail fence along the back of the area and we have then planted a Dogwood and Willow hedge, with three standard trees, next to the fence. Hopefully this will give us some winter colour.

I incorporated a bed for planting in this area and we decided it would be a good place to relocate the herb bed. We had originally put the herbs next to the pond and veg garden but it was not very convenient for nipping out to get some freshly picked herbs for cooking. Anyway Rosie and I moved the herbs and watered them in, but as usual, with plants that have just been moved, they looked rather sorry for themselves initially.

The next day we were looking at the herb bed and watched the hens as they discovered that there was lovely newly dug soil and thought this was great fun to dig over even more looking for food. At this point I said to Rosie "the herbs seem to have bucked up". Her reply of "I don't see what the hens have done wrong" seemed a little strange. "The hens? I was talking about the herbs, I said they have bucked up" "oh" says Rosie "I thought you said the birds have !#?*ed up!!!"