One year on..

I haven't mentioned it before, but we have recently passed our first anniversary of living in this house. The veg patch and the blog were not inaugurated until January but other members of our little community are also celebrating anniversaries. 

1 Year ago yesterday Margot Babs and Geri Hatched!!  They were 12 weeks old when they came to live with us and a year on they have certainly grown. This was the first day they spent with us

and this was the first egg.

and the first time they met Gibson. 

So yesterday as it was their birthday, they got extra corn and a day out on the lawn in the sunshine. So how did they reward me. In their usual fashion, they spent all day attempting to escape into the veg patch. They know its full of tasty things, as the live in a run on the veg patch, but they are only allowed on the lawn to free range. I am sure they look through the chicken wire plotting ways to get over the fence and enjoy gorging in my raised beds. 

I dont know how long they are going to be living with us, apparently as they lay eggs every day, they will have a shorter life than some chickens that don't, but I know I am destined to spend my days making sure they don't get the better of me!! 

What is it they they are so interested in on the Veg patch. It could be the Sprouts. They have been growing away all summer under some mesh to make sure that butterflies don't get to them. They have though, suffered at the hands of the recent strong winds, and most appeared to be almost laying flat on the soil. Staking was in order. 

I thought I would prop them up and then give them a bit of extra sunlight, but as I was walking down to do this yesterday, a rather large cabbage white butterfly floated by, this meant I was going to have to stake them and then cover them again. I don't want to loose them to caterpillars at this late stage. They have been sharing a bed with some Savoy cabbages, that also looked like they could do with some TLC. 

Once uncovered it was easier to see the mess under the plants.

I got to work, staking and clearing and before long it was looking good. 

A quick inspection of the sprouts and then the cover went back on. 

Elsewhere in the plot, my late planted broad beans are covered in flowers but no sign of any pods yet. The flowers are beautiful so if nothing else happens now I am not that bothered. They are so pretty to look at. 

All of my companion planted flowers are still looking beautiful as well 

And finally my Rhubarb has also suffered in the recent high winds. I shall go out later and  cut them down. I am really looking forward to next year, when we will be able to finally eat some of it. 

Out and about this week we decided to walk along the Dorset Coast Path   so we set of for Lulworth Cove on Tuesday, which turned out to be a beautiful sunny day. The walk we picked was about 6 miles long, and involved walking along the coast path towards Weymouth and then turning back inland to Lulworth.  

Off we went, Or should I say Up we went. Reading a walk in a book or online, doesn't prepare you for how steep a path actually is. It was a long climb to the top of the first hill but the view back to the cove was amazing. 

And then it was on towards Durdle Door. What a truly beautiful place. 

Gibson enjoyed it as well 

The rest of the walk was even steeper but it was a real sense of achievement when we got to the top of each headland. I think we went up 5 in total but the views were worth it. 

So thats all for now, as I type Gibson is at the vets, having trustingly walked there this morning to be Neutered. I dont think he will be so keen to go there again. It's very quiet here without him, But he will soon be back causing havoc with his plastic cone!!