Allotment.
Quite unexpectedly, we
managed to put in half day's work on the allotment in the second week
of January. The weather was beautiful so we decided to go there to
plant the spring bulbs and generally tidy the area up.
The local donkey
sanctuary is very generous in supplying the allotment with manure
from their stables, and fortunately a delivery had taken place. So
after we had finished preparing the flower bed and planting the
bulbs, we gave the bean trough a digging over and dug in a healthy
supply of compost. Hopefully over the next month or two this will
rot down and create a fertile bed for the runner beans this year.
We have several other
vegetable beds on the allotment, and these will be prepared over the
coming months, along with the grassed area for sitting and enjoying
the magnificent views. We also have some resident moles who through
their digging activity provide a good supply of top soil.
 |
| The allotment |
Bird-boxes.
Charlie the Blue Tit, is still visiting the nest box for an overnight roost, however, as it turned a little warmer overnight he didn't visit as often. When it finally snowed he was back in the box keeping himself snug and warm.
No takers for the Owl
box so far, and I think it may be too late for the next breeding
season. We will give it another couple of weeks and then do some
more research as to whether it's in the right position.
The snow did arrive on
Thursday 12th January, and we got our first experience of being a
little cut off. The roads around here do not see the gritter
lorries, so most of Thursday and Friday meant it was too treacherous
to take the car out. We did manage to walk across the
footpaths and fields to the shops about 2 miles away.
Snow time is also very
good for giving away the animal tracks, and there were plenty of
badger and fox tracks to be found in and around the paddock.
Fortunately, the dens and setts are positioned well beneath the trees
and are comfortable and warm away from the weather.
 |
| The Paddock |
 |
| The Street |
Frog and Toad abode.
The amphibian area is
taking shape nicely. We dug out all the muck and gave it a clean up,
and put some stones and rocks in the old bath, and filled it with
rain water. We've purposely put a ramp covered with some Hessian to
the edge of the tub so that anything which goes in can get back out
again. We plan to put some oxygenating plants and a few small lilies
to decorate the pond. We're hoping that the wildlife will come
across this naturally rather then transport any frog spawn, newts or
dragonflies.
 |
| Frog and Toad abode. |
Live Cameras.
We've got four cameras working at the moment, two in the nest box,
one monitoring the owl box and one monitoring the bird feeder. I will
try and leave the bird feeder camera running, but the others will be
turned on and off depending on what's happening.
To view them go to:
http://birdwatch.ddns.net
You may have to make some
adjustment to the Java settings on your device, just follow the
instructions on the screen.
 |
| Viewing instructions for cameras. |
New Arrivals in February.
At the end of February we are taking charge of four hens. The
chicken house has arrived and is now in the field next door at
Parsonage Farm. We've added another extension run to it so that the
hens have plenty of space to stretch their wings and move about.
We've also secured the surrounding area outside the house and run
with 18inches of chicken wire on the ground to stop the foxes or
badgers digging their way in.
The hens are Bovans Neras, which are extremely docile and produce a
nice dark brown egg. Between four of them, once they are settled, we
expect about 21-24 eggs per week. This will more than enough for us,
even after paying the farmer some rent with half a dozen or so.
 |
| Bovans Nera |
 |
| Chicken House |
Housing crisis in the paddock.
We mentioned last time that there was a lot of activity around the
Badger's sett and the Foxes dens.
We got some interesting video footage over the Christmas period which
seems to suggest that there is some 'sharing' of housing taking
place.
Have look at this video which is self explanatory and see for
yourself. I think the term 'home of multiple occupancy' is quite
relevant.
That's all for now, we'll bring you any updates in the next couple of
weeks or so, especially if Jenny the fox is expecting pups.
N.B. Unfortunately we have found that the videos do not run on some Ipad's due to the nature of the software. We are only able to produce the videos that work on PC's and Android devices.
