Henrietta

So far we've had 4 CSA pickups this season, and things are off to a bit of a rocky start... two plantings of head lettuce bolted before I could get to them, I didn't plant enough broccoli raab at first so not enough of it budded at the same time to make it worth it to give out. Most of my cilantro has bolted too, my snap peas got too heavy and collapsed by trellis... never a dull moment!!Shareholders have been getting a good amount of kale, collard greens, and salad mix though, among whatever other goodies we find ready out in the fields each week.

I am hoping that very soon their baskets will be filling up with more than just greens and snap peas!

And now the tale of Henrietta:

Henrietta was just another nameless chicken among the ranks, a number if you will. And then one day about 3 weeks ago as I went out to her chicken tractor to feed her and her friends, I noticed that something was wrong. All the chickens were crowded in the sun away from the back of the coup making lots of noise. When I crawled into the coup I found little Hen Hen( her new nickname) hanging upside down by her foot from the nesting boxes, who knows how long the poor girl had been like that! I went over to her immediately and eased her little body back up into the nesting boxes... her foot came immediately free. I knew that cocky little Gus Gus would never allow me to crawl out of there with one of his ladies in hand without giving me a good beating, so I quickly exited the coup and snuck around back to pull down the back flap behind the nesting boxes that I usually collect eggs through. She was still sitting there in the nesting boxes, so I grabbed her and secured the flap once more without the slightest retaliation from Gus Gus. Mission accomplished.

Once in the house little Miss Hen, Dad and I washed her little leg that was already swelling, and got her some water and food. After a little bit of relaxation time in the porcelain sink in the house, Hen Hen and I made our way out to the barn where I promptly made her a little hospital hay nest in the front stall with her food and water right next to it so she could eat and drink without having to move...

Since that day Hen Hen has been healing really well. Since she is all by her lonesome in that stall, I open up the doors and let her free range with me during the day while I'm out there. She's still limping, but she moves pretty quickly regardless, getting stronger and stronger everyday. The other day I was out in front of the barn watering the piggies, and here comes Hen Hen down the front steps of the barn, hobbling over to stand next to me as I did my chores. Then she followed me inside to get grain for them, and back out to feed the piggies. She takes her farm tasks very seriously... I'm thinking about making her full time staff... we'll see how her references pan out...

In other news, things are getting really big in the field! We've got baby broccoli coming soon, basil, green beans, cherry tomatoes, the flower garden, and summer squash are also on the way. This heat is causing everything to kick into high gear, and while it's making it harder to keep up with the weeds, the veggies are really taking off... I'm a proud veggie mama.