Lemons and Bumble Foot
The lemon tree continues to outdo herself…
Rich was tasked with recipes that contained lemon. This lemon slice was DELICIOUS! So successful he made it twice 🙂
The bees have outdone themselves honey wise, one of the best in the area according to my “bee guy” so proud of them!!!!!
I planted a lot more bee friendly plants this year and believe it helped. Hyssop and Tansey are easy to grow, beautiful, last a very long time as cut flowers and the bees LOVE them. Highly recommend!
Natu came down with a case of bumblefoot! This is my first experience with it in my flock and after some research I have set to work on treatment.
Bumblefoot, or pododermatitis, is a common foot infection in chickens characterized by swelling, redness, and a black or brown scab on the footpad.
A small cut on the foot and bacteria enters causing an abscess, if left untreated it can get very nasty and require surgery.
I have soaked the foot in an Epsom salts bath, (Epsom’s salts gets a lot of use in this house for the treatment of all sorts). Shout out to my Mum for that, I always have it on the ready, like she did when we were growing up. After soaking, it was easier to pull off the scabs and express the pus underneath. I am using a combination of topical antibiotic cream, Epsom poultice and repiderma, (a zinc and copper product from the Netherlands that I swear by for sheep feet), watch this space…
She is remarkably patient and tolerant of all this; it cannot be pleasant for her.
Generally, the hens are doing great. Egg supply from the others continues at a good rate. One of the girls pushed out this enormous egg recently 😱, poor her! It was a double yoker; Luca had it for breakfast; he may have to take a hen with him next year, to keep up with his daily egg intake 😂
The mornings are darker and cooler, but the days are absolutely stunning. This time of the year reinforces why we chose to live here, so incredibly beautiful. Here is an early morning shot, the fire going to take the nip out of the air, later in the day when the sun has risen. the doors are all open, but I like everyone to get up to a cozy house, and I have a penchant for a fire, (so does Pica) 😊
I open the door to this as I head to work in the mornings, the girls patiently, (not!), awaiting breakfast in the dark😂
Rich, marvel that he is, has finished the last leg of the wooden fencing. The clearing of the fence line always gives us more land to work with, the chooks love this process, lots of grubs and dirt baths to be had! Sophie and Secret like to supervise. We are roping Luca and Danielle into staining it this coming week as the school holidays have begun.
It will be 7 years in September since we moved onto the property, the longest I have lived anywhere in my life! We are on track with the 8-year plan we had for here, I think it is fair to say it has exceeded expectations, we are really thrilled with how the vision has come together.
BEFORE... (the after in next post)
Luca has officially passed his driver’s licence exam. Driving is a life skill, so no matter how much I worry about him on the roads, this is something he needs to do, I just have to deal with it. Rich is doing the lessons, in combination with formal ones.
In NZ the system, it is 6 months on Learners Licence, then a practical driving exam, then it’s onto a Restricted Licence. If you complete an Advanced Driving Course, then 12 months later and passing another practical driving exam, you can apply for a Full Licence. So, the process has begun…
Life is full for Luca. This year is going very well for him school wise, it’s really busy, there is consistently an assignment he is working on. He is Prefect for Media Studies and leads Film Club, goes climbing multiple times a week, in 8 ball Pool school league, and he and his friends always have something social going on. Busy but happy 🙂
He also cut all his hair off!!!!! It has never been this short, even as a baby he came out with more hair than this 😂
The last few cruise ships arrived in March, and their passengers were treated to an awesome display of Fall, I wish this season went on for 6 months and not 3.
It is Easter Sunday as I sit and write this. I was away last weekend for a Nurse Conference in the North Island, great conference but intense, and I am tired, so it is really good to have a long weekend.
It has been a busy one so far, lots of people coming and going.
The kids had a party to go to Friday night and they stayed there, then a group of them arrived here yesterday, to chill and play monopoly, before all heading off to their own homes last night, (not anticipating Luca to stumble out of his room until early afternoon today 😉). My brother and his kids came over Friday to bring their scraps for the pigs, feed the ponies, have coffee etc and a colleague from my work came to let his little boy see the animals. Rich and I said it only seems like yesterday Luca was this age, oh my heart, I am not liking how the time goes so fast!!!!!!
Rich and I did fit in a short hike yesterday. If we take Pica, it cannot be too long these days as she is just too old to make it, the mind is willing, but her body is slowing down, she is 11 now. This is her sleepy face this morning from the couch in front of the fire, she is not going anywhere today 😊
The last few flowers of the season make for cozy corners, and I am once again reminded of how lucky we are. As the world goes through tumultuous times, and there is good reason to feel anxious, this little home at the bottom of the world, helps me breathe and remember all the good out there, there is so much, but sometimes all the noise can drown it out. Happy Easter everyone xx
