Another Peek

Above is another peek at that same head of cauliflower. It is amazing that it grew so well. We had some for dinner and it was so very tender: I haven't had such fresh cauliflower before.

Cauliflower!

Hidden inside these huge leaves is the first Cauliflower I've ever grown! I bought Snow Queen cauliflower seedlings, and as they grew and grew with such large leaves I started to think the young plants were mislabeled and that they were really cabbages. Then all of a sudden last Friday, cauliflower heads peeked out!

A Glimpse Inside A Beehive

Above is a glimpse into one of our two beehives in November 2008. It is best not to open the hive except when the weather is warm.

Asilomar

In January, we spent a few days at Asilomar--that "refuge by the sea" designed by Julia Morgan. We celebrated our wedding anniversary. Here are a few photos from the trip, first from the beach itself:

Some Winter Harvest

Pictured above are some fruits and vegetables from a winter harvesting: "Moro" blood oranges, "Bacon" avocados, arugula, "Eureka" lemons, some baby bok choy, some red mustard, and a few eggs from our chickens.

Chicken Talk--Any additions?

My husband has created a list of "Chicken Talk"--expressions that use the word chickens, or are related to chickens in some way. Here's his list:

Chicken talk

Here are some expressions involving chickens that we have gained new meaning since we have come to live in proximity with them.

It ain't chicken feed (meaning it is expensive)
Chicken feed ain't chicken feed these days. A 50 pound bag of laying feed is about $14 at our local store.
Bantam
Bantam weight
Broody (meaning withdrawn and preoccupied)
Our lace winged Wyandotte is prone to broodiness. Her maternal instincts kick in. She needs to hatch some eggs, to sit on some brood. It is her singular obsession. She finds no pleasure in her normal occupations: dirt baths, kicking back leaves, and pecking at dirt have no meaning for her. There is nothing to be done but wait it out.
Chick sexist name for a girl
Chicken (meaning afraid)
Of course, our birds are a bit skittish. They always have a wary eye to out and will run for cover if a hawk darkens the sky. But, they are also curious and enormously preoccupied with thoughts of food and will come investigate if we are working in the garden or compost pile.
To Cluck
Our chickens make many vocalizations. They will crow, coo, squawk, and whoop, but they will cluck when they are especially pleased with something. One of our arucanas will begin clucking with single minded satisfaction whenever she finds something good to eat. This will summon the others who will finish eating the treat while she is still busy clucking about it.
Cock sure, Cocky
We do not have roosters, but have been around them to recognize the preening self confidence of these expressions.
Cock-eyed
Both roosters and chickens have a way of turning one eye at you to get a better look. It is quite disconcerting at first because of the odd angle and the intensity of the unblinking single eye. This must have been the origin of the expression.
Cooped Up
Our chickens get visibly nervous and irritable with they are confined to quarters.
Henpecked
Mad as a wet hen
I am not sure we have seen this one. Our chickens don't seem to mind a light rain. We have had occasion to bathe them without inspiring especial ire.
Mother hen
Peckish
When our chickens are hungry they will wander around pecking at things, even if the things are clearly not food.
Ruffled feathers
Chickens, like most birds, are only comfortable when every feather is in place. Interestingly, the way they fix a messed up quaff is to ruffle up their entire back, then let the feathers settle back in place.
Your chickens will come home to roost
As the sun goes down chickens will return to the chicken house, but what's the problem with that?

Does anyone have any additions? Feel free to add your suggestions as comments below.

Welcome 2009!

Happy New Year to all of my loyal blog readers, and for those of you who may have just happened onto this blog. Here is to a productive new year! This is a photo snapped about 15 minutes before the clock struck midnight. Best wishes to all!!

A Treegator

The above is a photo of a Treegator that the Under Gardener is inspecting during a walk in Washington DC. While back in DC in October, we noticed these "Treegators" around young trees, designed to help with irrigation.

President-Elect Obama's New Home

This photo was taken on 10/24/2008 during our trip to Washington DC.

Five Eggs!

Hi there,

We have set up lights in the henhouse so that the hens get enough light to lay. The three new hens were just about to start laying when the seasons started changing, so now with the new lights they are all laying eggs. Yesterday we had five eggs, a record number for one day for us!

New Hens!

A few weeks ago we drove up to Sebastopol and brought back three young hens to augment our number of chickens. There are two White Orpingtons and one Australorp. The first week home we kept them in the coop to adjust. Now we let them out in the yard in the afternoons to search for insects and to snack on greens. They can fly and I've caught them in the plum trees eating ripe plums (they also love eating the plums that fall to the ground -- the ones we don't pick up in time before they are let out). The three new hens have formed a small flock and stick together pretty much. They are still adjusting to the three older hens, but the laying hen, Lacey, also hangs out with the new ones.

Blogiversary!

Today marks the second year blogiversary of chickensinthegarden! It is great to review past posts to see how things have evolved since we started raising chickens. We should celebrate this two year anniversary!!

This summer the chickens have been hopping the small fence we constructed to protect the vegetable garden. Lacey ate the first two ripe tomatoes this year, and they were ripe before the fourth of July. The fence is too short to keep out the hens, but it deters them sometimes.

Lacey has started laying again. We are getting about one egg a day. Two weeks ago we drove up to Sebastopol and purchased three young hens, about 13 weeks old. They are two white orpingtons and one Australorp, a black hen with some green sheen on her wing feathers. Australorps hold the world record for number of eggs laid in a year, I believe it was 364. These young hens should start laying towards the end of August to mid-September. After about a week, we started letting the new hens out in the afternoon, as we do with the older hens. All six hens run to the fresh plums that have fallen underneath the French prune plum trees. I try to pick up the plums before the hens get there, but there are always some left for them. The plums are ripening quickly now; if one touches them on the tree, they fall off in your hand.

Off to the Peace Corps!

Our 26 year old son is off to the Peace Corps. He landed in Niger, West Africa, today. He will be there for about 27 months, helping to increase opportunities for education for youth. You can read about it on his blog: http://timinniger.blogspot.com, although he won't be adding to posts soon as he is in a two month training session before his assignment.

Niger is one of the poorest countries, or least developed countries, in the world. Starvation and malnutrition are not uncommon and the lifespan is about 45 years, although many die in infancy.

This photo was taken at a rest stop off Interstate 5 in California during a recent trip north from Tim's sister's graduation in San Diego.

All Done

This past week we attended our daughter's graduation from UCSD. She's been very active and busy for five years and graduated with a double major in Biology and Political Science. Emma received the Outstanding Senior award for both her college and for the university, given for her contributions to the life of the university.

Green Gulch Farm

This Mother's Day we journeyed over to Marin County to visit with the number one son who is residing at Green Gulch Farm and Zen Center. He is a work apprentice, learning some kitchen skills as well as how to make those beds hotel-style.

The day was gorgeous and the people were friendly and interesting. But what I was most looking forward to, aside from seeing Tim, was seeing the gardens and farm. Green Gulch grows many of the vegetables served at Greens vegetarian restaurant in San Francisco. It turns out that they grow 14 different kinds of lettuces, and many other vegetables too. We wandered around the gardens and farm and walked to Muir Beach.

It was a wonderful day!

Libraries

Because I am a library science student, the U.G. (under gardener) of this family insisted on taking photos of every library we encountered on our recent trip to Italy in January. This topic seems to have nothing to do with Chickens or Gardening, but I have decided to show you a few of these library photos. The first photo is of the library in Florence.

Those Pesky Gophers

Hello again,

Those annoying gophers, it turns out, LOVE garlic. They have eaten 6 whole heads of our garlic this year. I applied a castor oil solution to their holes near the garlic. That seemed to keep them away for a day and a half, but then they returned. I loaded up our gopher/mole repeller with fresh "C" batteries and placed it right near the garlic. So far it is keeping them back a little bit, it seems.

The gophers also seem to have killed our Blackjack Fig Tree which was a great producer of black Mission-type figs. The gophers ate the roots of the tree last season, and the tree was quite wobbly, but we thought it would survive. The Under Gardener staked it up quite well, but I noticed a few days ago that the tree had not leafed out at all, while our other fig tree has both leaves and some small figs. I weeded around the dead stick of a tree and watered well, hoping to bring the thing back to life, but I think it is a goner. I'll keep an eye on it for a few more days, as there may be some roots left (and there was a bit of budding at the end of each branch), but it looks like it is headed for the wood pile.

Happy Spring!

The vernal equinox was Thursday, and I have a new nephew born the same day! Today is Easter Sunday and it is in the 70's outside. The beans have sprouted, roses are starting to bloom, the crabapple tree is in full bloom, and it is just gorgeous outside.

Happy Day to All!

Spring is On Its Way!

The asparagus are starting to come up and we'll be eating them soon. We've been enjoying beets and chard from the garden, and the garlic is growing very nicely. Last night, we tried some of the Romaine lettuce that we are growing, and it was quite good. I'll have to do something about the slugs, though, as they are starting to hang out inside the lettuce.

I jumped the gun and planted pole beans very early and they have started to germinate. We had a spate of very warm weather the week before last, before it turned cold again this week. Tomorrow is supposed to be a little warmer although things remained unsettled--it has rained on and off all week.

It is time to think about more serious spring planting though. When the weather is dry we have been weeding the beds to prepare them for more planting. I'm a little late at starting any seeds inside, such as tomatoes and peppers. Got to catch that spring fever and get busy!

Gardens are "Sleeping" in January

As we were told on a garden tour years ago, the gardens are "sleeping" in January. This view of a formal garden maze was taken in January in a small town north of Rome.




Water features, garden mazes, fountains, columns, hedges, trees and shrubs were designed in the garden by a Cardinal Crayfish.

More from the Italy Trip

There is so much beautiful art in Florence, Italy--everywhere! This wonderful statue was near the Santa Croce church. It was one of the last photos we snapped when in Italy in January. Seems to be bidding us arrividerci.

What is This?

Doesn't look like a chicken in a garden, does it? No! It is a performer from Opera Extravaganza, during a performance in the restaurant at Palazzo Catalani in Soriano nel Cimino, Italy, in mid-January. This small opera troupe sang several famous arias. This one obviously had to do with a bird. I'll need to look it up and get back to you.

A Walking We Will Go

This photo is from awhile ago, but with the beautiful weather right now--close to 70 degrees--days are wonderful for good walks. Annie, the dog, loves her walks, and she usually gets nice long walks on the weekends. The photo was taken in Newark, near the lake.

It's Cold Here...

Hi,
Well, I know it is nothing like New England or the midwest, but it has been bitingly cold here in northern California. The chickens are chummier with each other, and our son thinks it is because they must snuggle at night to keep warm. It has been very rainy as well since our return from vacation.

In late December we took off for two weeks in Italy. What a fine time we had exploring Florence, Venice, Siena, and Soriano nel Cimino. When we took trains between the cities we first would spot the gardens in the countryside. Artichoke plants were easy to notice, especially in Tuscany. They appeared to be a bit more closely planted than our plants here. South of Tuscany we saw more cabbage and broccoli plants in the vegetable gardens.

I'm just about to give our artichoke plants some fertilizer. They should start producing some artichokes by February. A few of our plants are an Italian heirloom purple artichoke, a kind we also saw in a few of the vegetable markets on our trip.

Harley Farm Goats

On Saturday we toured the Harley Goat Farm in Pescadero. They have about 270 goats right now. The farm specializes in making chevre, soft goat cheese. The two-hour tour introduced us to the goats. We had a chance to milk a goat and help make the cheese. The tour ended with a fine cheese tasting experience in the decorated barn.

Most of the goats are pregnant and will have their kids in late January or early February, but there were a few young kids scampering about. One chewed on my purse strap for a little while.

Big Connie in the Winter Garden

Above is a photo of Big Connie, on a chilly but sunny December morning in the garden.

Asilomar

As previously mentioned, we spent a couple of nights in Asilomar, the refuge by the sea. Here is a great photo taken by Jonathan:



and another at sunset:

Phil's Fish Market, Moss Landing

On a recent two-night trip to Asilomar, we stopped at Moss Landing on the way home, and sampled the clam chowder at Phil's Fish Market. Wonderful place.

Beautiful Pathways

We had a nice trip to the Filoli estate in Woodside. I forgot to take any photos of the beautiful house, but I found myself intrigued by the pathways and garden entrances. There are 16 acres at Filoli, an estate developed from 1912-1915. Today there are over 1500 fruit trees, and we saw many apple and pear trees laden with fruit. The day before we went it rained most of the day, but the day of the trip was sunny and dry.

Figs, figs, figs

We are using figs over the past few weeks, as they are coming in thick and fast from our two fig trees. We have a Blackjack Fig (a Mission type) and a Brown Turkey Fig tree.

The other night we prepared salmon, grilled over a bed of potatoes and thyme. This was served with a fig salsa: chopped figs and onions. It was quite yummy and there were enough leftovers for a generous lunch the next day.



We are very busy inside the house with a remodeling project. We are finally remodeling our master bathroom. Previously the shower was an avocado green fiberglass insert and the room was quite dark. We are replacing the dated shower with a larger tiled shower and have added more light, painted the walls, and are adding a new tile floor. Soon we will pick out a granite top for the vanity and attach a large mirror to the wall.

Spinach, Red Onion, Fig, Apple, Pork, Heirloom Tomato, Cucumber, and Goat Cheese Salad

Last night we enjoyed the above-pictured salad. The weather is getting hotter, so this cold salad was refreshing. We used some leftover pork loin and added a fig balsamic vinagrette dressing. Very yummy, but a little messy looking.

Here is another photo after adding the dressing:

Pole Beans

We are growing some very nice pole beans on our makeshift teepee, formed from old birch tree branches and other assorted tree branches and poles. There are two kinds growing together here, a French filet type and a yellow pole bean.

French Prune Plums

We have two French prune plum trees that are extremely productive. These prune plums are quite a delicacy in Europe, known as "sugarplums." We have been busy preparing the plums for drying in our dehydrators (halving them and removing the pits), and also making plum tarts, plum pie, plum jam, plum sorbet, and plum cake. We've also been giving away bags of these wonderful plums.

Above is an excellent photo (by plum-pitter extraordinaire, Jonathan) that depicts the stages of the plum-pitting process. We will certainly have enough dried plums for the winter!

Sunflower Watching Sunflower Motif

I woke up this morning and saw a new sunflower bloom in our vegetable garden. Above is a photo of what I saw: a sunflower seemed to be watching a terra cotta sunflower.

Below is a closer image of the two interacting:

Thistle bloom

A beautiful artichoke blossom!

Sunflowers

This summer the sunflowers are blooming awfully early! They are so cheery out in the vegetable garden. Today I planted some pole beans around some younger sunflowers.

Those chicks have grown...

Above is a photo of Lacey and her three chicks. You recall that they were hatched 5/10th, 11th and 12th. Lacey, the mom, is a lace-winged Wyandotte. The three fertile eggs were not hers but are bantam cochins. Here are the chicks with their "mom" around the asparagus bed.

A beautiful cheese

Here's a photo of some beautiful Irish Cheddar Cheese with Porter. Cheese and crackers on our deck with wine.

New chicks!

We met a new friend who has roosters. We were given a few eggs that were fertile and stuck them under our broody hen, a Lace-winged Wyandotte. Because we stuck the eggs under on different days, the three that hatched emerged on 5/10, 5/11, and 5/12. They are bantams--cochins--and here they are with their substitute mom.

Here is a photo:

April Blooms

Some Columbine in the front garden.



A purple iris, above.

And here is a view of some Spanish Lavender:

The New Asparagus Bed

This is a photo of our new asparagus bed with "Big Connie" looking for worms. We harvested asparagus for about two weeks this first year and now we will let the asparagus grow to be ferns so the roots can develop more fully. Next year we will be able to harvest for six weeks.

Rhubarb

Our rhubarb is growing nicely and just yesterday I noticed it was flowering. This variety of rhubarb is Victoria. The flower stalks look very interesting. For harvesting more rhubarb, it would be best to cut off any flower stalks. But since this is my first experience growing rhubarb that has flowered, I'm going to let it flower for awhile so I can see how it looks!

Twelfth Night

Tonight is Twelfth Night, tomorrow is Epiphany....the Christmas season is coming to a close.
This is the best photo I have of the gingerbread house we made. Yummy!

Buche de Noel

We prepared the traditional French Christmas dessert this year. Tasty!

The Last of the Persimmons...

The last of the Hachiya persimmons on the persimmon tree. The birds are enjoying some of these and we are still drying persimmons and making persimmon cookies and bread.