And on the seventh day..,

Sweetie's tail 

Weren't Sundays traditionally a day of rest? Well, we bucked that trend today with a jolly good clear up and we feel fighting fit and exhilarated after a good day in the garden. Whilst Luke sawed through the trunk of the tree he had dug out last year ( a chore that took half a day) for firewood I turned over the earth in the greenhouse only to be joined by the chickens who scrabbled around in the newly dug soil. Sweetie chose the only bit of soil I hadn't turned over to have a dust bath in and once I was done with that I moved out to the stretch of earth between the greenhouse and the shed (where the buzzard had landed a couple of months ago). This area had been used as a litter tray by the cat next door and was quickly overrun with weeds throughout the wet winter months. On with the gloves, out with the fork and an hour later it was ready for the cat to visit it again.

Luke raked up lots of fallen leaves off the lawn and piled them into a little dome which Shakira, the biggest and most favourite of our chicks quickly destroyed by scratching through them all. She's forgiven everything though on the grounds that she once stole Luke's cake - whilst he was eating it. Now he thinks they are food buddies!

Next up the decking got cleaned and the wood stock tidied up then I popped out to the front garden and planted up the clematis I bought last year. You know how usually you would dig a hole for a potted plant to the same depth so that the soil would be the same level? Not so with the clematis which like to be planted slightly deeper than the level they are in the pot. I also planted up the sunny primroses I bought yesterday but have not yet done what every gardener knows needs to be done - watered them well in. Shock, horror! Just writing that has guilt tripped me into sorting that out right away. I feel like I've sent children to bed without a warm drink. Oh, the shame of it all.

Anyway, enough text - here are some of today's photos. Hope you enjoy them.

 

Shakira grubbing about in the greenhouse.

 

This was the first visit to our feeder from a green finch; inside the feeder is a cheeky blue tit who decided it was quicker to pop down the feeder and grab a entire peanut. 

(You can click on any of the photos to get a larger image.)

Here is another blue tit showing his mate how it's done.

 Shakira and Sweetie - friends again.