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16th December 2010
Because of legal blunders a long time ago, we have had to wait this long. And we still haven’t exchanged. But we are entering the final straight. Last weekend I went and had another look at the house I want to buy in Whitstable. Am longing to describe it to you, but feel uncomfortable even thinking about it until we’ve exchanged. In the meantime, I’m packing, tidying and concentrating on Christmas.
3rd November 2010
In my spare time, we have published a small book for children, which is now for sale on our website and I hope will introduce the very young to the joys of hen keeping at an early age. Makes a good stocking filler with lovely drawings by Gabrielle Stoddart. Hens are looking heartbreakingly lovely in their new plumage. And the little Old English Game hen has astounded us all by producing two very long tail feathers that are distinctly cockerel-like………. 18th October 2010
Have started writing for a new hen magazine – Your Chickens, especially for back garden hen keepers. At last, what we’ve all wanted. First edition comes out in the New Year. Will remind you nearer the time. We also have a new tiny book for children on the joys of keeping hens, which will be available from next week. Am doing a signing at Waterstones in Bury St Edmunds on Saturday 23rd October, between 11 & 1. Do come and say hello. Signings are always slightly lonely affairs! The hens are growing nice new feathers, should look smart in time for our fond farewell. Am trying not to think about it, but can’t really look them in the eye…. 29th September 2010
I’m putting the outside shop to bed for the last time and concentrating on stock for Christmas, always a fun chore. Also harvesting and picking, but I wish the rain would stop. We have two broods of tiny ducklings whose mums must have been encouraged by the good weather a month ago, but by now are probably regretting their late fling, as they struggle to keep their babes warm at night. Enjoying my weekly piece in the Sunday Telegraph. Have a look: www.telegraph.co.uk. Am planning a children’s book on keeping hens in time for Christmas and a sequel to All my Eggs next year. In the meantime we shall carry on as before. 16th September 2010
Thank you everyone for your visits and messages of support. It is a difficult time, and although September is usually an energetic time for me, I must say, this autumn is tinged with sadness. I try not look too carefully at my hens, I’m beginning to leave them already – secure in the knowledge though, that they will be well looked after by their new owners. New beginnings and projects abound though, and I hope to report over the next few weeks. So please keep logging in, and we hope to give visitors a final Christmas shopping experience (19th November for 10 days) to remember. 23rd August 2010
Feeling pretty frustrated and slightly lost, with nowhere to visualize myself by January. Will have to try and concentrate on making this a Christmas to remember. 8th August 2010
The Great Bungalow Hunt continues without much success, but I’m told there’s a renewal of interest in the property market in September – fingers crossed. In the meantime, we start the cutting of the hedges and the meadow next week, a little early as autumn seems to be early. As these tasks roll round, there’s a mixture of sadness and relief, as I realize I won’t be doing them again, here at Troston. Last few chances to see the garden, as we close at the end of September. Christmas Shopping will open on November 19th, with the last Christmas decoration course on Wednesday the 17th (see Course page for details). 20th July 2010
Have been looking for a house in Whitstable. Would like to live in the old harbour part of town, but fishermen obviously didn’t have time to garden, so will have to look further out. Rather like the thought of a bungalow with a reasonable garden. Like the idea of single story living. Sure we could turn even the most dismal bungalow into something special. Lots more work needed till we come up with the dream home though. Have been writing for the Sunday Telegraph Life section most weekend. Have a look on their website www.telegraph.co.uk. Quite a feat thinking of a new subject every week. Early days too, hopefully. The chick is obviously a cockerel, so if anyone needs an almost house-trained, v. affectionate Buff Orpington, please let me know. This recipe is for the lady in the queue at Waitrose, and anyone else who fancies making easy biscuits. Biscotti/Cantucci Melt a tablespoon of butter and cool to lukewarm Turn onto a floured board and shape into a log 1 ½” x 14” approx (add more flour if necessary) 26th June 2010
The hens are in the capable hands of Dale next door, who has had to take a crash course in all their fads and foibles, and the mammoth task of feeding chick, broodies, duck with broken leg, a million ducks with legs intact, but the weather will be good and he should enjoy the swimming pool. My regular hensitter is on holiday. We are still open every Friday and Saturday from 10 till 5. Moving plans move along, though fingers crossed, we may still be able to hold our annual Christmas event here at The Kitchen Garden at the end of November, so we won’t be leaving without saying goodbye. I want to thank everyone who has sent letters, cards and emails or phoned Please come and see us one last time, and keep reading the blog to see how it all goes. 10th June 2010 Max, my younger son will always live in London and Jacques and Saskia have settled in Whitstable, so it’s there that I hope to spend the next few years. I shall open a small shop there and carry on writing, publishing and running the Henkeepers’ Association and this website. So we can all keep in touch, I just won’t have ¾ acre of garden to maintain. The house and garden here will always have a great hold on my heart, the scene of most of the highs and lows of our family’s life, but at least it has all been well-documented, and I’m looking forward (sometimes) to pastures new. Please come and visit one last time – though who knows how quickly we’ll sell, so keep in touch via this website, email francine@kitchen-garden-hens.co.uk, or phone 01359 268 322. Anyone interested in buying this small spot in Suffolk, should contact Bedfords on 01284 769 999 or visit www.bedfords.co.uk. 4th June 2010 Lots of hard work getting ready for the Yellow Book Open Day, pretty awful weather but we managed to raise £800 for their cancer charities. Have also started writing for the Sunday Telegraph and an article on Buff Orpingtons for Country Life magazine, so burning the candle at both ends. Still a couple of places up for grabs on our Hen Keeping Course on June 9th. 18th May 2010Sorry about the last blog….Back v. much better and with our opening for the NGS Yellow Book on Bank Holiday Sunday and Monday 2 till 5, it has had to be. So much to do. Again thanks to my band of helpers, the garden is as good as it can be with so little rain and about a month less involvement from me.
The following day, one eye had recovered but the other obviously had some kind of impairment – what looked like a thorn in the corner. Poor bird, it was quite a struggle but I finally removed it with some lint soaked in cooled boiled water. This morning we were all woken by a hearty burst of crowing. All’s well! 10th May 2010A bad month!
Please drop in. Our Gardeners’ Friday route has been a great success, though some good weather would be a bonus. Have a look on the website under Contact us. Promise to be jollier next time!
13th April 2010
A brilliant Hen Party – our tenth, blessed with decent weather, pretty much for the first time, was a huge success. 750 visitors enjoyed the stunning birds, the refreshments – thank you ladies of the Troston WI, the Egg Hunt supplied by Max and Ferg’s brother Dave, Charlotte’s plants, Rena and Emma’s vintage stall and all the cakes, jams and eggs. The garden looked promising, if embryonic still, and a good time was had by all. Thank you, everyone involved.
Since moving the furniture back into house mode, my back has been extremely painful, all three new hens have gone broody, and it’s been a bad week. Many of you will have heard of my friend, Elspeth’s recent death, such a sad loss and one that’s quite hard to come to terms with. Her work, obituaries and tributes can be seen on www.elspeththompson.co.uk
28th March 2010
Do try and come and see us on Easter Saturday. 6th March 2010
Sadly two days later the oldest hen was found dead in the house, and I think the next oldest is on her way out too. Well past their sell-by-date, the change of regime is more than they can bear. It’s so sad. They are old friends and will be much missed. So from a flock of elderly birds, sunning themselves in the borders, the flock has transformed itself into a dynamic bunch of hooligans, racing from one morsel to the next, to the detriment of my newly burgeoning garden and our feed bill. And of course there are eggs. Wonderful eggs for the kitchen, and as peace offerings to my neighbours, who used to the odd groan from the old Cockerel are now being crowed at vociferously from the crack of dawn. 15th February 2010
The next hurdle is the arrival of the new cockerel next week. Hope he isn’t too much of a lothario, or the girls will all be sporting saddles. Still, he has 9 wives to choose from, one ancient, two old, two mature, three demoiselles and one pullet, oh and the Old English Game bantam. She has survived the winter, up in her tree, sometimes arriving for breakfast with frost on her back. Tentative arrangements in hand for the Hen Party on Easter Saturday April 3rd. 25th January 2010
It has been fascinating watching these birds as they grow. Usually home-raised pullets wait for their mum’s to lay, literally hanging about outside the nestbox, so presumably they know where to lay their first eggs. These girls have no mums, aunts and grannies to follow, so I’ve put a china broody egg in their nestbox, but so far they just think it’s a good place to sleep and have just kicked the egg out. Every learning curve (the best place to dustbathe, the best grass, how to catch my attention) is far longer, they rely on trial and error and by watching the rest of the flock from afar. Although all together free-ranging in the garden, the new girls hang around the peripheries, their first naïve attempts at friendliness having been sharply rebuffed by the older ladies. Perhaps the arrival of the new Cockerel will change all that. They are bound to be his favourites. 13th January 2010
His grieving ladies mooch around in their run, well-protected from the weather surrounded by fat hedges, sheds, fences and walls, and I have boosted the insulation in the houses with newspaper and extra straw. A daytime shelter using straw bales and planks for birds not wanting to leave their houses is helpful, but my three young pullets, staring morosely out of their pophole for days on end were in a frost pocket miles from the house. Still too young to brave an introduction to rest of the flock they have been moved into the far end of the conservatory. There with a cardboard box full of wood ash for a dustbath, extra grit from the feed merchant, half a cabbage for greenery and their old nestbox to sleep in, they live a life of Riley, and I don’t have to stagger back and forth in the snow and ice. It gives me a fine chance to observe them, snug as we all are in the blanket of snow that has enveloped Troston since December 18th. Not many miles away, almost snow-free, is a different country, where roads are passable, and life is easy. Subscribe free today www.henkeepersassociation.co.uk
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I’m still waiting!!!!
Hardly dare breathe a word, but I have had an offer accepted on a house in Whitstable. Think I’d better stop there, and wait for more concrete news, which I will, of course pass on to you. In the meantime, clearing up, sorting out and throwing away have reached manic proportions, culminating in a very enjoyable car boot sale at Woolpit with kind friends. We went off with two cars, filled to the brim and came back with a small boxful and a pocket full of loose change. The better stuff is piled in the garage, ready for visitors to our Christmas Extravaganza, starting earlier this year on November 19th. And the house is full of goodies. 
The race is on to get the house/shop ready for our Christmas Fair and Decoration course, complicated this year by the logistics of house clearance and removal. Phase one completed today with the clearance of the garage. Max, my younger son has removed his beautiful blue beach buggy to a friend’s house with all his tools, thus opening up a whole new department for the shop. Stock is beginning to arrive slowly with the collection today of Mrs H’s jams. She has come out of retirement for this last event. How lovely to end on a sweet note with all her delicious jams, jellies and chutneys. 
This must be the most repetitive blog site on the web. Sorry. Still no luck with the house hunt. Am becoming reconciled to the idea of renting in Whitstable from the New Year for a while. Not the ideal solution, but the only one possible. Makes sorting and packing v. difficult if you can’t visualize where you will be.
Still trotting back and forth to Whitstable. I found a lovely house with a 150 ft garden – a blank canvas. I didn’t get it though. Our exchange is still being held up by solicitors, so someone else was further ahead in the game than me. Probably for the best though. The idea of downsizing is to buy smaller. This house was bigger than Church Cottage, so I would have rattled around a bit.
Another trip to Whitstable, looking for bungalows and writing a piece for the Sunday Telegraph on seaside gardens. Still haven’t been grabbed by anything, but met three gardeners with small plots backing right on to the sea front, who very kindly let me photograph their amazing gardens. Lack of frost and plenty of shelter behind the sea wall, opens up a wide range of exotic plants that I’ve never grown before, but since I shall be growing several hundred feet back from that prime position, it’ll be interesting to see what will flourish.
What a relief to get some rain! The grass is green, the plants have picked up again, as have my energy levels. Three of the young hens have gone broody – again. And we have found a family home for the young cockerel. Only problem left to solve is a home for me and Lulu – who for some reason appeared to illustrate my last entry.
My poor garden is browned to a crisp. All the flowers have gone to seed and then the seedheads were blown over by the winds. The ducks have eaten anything that’s green. How on earth do I open my garden to the public? Have decided to waive the £2.00 entrance fee at least. So please come and see us anyway.
Off to Whitstable to meet the boys on the anniversary of my husband’s death nine years ago. We get together every year at this time. These are usually very jolly occasions and we choose a venue that he would have enjoyed. Poignantly though, as a great sailor and fan of the seaside (he wasn’t so keen on what he called this English malady for gardens) Jean would have loved to be moving to Whitstable too.
Some of you may have heard that, after much soul searching, I’ve decided to put the house and garden on the market. One of the hardest decisions I’ve ever made, and one I question every other hour. I think last winter, the damage to my back and the realization that things don’t get easier as we age, have all made me think about the future.
The mother hen has started laying again, and her chick is less than a month old. Guess who has taken over baby sitting duties – the cockerel. The chick even sleeps under his wing at night. So sweet. Some poultry books suggest you have to separate cocks from their families, but it’s obviously worth a go, if you have orphans.
The chick flourishes, while the fortunes of the ducklings have been more varied. It has been cold, and some of the mums are hopeless. Early morning Drama in the Chicken Coop when I realized I hadn’t been woken at 5.30 with the usual crowing. Further examination found the Cockerel inside the henhouse, with both eyes swollen, unable to see. Ensconsed in the conservatory, with food and water, and eye drops (Fucithalmic from the vet) in both eyes, he was shivering, boiling hot and obviously not well.
On a cheerier note. We have a chick. I hadn’t planned to hatch this year, the flock is large enough. But it’s hard not to spend the summer with new life. Not that the ducks haven’t been keeping up their population……
Both the hens and I have been dashing in and out, sheltering from the spring showers (they seem to do it less effectively under the bay trees), trying to get the garden ready for visitors to our 10th annual Hen Party.
It’s hard work. The three new hens-from-hell seem to be Orpingtons crossed with hoovers. Sweet birdies and lovely layers, so lots of eggs, but all the plants need cloching instantly, with hanging basket frames that I’ve been picking up from my visits to the car boot sale (today – seven frames for 50p).
All change at The Kitchen Garden. A fine new cockerel (Mark V) arrived last week. Welcomed with much clucking and excitement by the four pullets, clucking and resignation by the three older ladies and clucking and sighing from the two elderly biddies. The OEG bantam was shooed off, but has gradually been ignored enough to re-instate herself.
As if by magic – Valentines Day and my new hens have laid some lovely eggs!
Surely my three new pullets should be starting to lay!
Yesterday the poor old Cockerel died. He was a fine age, able protector of his various wives who adored him, friend and great poseur – much loved by visiting photographers for whom he would pose endlessly, mesmerized by the lens. It was probably the cold that saw him off.