Spring (allegedly)

We took the chickens into the back part of the garden, beyond their run and their allotted free ranging area, so they could 'help' us to clear the ground for spring planting.  This was on Sunday, the only decent day recently.  Here are Matilda, the darker hen, in the midst of the old bean frame, and Amber, the last of our original flock, and still popping them out a couple of times a week.  They're just looking for trouble really!

Jezebel, a proper little madam, is furtling around on the newly dug patch, clearing it of worms.  At one point four of the five hens were in the same patch I was digging.  I was hard pressed not to spear a chicken with my fork.  I spent more time laughing than digging though.  They are a delight.

Tomato seeds are beginning to pop up.  This is one of my own breed - Golden Child.  It's a cross between Sungold and Tiger Tom.  Most of these have been small, bite-sized red tomatoes but this one was deep yellow, sweet and gorgeous.  It's named for our first grand daughter who, though not that colour, is still sweet and gorgeous!

I've done my usual trick of taking a few cuttings of favourite toms in the late autumn and keeping them in small pots on the dining room window (and on the table at night - it's nippy behind the curtains!)  They become unfeasibly leggy but at this time of year, I take the tops out to form new cuttings which only take a week or so to root in water.  I'll be potting these up in the next day or two, and I'll have decent sized tomato plants.  It's a good way of propagating F1 hybrids for future use.  The seeds can be ridiculously expensive yet you can get exactly the same plant by this method.  I've done it for several years.  Easy peasy!