Denim, Peppers, and Chickens

Now that the garden is starting to be put to bed, the chickens are allowed to run free in the yard.

The birds are happier with the run of the place and we are blessed with a super awesome rooster. He is gentle with us but protective of the hens.

Big Mac was a little yellow chick in my first batch of chickens. For some reason, the other chicks pecked on him and he developed a wound that the other birds wanted to peck at even more. We treated his wound and also isolated him often from the other birds by picking him up and playing with him. He became our favorite chick and grew into this grand and beautiful rooster.

Some of the younger, upstart roosters liked to fight. One of them even attacked David when his back was turned and got a one-way ticket to the chopping block.

Lots of apples are ready to fall and I love tasting all the different varieties. Having an orchard with variety is important for production and pollination. Some of the little ones are really juicy and crispy and the best fresh eating apples, some others are tart and good for pie.

Other varieties like this King Apple are larger and store well. They are also good for eating fresh but I usually put them away to eat later in the year.

In the Hedgerow: this Portuguese Laurel tree is a favorite food for wild birds.

One thing that makes our homestead unique is the use of hedgerow plants. Many people do not plant along their fenceline and prefer to leave it open, but it can be a great place for certain trees and adds diversity to the landscape. Traditionally hedgerow plants were trained to grow into a living fence, and in our yard it has become a living trellis for edibles like grapes and kiwis.

David is tall enough for these little juicing apples that are just coming into ripeness.

We found a warty pumpkin in the garden and David is getting excited for Hallowe'en.

I can't complain about the crop of beets and parsnips.

We enjoyed the world's smallest watermelons that were juicy and sweet, despite being smaller than a baseball!

As for Denim, I have been cutting up pairs of old jeans into 5" squares to be used with some of my charm pack fabrics. For my non-quilty friends, charm packs are pre-cut bundles of 5 inch squares of coordinating fabrics. I have a few beautiful charm packs full of busy little patterns and I think they'll go well paired with plain squares of blue. Do I have pictures? Next time ;)

I have wanted to make a blue jean blanket for years!

Thanks for reading my blog, wishing you a day full of delight.