Happy 1st Henniversary Yarrow and Marjoram hens

 One year ago, today, I collected 7 very sad looking ex battery hens from the Hereford BHWT rescue hub.


Two looked ok ish but the other 5 were very bare and very sad. They were virtually bald and in shock and two were seriously injured - one with a broken, trailing wing and one with a leg she was holding up off the ground with a crabbed claw and a horrible limp.

We restored all to good health and they had several months of lovely life here as proper free range hens. Two (Attilla and Coriander) were given to a friend who lives nearby. (Sadly she lost them in a fox attack in April)

The other five ex battery hens stayed here, scratching in the wood and garden with my other hens but in April Mrs Fox and her cubs killed 3 of them, along with my six pure breed hens 

So I was left with only three hens - two of the Christmas 2011 ex battery hens plus Nutmeg, very old, very wise hen, hand reared by us in early 2008.

In May 2012 I added five more ex barn hens  and still have four of them, and the seven ginger hens live as a  happy flock and are a delight to look after  - such sweet hens and all such characters.


So today, from the original 7 ex battery hens a year ago I still have Yarrow ( aka Limpy Chicken) and Marjoram - rescued from 18 months of unimaginable cruelty - of being in a tiny cage in virtually constant artificial light (except for an hour or so of darkness), unable to flap, stretch or dustbathe - no scratching in litter or laying in a nest or roosting, never mind digging in the soil for a worm or feeling the sunshine on their feathers. Caged, egg laying machines.

Consigned, at the end of their economic egg laying life ( still laying well, just not well enough for the battery system)  to certain death and being made into ( for example) cat meat. And then kind people rescued them from this fate and took them to a barn near Hereford for people like us to take home and love.



 Yarrow the day after rescue.











I HATE the cage bird system and I believe that giving an ex caged hen even one minute ( hour, day, week, month)  which holds love, kindness and freedom for her, more than she EVER had in her previous existance, must make it a worthwhile thing to do for her . When we adopt a caged hen it has to have a good impact on her, even if she only lives a few days in freedom and comfort and love.

Marjoram the day after rescue














Marjoram hen is still going strong, bright and beautiful and laying an egg for us every other day, even now.











Yarrow hen is now slowly "winding down"  - there is nothing obviously wrong with her, but she has had a year of health and freedom and love - and for an ex cage bird that means a lot.







So.

Happy Henniversary my lovely girls and fond thoughts for your feathery sisters who died in April in The Great Fox attacks   - Comfrey ( aka Flappy chicken), Cumin, Marigold, Attilla and Coriander.



May your days be filled with mealworms, corn, chasing the cats, finding worms and snoozing in the barn.

Gifts

 Lovely books :-)

 A tall lamp to help me with crafting :-)

A lovely Amber necklace

A hand made beeswax candle (smells lovely!) and a fab pair of crafting shears for cutting material :-)

Christmas Day - outside

 The feathery laydees all got special hot mash as a Christmas dinner - separate bowls to avoid any bullying(!)

Marjoram is the only hen still laying at the moment - all the others are either getting too old or are moulting

Yarrow hen ( aka Limpy Chicken) is winding down now we think - not ill but after a year with us out of the cages she is beginning to look very tired. But she still enjoys sunshine, mealworms, cuddles and food so not a bad life.

The wood is absolutely sodden underfoot - you can't really see it in this photo but there is standing water all over the ground, even though it is on top of a slight hill!

A rare glimpse of blue sky and sun, shinimg on the willows by the pool

A shamefully neglected veg garden but it is too wet to even consider walking on the soil, so it will have to stay looking untidy for a bit longer.

After I did these outside chores and Compostgirl had fed her Guinea Pigs ( they got special food as well!)

We settled down for an afternoon of eating, drinking, reading and watching TV.

Hope you all had a lovely day, we certainly did :-)

Christmas Day at Compost Mansions 2012

Well the world did NOT end, the Sun rose again on the Shortest Day,  and we even had a dry and sunny day here for Christmas.

Our tree is up in the sitting room, decorated and smelling of fragrant pine. The other decorations are all in place, the woodburner has been keeping us warm and cosy 24/7 for the last few weeks - good job we have lots of wood available ha ha ha :-)

 

Greenery from the wood decorates our house and home made wood cookie decorations from home grown, home cut wood adorn the tree ...you can tell I am a Forest School Leader!

Home made music scroll decorations ...

Home made straw and tissue paper stars

Outside,  the feathery laydees all got special hot mash as a Christmas dinner - separate bowls to avoid any bullying(!)

Marjoram is the only hen still laying at the moment - all the others are either getting too old or are moulting

Yarrow hen ( aka Limpy Chicken) is winding down now we think - not ill but after a year with us out of the cruel cages she is beginning to look very tired. But she still enjoys sunshine, mealworms, cuddles and food so not a bad life.

The wood is absolutely sodden underfoot - you can't really see it in this photo but there is standing water all over the ground, even though it is on top of a slight hill!

A rare glimpse of blue sky and sun, shining on the willows by the pool

A shamefully neglected veg garden but it is too wet to even consider walking on the soil, so it will have to stay looking untidy for a bit longer.

After I took these photos and did the outside chores and Compostgirl had fed her Guinea Pigs ( they got special food as well!) we settled down for an afternoon of Christmas dinner eating, some nice stuff drinking, reading our new books, playing with craft kits and stuff and watching some Christmas TV.

We have all had presents we wanted and will enjoy using. We have lots of food and drink in the house, the animals are all bedded down warm and fed outside and indoors the three cats are basking on the rug in front of the woodburner.

We had Roast Ribs of organic, local beef for Christmas dinner ( yum) and  enjoyed a lazy day of books, music, tv and a few drinks just us as a family. The only outside work which has to be done is looking after the chickens cats  and guinea pigs - who will get special food and extra cuddles for Christmas :-)

Best wishes to all of you my lovely readers, have a wonderful time and I look forward to you visiting The Compost Bin in 2013 - hopefully it will be a drier, more successful growing year for us all :-)

Hope you all had a lovely day, we certainly did :-)

Seasons greetings to you all...

Well the world did NOT end, the Sun rose again on the Shortest Day,  and we even had a dry and sunny day here for Yule.

Our tree is now up in the sitting room, decorated and smelling of fragrant pine. The other decorations are all in place, the woodburner has been keeping us warm and cosy 24/7 for the last few weeks - good job we have lots of wood available :-)

We have all sorted out our presents to each other - things we all want and will enjoy. We have lots of food and drink in the house, the animals are all bedded down warm and fed outside and indoors the three cats are basking on the rug in front of the woodburner.

Roast Ribs of beef for us here for Christmas dinner ( yum) and a lazy day enjoying books, music, tv and a few drinks just us as a family. The only outside work which has to be done is looking after the chickens and guinea pigs - who will get special food and extra cuddles for Christmas :-)

Best wishes to all of you my lovely readers, have a wonderful time and I look forward to you visiting The Compost Bin in 2013 - hopefully it will be a drier, more succesful growing year for us all :-)


Compostwoman  xxx

How I made the rag rug yarn

For those of you who are interested

I cut up the cotton fabric into inch wide strips - and wound then into balls of yarn for easier handling.

Most of my tee shirts are not tubular round the middle section, so I could not use the "continuous spiral method" described in this link ( kindly given to me by Blue Witch ). They have seams up each side, so I had to cut them into long continuous strips, with a thicker section where I turn around and cut back down again.

As I also used the arms of some long sleeved tee shirts this gave me shorter lengths which have more knots in the ball of yarn.
 
So, having cut and joined the strips of tee shirt,  I then made a foundation chain of about 75 stitches using a 15 mm hook - I just made the chain as large as I wanted the width of the rug to be (about three feet)   and then I used (UK, not called the same in US!)  double crochet in rows, back and forth, - the rug is about 4 feet long now and VERY colourful :-)

The knots merge in with the holes in the crochet loops and it feels fine under foot, and I am very pleased with it :-)

Hope this helps you to get started.

Flannel shirts would work for this I think, as would fleece (spun polyester type) blankets - they can be found very cheaply in charity shops here so I am going to make one of these as a cat bed, next.

Crochet rag rug making

  As you may recall, I have been slowly learning to crochet. Recently I decided to crochet a rag rug.

I have loads of old, worn or holed cotton tee shirts, which are no good for charity donation, so I keep for making rags. I had a look and sorted out some in bright colours to make into cotton yarn
 

 I cut strips about an inch wide and tied them together.

because the fabric is 100% cotton all the trimmings can go in the compost!

And then I started to crochet... using a 15 mm crochet hook

As you can see, it is going to be a good sized rug! It keeps me occupied during these dull wet days where I can't do much in the garden.

I will keep you all posted as to how I get on :-)

Watching the goggle box

We have Freesat HD and Freeview HD ( not Sky - never Sky!) and a pvr so we often all "timeslip" interesting programmes to watch later - Compostman and I recently watched a film during the day called "Lone Star" which was most enjoyable. We have all enjoyed GBBO, Countryfile, Andrew Marr's History of the World and all sorts of other programmes at other times than the programmes were actually broadcast.

And, like most young people of her age Compostgirl LOVES watching TV.  A suprising hit for us all, though,  was "Wolfblood" and "Wizards vs Aliens" on CBBC - but given that we all love Dr Who, perhaps not so surprising!

We do not go out to the cinema (too far away and too expensive, frankly, for us) and when our old TV died this summer we thought hard about our replacement and decided to treat ourselves to a large ish, 3 D TV (which came with a free Blu ray 3 D player as well as being a smart hub so allows us to connect to any stuff recorded on the the network computer hard drive, upstairs)

This new TV gave us huge fun during the Olympics/Paralympic ( the opening/closing  ceremony in 3 D was amazing!) and has meant we occasionally host very sociable film watching sessions for friends. Puss in Boots in 3 D was especially good!

We could have just bought a cheaper tv or not got one at all ( which we did seriously consider) but the pleasure we have had out of this new TV is surprising.

Lots of stuff stacked up to watch over the dark winter nights :-)

At the moment we are enjoying The GBBO masterclasses ( oh how I *love* Paul Hollywood!) and also are catching up on Wartime Farm and will record the Wartime Farm Christmas show.

Looking forward to "Mr Stink" in 3D on Sunday 23 Dec. If it is as good as the book (which Compostgirl has read)  she assures me it will be worth watching!

Even the hens won't come out!

It is horrible outside here today in deepest Herefordshire - well as horrible as our lovely county ever can be!

Cold, dark and with a biting rain which makes every one feel damp and miserable.

The hens declined to come out of the Mega Hen Pen today, prefering to stay inside their run rather than brave the cold, damp wood and garden. I think that is a first for this batch of ex battery/ex barn hens - so far they have been amazingly keen to stand outside in the most horrible of weather

I just HAD to share this with you all :-)

I really have to share the most wonderful comment I have recieved from Bosch UK

BoschUK said... 

 

We wanted to swing on by your blog
To wish you the very best
We’re glad to hear you’re both recovering
After your long period of home-rest

When we read of compostman’s ill health
And that you’d injured your back too
Here at Bosch we were deeply concerned
Not quite knowing what to do

So we’re relieved to hear all’s well
And we’re penning you this ditty
We hope it cheers you up
Despite it not being very witty!

You wrote about stocking up
For the cold winter months ahead
Which is a wise thing indeed to do
When you’re curled up snug in bed

Our Worcester-Bosch heating solutions
Can make your home all cosy
Whilst you look outside with gardener’s pride
Upon your flowers nice and rosy

Your recipe for Frugal Soup
Inspired our home appliance team
To take our Bosch blender from the shelf
And cook-up a tasty dream

We ran out of fresh celery
But added extra courgette
It tasted really gorgeous but…
Not as good as yours, we bet!

Your comfrey plant fertiliser
Also made us pay attention
Our Gardening Tool division is
Into compost mineral retention

Your amazing How2 Guides
Really are a genuine find
The fact that you’ve published them online
Show’s that you’re really kind

You work incredibly hard
Growing vegetables for all…
7 Chickens, 3 Cats, 3 Guinea Pigs
All creatures great and small
We’re envious of Herefordshire because
the volunteer work in which you partake
Should be spread across the nation
As should the compost that make

The sweet smelling organic fertiliser
Once spread upon the ground
Reminds us of our own brand
(because Bosch Is All Around)

Hope you enjoyed that (come on over and say hello on Facebook or Twitter!

Some things I have made recently

Sunday, 9 December 2012

These were made as a birthday gift for Compostgirl, a drink mat and a face flannel. Made from corganic cotton dishcloth yarn on a 4 mm hook.















This is the start of a round cushion,  using a 5 mm hook and Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino yarn.

Some of the things I have been making

These were made as a birthday gift for Compostgirl, a drink mat and a face flannel













This is the start of a round cushion

Putting the Wormeries to bed for the winter.

With the increasing likelyhood of cold weather I have moved the Hungry Bin and Can O Worms inside the polytunnel for protection against the frost.

Mending the duvet

This is the much loved duvet which Compostgirl begged me to "fix" it had a hole worn through, a number of unravelled seams and some of the buttons missing.

The buttons and the seams were easily fixed with new buttons and some sewing machine work BUT the hole was a bit harder to fix.

I got out an embroidery hoop and darned the thin, holed ares until it was much stronger. I could have used my sewing machine but small jobs like this are better done by hand I feel :-)

I was left with an area of darned fabric which needed covering, so little fingers did not "worry" at it again :-)

So I went to my stash of fabric and found an old pair of much loved cords of Compostgirls,from when she was 6 or so, which had some lovely fabric flowers on them - I was thinking about making some but remembered I had these in my stash box.

I cut off a flower and sewed it over the darn

And lo - a duvet restored to use and back in action on Compostgirls bed :-) she was very pleased with this :-)

What have you repaired, lately?

Mending the duvet

 It must be winter, as I tend to catch up with a mountain of sewing/mending/crafting tasks at this time of the year - (as well as scaling and conquering the ironing mountain)

This is the much loved duvet which Compostgirl begged me to "fix" it had a hole worn through, a number of unravelled seams and some of the buttons missing.

The buttons and the seams were easily fixed with new buttons and some sewing machine work BUT the hole was a bit harder to fix.

I got out an embroidery hoop and darned the thin, holed ares until it was much stronger. I could have used my sewing machine but small jobs like this are better done by hand I feel :-)

I was left with an area of darned fabric which needed covering, so little fingers did not "worry" at it again :-)

So I went to my stash of fabric and found an old pair of much loved cords of Compostgirls,from when she was 6 or so, which had some lovely fabric flowers on them - I was thinking about making some but remembered I had these in my stash box.

I cut off a flower and sewed it over the darn

And lo - a duvet restored to use and back in action on Compostgirls bed :-) she was very pleased with this :-)

What have you repaired, lately?

Photo of the crochet recycled rag rug

For all those who wanted a photo!

Still not completed, but you get the general size and shape from this photo