SPRING PREPARATIONS IN WINTER
hive-123046·@buckaroobaby·
0.000 HBDSPRING PREPARATIONS IN WINTER
 Lambs being born, broody hens, confused blossoms - in Autumn, [Snake](https://hive.blog/hive-140635/@buckaroobaby/s-n-a-k-e---------) .... ***what is going on down South?!!*** Giggles, our turkey with an attitude, is sitting on eggs. Again. Fourth time in a year. But they never hatch. She's chosen a beautiful nursery for the eggs. In the lavender surrounded by rose geranium and Jerusalem artichokes. Meanwhile the two turkey chicks hatched by a Lohman hen are flourishing. They are spunky and interactive. Quite different to all the little timid Koekoek chicks they're growing up with.  Our previous summer batch of Koekoek chicks are no longer chicks. Almost full grown we ended up with 3/4 of the batch being roosters. And once again I throw my hands up in exasperation. That means only 14 hens out of more than 50 chicks hatched. It always fascinates me how the chickens prefer a wormwood bath. Wherever there's a patch of wormwood you can be sure there's a sandy hole underneath just waiting for a cackling clutter of hens.  We haven't yet integrated the young ones with the older, laying birds. It is always a challenge. Up until point of lay they are good and healthy free roamers. Something seems to switch in that bird brain once they begin laying. Then the destructive nature kicks in and they want to annihilate our gardens.  This week we transferred some of the potted plants - young date palms, pawpaw, avo, ginger and tumeric under the roof at the front door. It will be the most sheltered spot through winter. The BuckarooBabies are also helped top up the raised beds with soil. And compost. The drainage was poor and we're having to make changes. It is hard and dirty work.  The extreme temperatures are cause for alarm. The sheep are highly pregnant and the lambs have started dropping. Usually lambs arrive at the end of winter not the beginning. So many of our fruit trees are also confused by the fluctuating heat and cold. They're blossoming a season too soon. What this will mean for summer waits to be seen. For now we continue with winter preparation. Gardens for seedlings and nurseries for lambs or chickens. 
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