Sunday Selection :: Søndagsbilleder

Once again from bus travels and my garden

Nok engang fra busrejser og fra min have

And featuring Colour of the Month ~ June :: Og med Månedens farve ~  juni

First the ivy that has figured here before:

Den her efeu har vi set før

But over it ... dun-dun-dun  ... ready to fall:

Men ovenover .... lige ved at falde ned.

Meanwhile in The Owlery ~ Hjemme i Ugleboet

Storkenæb ~ Cranesbill

Flotte pletter ~ Pretty spots

Verdens bedste pebermynte  ~ The very best mint

Murasaki

Japansk Indigo ~ Dyer's knotweed

Hvidløg fra topløg ~ Garlic from bulbils

Yuzu, der bare elsker at stå inde i domen ~ Yuzu loving it inside my dome

Nyplantet egetræ ~ Sapling oak, just transplanted


And the ladies enjoying all our weeds. Nothing green here - except for the weeds and some of the eggs. We do have 6 hens, but one is broody and is always staying inside the nesting box -- As we have no rooster, she will never have any luck, and I steal the eggs.

Od de damer der spiser al vores ukrudt. Der er ikke meget grønt her -- ud over ukrudtet og nogle af æggene. Vi har altså 6 høner, men den ene er skruk og ligger hele tiden inde i redekassen - vi har ikke nogen hane, så der kommer ikke noget ud af det, og så stjæler jeg altså æggene fra hende.

Ⓐ - Ⓩ Danish letters - Æ - Æg

    Hver dag i april kommer der et A-Z indlæg klokken 12. Temaet er ekkoer, de løse ender, halve projekter, nye begyndelser, gyldne løfter og lokkende udsigter. Men jeg ville ikke være Uglemor, hvis ikke der sneg sig nye projekter og ideer ind i denne omgang A-Z også.
     Og så bruger jeg lige som for to år siden Æ, Ø og Å i stedet for de halvumulige W, X Y og Z

Ⓐ - Ⓩ

Every day in April a new A-Z post goes live at noon. The theme is Echoes, finishing touches, half done projects and endings. But I would not be MotherOwl if these posts would not contain more than a fair share of new beginnings and plans.

   Yesterday we did V, so today should be W, followed by X, Y and Z But those letters are not used very much in Danish, so just as two years ago I'm going to use the letters Æ, Ø and Å from the Danish alphabet instead.

Æ for Æg  =  Egg

Æg kommer fra høns, og Uglemor har lige investeret i seks nye høns. Hun er en smule bekymret for fugleinfluenzaen ...
     I februar 2017 hærgede fugleinfluenzaen i Danmark. Høns skulle lukkes inde, men ikke gæs og ænder. Vi var flere, der skrev oprørte breve, blogindlæg og så videre, men det hele løb bare ud i sandet og pludselig en dag -  den 10. april - måtte og kunne vi have høns igen.
   Det første indlæg fortæller om haveinstallationen "De løsslupne hønniker". Den fik jeg aldrig åbnet, men i mandags hentede jeg nye høns, der faktisk er de farver, den gamle installationsberetning beskriver. Måske bør jeg nu installere røde pinde og blå kugler også ... bare i tilfælde af at fugleinfluenzaen skulle komme igen.

-- 🐔 --

  Eggs come from hens. Last Monday MotherOwl had six new hens, but she's a bit disquieted. The avian flu is rearing its ugly head ...
  February 2017 the avian flu went wild in Denmark. All hens were to be kept indoors - or slaughtered. The same was not so for geese and ducks. They were only slaughtered as they became ill. We were many writing angry letters Facebook and blog posts and so on. Nothing really helped. We were left suspended in a vacuum for over two months until finally 10th of April chickens were once again set free.
 The first post describes the garden installation "The Roaming Pullets". For several reasons I never followed up on this idea. But this Monday I got some new pullets actually exactly the variation in colours described in the installation. Maybe I should put up some red branches and find a lot of blue balls so that I can just declare my pullets part of this work of art, should the avian flu return.

Hønnikerne og de røde buske  --  The pullets and the red bush.

Her følger en beskrivelse (kun let opdateret) af haveinstallationen: De løsslupne hønniker:

    Nu har vi så indkøbe nogle nye hønniker, det er to grønlæggere der med tiden vil lægge turkisgrønne æg, de er efterkommere af sydamerikanske araucanaer; to maran-krydsninger, der vil lægge chokoladebrune æg og så to Isa, der i fremtiden vil lægge næsten et æg hver om dagen, i normal brun æggefarve.
     Selve hønsene er røde, sorte, vildtfarvede og brogede. Det er da lige til en udstilling, og når det nu er hønniker, så lægger de jo slet ikke æg.
    Senere vil der blive opsat røde grene og lagt blå bolde rundt omkring hønsene. Således skabes et altid skiftende, kalejdoskopisk mønster, der veksler med belysningen og tidspunktet på dagen og som er perfekt tilpasset til at berolige tilskuerne sind og mindske deres bekymringer.
  Sådan! Det lyder da godt, ikke?  
  Ergo er Ugleboets høns da også ren udstilling til fornøjelse for mig, ægtemanden og vores 4 børn – eventuelle naboer og forbipasserende må også gerne nyde synet!
   Jeg erklærer hermed haveinstallationen “De løsslupne hønniker” for åbnet.

-- 🐔 --

 
Old wording (only slightly updated) of the description of the garden installation The Roaming Pullets:

Today MotherOwl has decided that her new chicken will be for decorative and educational purposes only. As we buy pullets they'll not be laying. And we have no intention of eating them (We tried once, but laying hens are not made to be eaten, old and stringy they were).

Today MotherOwl declares the garden installation The roaming pullets for open. It's not yet perfect, the pullets - greenlayers (laying turquoise eggs when they grow up, and being diverse of colour - decendants of the South American Araucanas)  will be joined by the red bushes and blue balls in the garden. Thus creating an always shifting, kaleidoscopic pattern, changing with the time of day, and perfectly adapted to soothe the spectators' mind and allay their troubles.

There. That sounds good, doesn't it? I'm going to admit spectators if any want to come, but the primary audience is the inhabitants of the Owlery and their neighbours.

Dette er hvordan, jeg forventer æggene kommer til at se ud - også et ekko fra en A-Z post, denne gang om cykelhjelme.
--
This is how I expect the eggs to look later on. And this photo is an echo from the AZ post on Biking helmets.

Poetry Monday :: From my Pet's Point of View

  Diane of On the Border is supplying us with topics for this weekly endeavour, sometimes with the help of others - If you have any good ideas, just say so in the comments. She and Mimi of Messymimi's Meanderings also write wonderful, funny, thought-provoking, ingenious and honestly well written verse. Go and read.
  SpikesBestMate often publishes a nice verse in the comments, and helps out at topic supplying.
  Karen of Baking in a Tornado has joined us in this crazy pursuit, and promises us at least a poem a month - we hope for more.
  Jenny at Procrastinating Donkey is taking a break due to her husband's illness and passing from this world. Let's continue to send warm thoughts, good energy, and lots of prayers her way.

  I have something more to ask of you: If you read this and the poetry of others, would you please leave a comment. Half - if not more - the fun of these challenges is receiving the responses of others.

  From my pet's point of view ... but I have no pet.
  And as I wrote when the theme was The Antics of Pets back in June last year, I did not have many pets and certainly not normal ones as a child. Apart from a white mouse that died after only a few days, a crazy, inbred cat which was euthanised, goldfish  who lost their tails to some mysterious disease and were flushed down the toilet, and a couple of  Guinea pigs belonging to my sister, I only kept crabs that invariably died in our play pool, spiders, ladybugs, worms, bumblebees and such like wild bug-lifey pets in an old fishtank.
  I've beem pulligg my hair and thinking all day  ... here's what came out of it:

Me:
We talk of pets, but for my part
The only pets I have and had
Are chicken in my garden
And if you think that they are smart
Intelligent - but just a tad
I really beg your pardon.
 
Chicken:
Where am I? Who did this? Can I eat that?
I'm hungry, I'm thirsty. Is that a hawk?
Oh, I've got to lay an egg. Now what?
Bawk, cluck, bagog, bawk, bawk!

Next Monday's topic: Favourite Word that Starts With D.

Ⓐ - ⓩ 3. april - Ⓒ - Cykelhjelm

Ⓒ er for cykelhjelm.
I går, hvor det stormede, fulgtes Uglemor og Piraten hjem fra byen.  Vi nærmest fløj hjem, det var skønt, for turen derind havde været hård i den stride modvind, både om morgenen, da Piraten og Spirillen fulgtes i skole på cykel, senere, da Skribenten tog turen til stationen og endnu noget senere, da Uglemor tog samme tur. Spirillen fulgtes ikke med os hjem, hans cykel skulle nemlig til cykelsmeden.
     Vi var belæssede med indkøb og skoletaske, men vi skulle jo også lige have æggene med ind. Hønsene bor nemlig  i samme udhus som cyklerne. Men hvordan fordeler man to rygsække og to tunge tasker og syv æg på to personer? Det er da let. Piraten bærer æggene i sin cykelhjelm.
     Nu synes I måske ikke at det har så meget med have og planter at gøre, men husk lige at alt ukrudtet og alle knoporm og andre uønskede krible-krablere, bliver spist af de 7 høns, der lagde de 7 æg. Og blommerne er meget gule.

--  Ⓐ - ⓩ --

 Ⓒ is for cykelhjelm = bike helmet.
Yesterday it was windy, maybe even stormy. The wind was blowing the wrong way as Pirate and Marsupilami rode their bikes to school. The Writer too fought a strong headwind on his way to the railway station somewhat later, and MotherOwl fought the same winds another hour or so later. Marsupilami, Pirate and MotherOwl met in town, Marsupilami went to hand in his bike for repair, while MotherOwl and the Pirate rode home together and luxuriated in the strong tailwind. We almost flew home. But when we arrived we had to gather the eggs as well, and ho do two persons carry two backpacks, two heavy saddle bags and 7 eggs. Easy peasy! The Pirate put the eggs in his bike helmet.
Not so much growing and gardening you think. It is true only if you ignore the fact that every weed and unwanted bug form the garden is fed to the seven  hens who laid these seven eggs.  And the yolks are very yellow, almost orange.

Dominoarbejde -- Domino Work

     Domino-arbejde. Uglemor skriver om det fra tid til anden, og der er også andre der oplever det. Det er underligt. Man starter dagen med at beslutte at i dag skal man A, og så B, ... men så, så sker der noget. Noget, der kræver handling her og nu. Og desuden; for at lave A, som jeg havde sat mig for, må jeg først gøre C, og D for at få plads til E, som så fører til F og så fremdeles .... og så er dagen gået uden at jeg fik tid til A for slet ikke at nævne B. Den slags kalder Uglemor domino-arbejde.

- - - - -

Domino working. MotherOwl writes about it now and then. Other people seem to experience the same.  It's a strange thing. You set out to do A, and maybe B ... but then. Then something happens requiring immediate attention. And furthermore, to do A, you have to move C, which leads to D, which again leads to noticing E, leading to F etcetera ad infinitum. And you newer get to do A much less B.
Today was one of these days.

- 🀹 -

Og hvad skulle Uglemor så gøre i dag?
A. Skære nogle syrener ned for at give plads til andre buske og træer.
B. Plante en masse frø i bed 3 der hvor jeg stoppede i går
Måske C. Lave en bukkarsæbe

- - - - -

This is what I set out to do.
A Cut down the lilacs to plant other bushes and trees.
B. plant seeds in bed 3, where I left off yesterday.
Maybe C. Make a soap with sweet woodruff.

Frø, parat til at blive sået - Seeds, all ready for planting

     Men jeg besluttede at begynde med at save syrener ned.

- - - - -

But I decided to start with the lilacs to be cut down.

Starten på nedskårne syrener.
First lilac branches cut.

     Så opdagede Uglemor at nogle af syrenerne faktisk var hvide. Vi havde besluttet at de jo bare duplikerede andre syrener, men vi har ikke andre hvide end her. Det må diskuteres med Skribenten, som naturligvis er på arbejde og til møde. Han er først hjemme efter det er blevet mørkt.
     Men hov, den vilde kørvel der gror der, lige under træerne. Den er jo stor nok til at farve med. Og hvis den bliver stående tramper vi den nok bare ned.

 - 🀺 - 

  But then I discovered that some of these lilacs were of the white flowering variety. Well, they're unique. I've got to talk this over with The Writer before cutting. And he's working and having a meeting. He'll be home after dark.
But hey, the Cow parsley growing right next to the lilacs are big enough for a dye bath. If I leave them, they'll get trampled when we cut the trees.

Vild kørvel efter plukning. Cow parsley after picking.

Plukke, plukke, plukke. Så ind og veje. Der er for meget garn, det må vindes om. Nej, det er nok lettere at plukke lidt flere planter. Plukke, plukke, plukke. Vand i, tænd gryden. Hvor er det bare skønt med den vidunderlige gryde.

 - 🀻-

Pick, pick, pick. Oh, there's too much yarn in these hanks, I think I got to re-skein it. Well ... it might be easier to pick some more Cow parsley. Pick, pick, pick. Lots of water in the pot, start. What a blessing this wonderful pot is.

Mælkebøtter, koncentreret solskin - Dandelions, an essence of sunshine.

     Så kom den første Ugleunge hjem fra skole med nogle smukke blomster til Uglemor. Medens de blev sat i vand, faldt Uglemors blik på planterne i vinduet. De trængte også til vand NU!
     Måske er det også tid til at plante artiskokker eller auberginer ud? De er meget store. Nogle af de andre skal i hvert fald ud - når der er blevet sået.

- 🀼 -

The first Owlet arrived home fros school bringing pretty flowers. While placing the vase on the table MotherOwl noticed the plants in the window. They needed water. Now!.
Maybe it's time to plant out eggplants and artichokes? They're very big now. Some of the others will be planted out as well - after sowing.

Artiskokker og laurbær på terrassen  --  Artichoke and laurel outside.

     Artiskokkerne blev sat på dagophold på terrassen. Samtidig skrubbede Uglemor lige et par uldlus af laurbærplanten. Hverken de eller jeg er til sinds at opgive kampen.
     Auberginerne, derimod skulle bo i domen. En af dem var allerede i en stor potte, den blev båret derud med det samme.
 

- 🀽 -

The artichokes were placed outdoors in the shadow. MotherOwl brushed off some Wax scales from the laurel. None of us wants to surrender.
The eggplants were going to stay in the dome. One of them already was in a big pot, ready to be carried out there.

Auberginen på sin nye plads. Flere kommer de følgende dage.
The first of the aubergines in the new home, more to follow.

     Inde i drivhuset var der varmt! alt for varmt. Selv med det ene vindue og den øverste del af døren åben var der tropiske varmegrader. Det andet vindue skulle i, NU!. Uglemor hentede hammer, sav, skruer og skruemaskine. Heldigvis kom Piraten forbi og kunne give en hånd med at holde og række ting. Uglemor har altså kun to hænder.

- 🀾 -   

Inside the dome it was hot! Far too hot. Even with the one new window and the top half of the door wide open, it was literally tropical inside. The other window opener needed to go in. NOW! MotherOwl found the opener, boards, screws, hammer, drill, and a saw. She grasped hold of Pirate, that happened to pass by, as four hands were needed for holding and such. And MotherOwl, just like all other Mothers, has only two.

Begge vinduer på vid gab. -- Both windows as open as they can be.

     Så spiste vi frokost og Uglemor gik ud og hentede æg. Skrukhønen lå stadig på reden - og havde fået selskab af en mere. Uglemor greb gulvskrubben som står der for det samme - høns hakker hårdt - og jog madammerne ud. Da lemmen gled ned og spærrede for indgangen, så Uglemor at den var i stykker. En hel ræv ville med lethed kunne kravle ind mellem opgangen og lemmen. Det går ikke!
     Uglemor hentede atter hammer, sav, skruer og skruemaskine. Heldigvis har vi masser af planker, brædder osv. stående der, hvor hønsene bor. Og der var da også noget, der kunne bruges, så hønsene fik en fin, ny hoveddør.

- 🁁 -

We had lunch, and MotherOwl went to collect today's egg. She chased out the broody hen with an old broom stationed nearby for that very purpose. She then closed the door and noticed that it was broke. A whole fox would fit in the crack between access ramp and door. Once again MotherOwl found boards, screws, hammer, drill, and a saw. A new main door for the chicken was soon finished.

Ny hoveddør til hønsene. New door to the chicken coop.

     Uglemor skulle jo ind i hønsegården for at reparere lemmen. Og døren ind til hønsegården var søreme også i stykker. Den har hængt lidt et stykke tid, og Ugleungerne er ikke blide ved den. Uglemor reparerede og forkortede så den grønne snor, som mennesker, men ikke høns, kan bruge til at åbne døren indefra med.

- 🁂 -

Well, in order to get into the chicken run and repair that door, MotherOwl had to go into the run, that door was broke as well. It has not been well for some time, and the Owlets are not gentle when closing doors. Once again MotherOwl found screws, hammer, drill, and a saw.
The green string enabling human beings, but not chicken to open the door from the inside had grown too long, wonder how this happens, but it was easily repaired.

Repareret lås til hønsegården. -- A new lock for the fence.

     I går havde vi forsøgt at tænde bål og riste pølser. Det var bare ikke lykkedes. I dag var Uglemor kommet i tanker om, hvad vi havde gjort forkert - og det var Piraten også. Så sammen fandt vi grene, aviser, brænde og skumfiduser frem. Minimax og Spirillen lugede, lidt, og spidsede pinde til skumfiduserne.

- 🁃 -

Monday we tried grilling sausages, but the fire did not burn. Today MotherOwl and the Pirate both realized what yesterday's mistakes were, and we set out to try again with the plan of roasting marshmallows. Together we found matches, kindlings, newspapers, wood, and marshmallows. Minimax and Marsupilami weeded a bit and mostly found and sharpened sticks for the marshmallows.

Skumfiduser med mini-pinde

Vi brugte mange forsøg på at tænde ild. Uglemor hentede mange grene og Piraten flere aviser.

- 🁄 -

We used a lot of matches starting the fire. MotherOwl ran for more kindlings and Pirate for more papers.

Mandagens sørgelige rester  --  Leftovers from Monday's failed fire. 

     Så gik det op for Uglemor, hvad der var galt. I går var det helt vindstille, men i dag blæste det altså for meget. Vi har brug for læ.
     Uglemor hentede en gammel slidt presenning, tre tentorpæle og et stykke sejlgarn

- 🁅 -

MotherOwl felt the wind blowing, and of course this was preventing the fire from burning. We need a wind-breaker. MotherOwl fetches an old tarp, Minimax gets some fence posts, and MotherOwl's pockets spew forth some twine.

Vindbeskyttelse til bålet, der skulle lige to tentorpæle mere til.
A wind-breaker, two more fence posts were needed.

     Mendes Ugleungerne så lugede lidt mere og ventede på bålet, ville Uglemor endelig så sine frø. Men så kom hun forbi løvstikkerne og så, at de totalt skyggede for super-mynten midt i bedet. Med hjælp fra Minimax, endnu flere tentorpæle og sejlgarn, lavede vi denne løvstikke-holder.

- 🁊 -

Then MotherOwl notices the bed where lovage and mint are fighting for space. The lovage is taking over everything, and as MotherOwl loves that mint, the lovage needs taming.Minimax helped, and using 4 more fence posts and even more twine, the lovage was tamed. 

Løvstikkerne står pænt nu.
Lovage kept in bond.

     Lige ved siden af løvstikkerne er aspargesbedet. Uglemor så, at to af aspargeserne skulle høstes, og så skulle der luges. Den ene af de nyindkøbte asparges, den røde, havde spiret, og var sprunget ud. Den må godt.

- 🁊-

In the neighbouring bed the asparagus are growing. They were re-planted this year, and urgently need weeding. Two stems needs picking as well - tomorrow they'll have begun flowering and become inedible. One of the new ones have done so, and that's as should be.

To asparges, der skal plukkes og flere på spring.
Two asparagus to be picked, and more coming up.

     Aspargeserne er plukket, Ugleungerne laver deres pligter medens flammerne bliver til gløder så de kan riste skumfiduser, Domen har den rette temperatur, hønsene klukker mere eller mindre fornøjet udenfor og ulden står og køler af i den vidunderlige gryde. Uglemor tager frøposerne og sår.
     Med hånden fuld af småbitte kålfrø hører Uglemor en af Ugleungerne råbe. Først tage hun sig ikke rigtigt af det, det lyder ikke alvorligt. Men det er jo Spirillen og han råber højt på mor. Jeg sår lynhurtigt de frø, jeg sidder med og løber hen til ham.
      Han var ved at hænge vasketøjet op da snorene knak. Nu står han med hænderne og hovedet fulde af snore med rent, vådt vasketøj, er ikke må falde på jorden. Efter en , føles det meget lang tid med halen og trækken i diverse snore og udspørgen af Spiril, finder Uglemor endelig den rigtige løse ende at hive i. Hun binder den fast, men de sidste to kan hun ikke nå at hænge op. Det er Skribenten, der har hængt tørresnorene op, og han er næsten to meter, så Uglemor lader bare snorene ligge og beder Spiril bruge de ikke-knækkede.

- 🁋 -

The asparagus are picked, the Owlets are doing their chores, waiting for the fire to die down enough to toast and not burn their marshmallows. The dome is temperate, the chicken clucking in their yard, the wool is cooling in the wonderful pot. MotherOwl grabs the seeds and get sowing.
Her hand full of teeny kale seeds, she hears one of Owlets calling. It does not sound urgent or like someone was hurt, MotherOwl takes it easy. But wait, Marsupilami is calling loudly and persistently for MotherOwl. She leaves the seeds and run to him.
Marsupilami was hanging the washing as the lines broke. He now stands holding the lines whit head and hands, preventing the laundry from touching the ground. After what feels like a very long time, MotherOwl finally finds the right end to pull, pulls taught the broken lines. She has to give up on two of them, the Writer hung the lines in the first place, and he's a tall man. MotherOwl just leaves the last two broken lines on the ground and asks Marsupilami to use the non-broken ones.

Ophængt vasketøj og knækkede snore.
The laundry and the broken lines.

     Ugleungerne rister skumfiduser, Uglemor planter frø. Solen skinner stadig, selv om det efterhånden er blevet sent.
     Uglemor bliver førdig, samler frøene sammen, plukker salat og radiser i domen, lukker døren, slipper hønsene ind og går ind for at lave aftensmad. Men først skal hun lige se til ulden, hente alle redskaberne ind fra haven og tjekke at alle Ugleunger har lavet alle deres lektier.

- 🁋 -

The Owlets are roasting marshmallows, MotherOwl is sowing her seeds, the Sun is still shining even if it's quite late.
MotherOwl is done with the sowing, she gathers the seeds, picks salad and radishes in the dome, lets in the chicken and go inside to begin cooking. But first she has to look at the wool in the wonderful pot, gather all the utensils from the garden, and control the Owlets' homework, are they all done?

Alle de frø, Uglemor fik sået i dag. --  All the seeds MotherOwl did sow today.

     Syrenerne står stadig, bukkarvandet venter stadig i køleskabet, men det bliver jo en lige så dejlig dag i morgen.

 - 🁌 -

The lilacs are still standing tall, the woodruff "tea" for soap is still in the fridge, but tomorrow is another sunny day.

8 høns - 8 æg

8 Chicken - 8 Eggs

Prøv at se, hvor forskellige æg, 8 høns lægger. Vi har 3 grønlæggere, hvor den ene lægger mere blå æg, 3 med maraner blandt forfædrene, der lægger mere eller mindre chokoladebrune æg, og så 2 Isa Brown, der lægger næsten et æg om dagen, i normale brune farver.

What a variation in egg colour. We have 3 Easter Eggers, one of which lays bluish eggs, 3 from mixed maran stock, laying chocolate brow to brownish eggs, and 2 Isa Brown - those steady an egg a day-machines - laying normal brown eggs.

En farverig efterårsdag - A Colourful Autumn Day

     Dagen begyndte med denne smukke solopgang. Vores kamera er ikke glad for røde farver, så de er lift rødere end i virkeligheden, men det var vildt!

The day began with a glowing sunrise. Our camera is not good at reproducing red colours, they are a bit too reddish. But it was awesome!

+ + ¤ ¤ + +

     Lidt senere var der en regnbue. Det er ikke ret tit, vi ser regnbuer om mordgenen, og denne her var usædvanligt flot.

A bit later we saw a rainbow. A rainbow in the morning is a rare phenomenon. And this one was very clear and big.

+ + ¤ ¤ + +

     Senere på dagen var jeg på indkøb og fandt endelig en busk med rigelige mængder slåen. Jeg fandt også to rønnebærtræer. Det har jeg ledt efter en uges tid, men jeg må have cyklet med lukkede øjne, for de groede langs min normale cykelrute.

Later I went shopping and at long last found a shrubbery carrying a large amount of sloe berries. I also found some rowan trees, I've been looking for both for a week or so, but my eyes must have been closed, as I found them both on my normal bike roads.

+ + ¤ ¤ + +

     Jeg gik ud og tog mig af hønsene. Og i redekassen lå det første æg. Det endte i aftensmaden før det faldt mig ind at tage et billede.

I went feeding the chicken. And in the nesting box I found the very first egg. It was turned into dinner before I remembered to snap a photo.

+ + ¤ ¤ + +

     Jeg fik også syet lidt. Det her blomstrede stof kan da lyse op på enhver dag. Endnu en myhashi. Denne gang med tilhørende madkasse-elastik.

This flowery fabric can brighten even the darkest day. Yet another myhashi. This time with an elastic band for the lunch box.

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Her er den så lukket op. Selv spisepindene har blomster på.

And opened. Even the chopsticks have flowers on them.

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     Skribenten lavede kål til sig og Hvalrossen, rød spidskål. Gid man kunne farve med det blå vand.

For dinner the Writer and the Walrus had kale, red kale. I want so much to dye with this water, but it is not possible. That blue colour ...

En smule af dit ... ♫♪

... A couple of those ... ♫♪

     Uglemor har som sædvanlig lavet en mængde underlige ting i den forgangne tid. Her er en lille smule af det.

As usual MotherOwl has been busy making this and that. Here are some bits and pieces.

Uldtotter farvet med kastanjeskaller. Et eksperiment der fortsætter.
Wool, dyed with chestnut husks, an ongoing experiment

Høst fra domen, skoleagurker, tomater i mange farver og frisk ingefær.
Harvest from the dome, Small cucumbers, rainbow tomatoes and fresh ginger.

Det seneste fuldførte projekt. En ny platform til vandtønderne, det gamle var smuldret bort. Jeg ved godt den ene tønde mangler - forbindingsslangen var utæt, og butikken, der solgte de slags er selvfølgelig lige lukket.
Latest project finished rigth before the rain set in. A stand for the rain water barrels, the old one was decrepit. I know one barrel is missing ;) The connecting pieces had become leaky, and the shop where I bought it has closed.

I søndags var vi til høstmarked, og Spirillen fandt straks en hest.
A shot from last Sunday Marsupilami is animal friendly and at the open farm days, he got a chance to ride a horse.

Piraten og den lille Ædelsten - onkel-niece-kærlighed.
The Pirate and the Little Gem. Love between an uncle and his niece.

Krydderurtebedet er endeligt blevet luget. Se salaten der spirer i potterne - dræbersneglene har ikke luret ideen endnu.
The herb bed - now without weeds. Notice the lettuce in the post. The snails have not yet found them out.

Jordbærbedet har også fået en omgang. Først luget, og klippet ned og så hestemøj over.
Naboen er den glade giver, vi mø hente alt det, vi gider
The strawberry bed ready for winter, weeded, cut down and covered in horse manure.
A neighbour has horses, and we can go get all we need.

Det er nemmere at få luget, når de her 8 damer er glade modtagere af spandens indhold. Nys indflyttede hønniker.
Nettet skal afholde dem fra at overnatte i træet bagved, det virker.
It is easier to go weeding when these 8 ladies stands ready to empty the buckets. Meet our new pullets.
The netting is to prevent them from nesting in the trees for the night.

Frie høns igen -- The Chicken are Free once more

JUHUUU Hønsene må slippes fri igen.

Fødevarestyrelsen har lige meddelt at hønsene må være ude igen fra den 12. april. 

Derfor behøver vi ikke længere nøjes med paphøns som dem her

Breaking news. Hens are once more free to feel the air in their feathers. The Owlery will not need to make do with paper hens like these.

Tidligt forår - Early spring

Torsdag var det herligt lunt, og Uglemor havde travlt i haven. Fredag og lørdag formiddag var det væmmeligt, regn og blæst, slud og endda hagl. Lørdag eftermiddag blev det igen dejligt solskinsvejr, og alle Ugleboets indbyggere fik travlt i haven. Se nu hvad der skete.

Thursday was nice, sunny and mild. But Friday and Saturday were not nice, windy, rain, sleet and even hail. But after noon on Saturday the Sun came out, the wind died down, and the inhabitants of the Owlery all went out to work in the garden.Look what happened.

Minimax fejede bordet for de æblerester, fuglene havde efterladt. Vi fodrer fuglene med æbler i løbet vinteren, men nu drømmer vi om at bruge bordet til havekaffe.
Minimax swept the table. We put old apples here for the birds to eat during winter, and the leftovers had to go away. We will soon be drinking coffee at this table.

Forfatteren fjernede visne stængler på terrassen og de to små bar dem væk.Ja, det er vores juletræ. Det skal plantes ud - et eller andet sted.
The Writer cut off old stems and flowers. The two smallest Owlets carried them away.
Yes it's our Christmas tree. It will be planted -eventually.

Også her gik Skribenten i krig, nu kan man se huset.
The Writer was here - Our house is visible again.

Imens var Uglemor også flittig.
Meanwhile MotherOwl was busy as well.

Plastikket på domen skulle sættes fast efter vinterens blæsevejr.
The plastic on the dome had to be fastened after the winter's storms.

Og der skulle luges indenfor. Her groede masser af græs og nælder - av.
And inside weeding was needed. Lots of grass and nettles - ouch.
I torsdags måtte Uglemor tilkalde hjælp. Spirillen kom med sin hale - et gult reb med sorte pletter. Sammen halede vi stikkelsbærbusken i midten op og flyttede den ud til venstre. Nu kan vi måske plukke bærrene til sommer. Et par af buskede havde lavet aflæggere. De blev gravet op og plantet i et andet bed.

Thursday MotherOwl had to ask Marsupilami to help her. He came, and by means of his tail - a yellow rope with black spots - we pulled the gooseberry bush in the middle up, and placed it in a hole to the left. All three bushes have grown more than MotherOwl expected when they were planted. It was almost impossible to pick the berries. We hope for better picking this summer.

Fint bed med tre buske og luft.
Nice bed with 3 bushes and space.
En af de triste ting ved at luge, er alle de spandfulde ukrudt, det giver. Hvor skal vi nu gøre af dem?

One of the sad things about weeding is all the weeds. Where do we put them.

De røg alligevel ind i hønsegården. Så kan det være, de kan slå rødder og gro indtil der kommer høns igen.
All the weeds ended up in the chicken cop anyway. Maybe some of it will grow there.

Vi venter stadig på at fødevarestyrelsen kommer til fornuft og løfter forbuddet mod udehøns.

We're still waiting for the appropriate authority to lift the ban on free-range chicken.


Der er i hvert fald noget, der gror.

Something is growing:

Efter Karna Majs eksempel har jeg dækket et bed over med buer. Det er ikke så flot som hendes.
Just like Karna Maj, I covered a beet with hoops and plastic. Not as pretty as hers, it is.
 

men heldigvis er radiserne ligeglade. De må være spiret frem i går.
But the radishes grow anyway. They were not there Thursday.

Det varer ikke længe, før vi faktisk kan begynde at plukke noget fra haven. Vi præsenterer:

Soon we'll be able to pick the firs fresh things in the garden. MotherOwl presents:  

Purløg
Chives

Rabarber
Rhubarb

Ramsløg
Ramsons