I recently realised that the small rosemary bush that I had planted in the chicken run last summer had died. The large rosemary bush in our garden is a vivid green whereas the chicken’s rosemary bush was grey.
I decided to take away the protective frame around it and let the girls have it. Within minutes they had found it and when I returned about half an hour later it had already been stripped of all it’s needle like leaves.
I pulled it from the ground and let the girls get to it’s roots. I am not bothered about losing it as there are seven shrubs plus the apple tree in the chicken run so they have plenty of other plants.
This small plant gave the girls so much entertainment. Every time I went in to the girls the plant would have been moved from one end of the run to the other. This was yesterday and by the end of the day the roots had been picked clean.
Today the girls have managed to get the plant to the only sunny spot in the run and were still having fun with it.
Sparkle pecks at the roots
Barley pecks at the roots
Emerald and Peaches join in the fun
The girls congregate in a patch of sun
What I love about this photo is that it looks as if the dividing wire is a mirror and the girls on the other side look like reflections.
Only Sparkle is missing from this photo as she is still pecking at the plant which is just beyond the foreground of this photo. The other thing about this photo is that the flock very often sit together but are never bothered if some of them are on the other side of the wire. It seems that as long as they are close and can see each other they feel together and a wire between them makes no difference.
The other small change I made yesterday was to move one of the wooden blocks. I originally placed the two wooden blocks beyond the chicken’s patio area for me to use as stepping stones when it was muddy. Yesterday it suddenly occurred to me (I have no idea why this didn’t occur to me sooner) that this was the driest part of the run and that not only did I not need a stepping stone but it was taking up dry dust bathing and scratching space.
I decided to leave the first block as it is a handy step down from the patio but to move the other block to a different position as the girls do like to sit on it at times.
The block in it’s new position
The second block was where Sparkle is in this photo. It is now behind the log on the left of the photo. This gives a bigger dry area (where Sparkle is) for dust bathing and scratching. It’s such a simple improvement that I can’t believe I hadn’t thought of it before.
Synchronised drinking
It always amuses me how as soon as one girl goes for a drink another will join her.
Synchronised eating
At the same time one girl went to the food bowl and was immediately joined by a couple more girls.
The girls are such a tight flock and everything must be done together.
Topaz
My final photo is of Topaz looking so good with her red comb and wattles. She laid her fourth egg this year a few days ago which compared to her total of six last year is quite amazing. I really think this is going to be her year.
Click here to see the history of my flock.
They do so enjoy plants, even dead-ish ones! I have steadily given them last season’s pots, complete with remaining contents and, like yours, in no time everything was stripped bare and the soil nicely spread over the run. Topaz looking in formidable condition; pleased to hear she is moving ever closer to last year’s production record! My silver-pencilled wyandotte is still broody although Cotton, the silkie, seems through it for this round! Egg production here still spasmodic, with the exception of the incredible Dart.
I have a pot of wild strawberry past it’s best so that is next for them. There will be a hurrah! when Topaz reaches six eggs and after that her record begins. The incredible Dart is truly amazing and I am hopeful that Sparkle will once again take up that position. As long as we have one truly good egg layer it makes up for the sporadic ones. Of course we love them whatever!
Great photos as usual.. You obviously have too much time on your hands 🙂
I just hope that you don’t have the same problem with the Rosemary plant as you did with the jasmine .. Hhhmm cut out the middle person and you have Rosemary flavoured eggs , sounds like something that would sell. X
I tend do more blogging at weekends because I have more time.
I don’t think there were enough leaves on it to cause any problems. I’m not sure they even ate them, I think they just picked them all off, besides which only Topaz is laying at the moment. Who would have thought that Topaz of all them would be my only girl laying! X