Overnight temps have been falling lately, and there's definitely a feeling of Autumn in the air. Spring and Autumn are my favourite seasons; I love the in-between times. There's always a sense of so much possibility during these seasons. That said, it's also ragweed season, and I am SUFFERING. Most mornings, I wake up feeling like someone smacked me in the face, complete with the sniffles and general tiredness. This morning has been particularly bad, and I'm loaded up on decongestants and tylenol.
On the plus side, mornings by the coops have been foggy/misty this past week. It's such a beautiful sight.
I knew the seasonal shift was on it's way because the bees and chickens changed behaviour. The bees are sucking down any and all sugar syrup I put out for them as they build up their stores for winter. They're also a little more tetchy; more defensive. They know it's time to really get to work and store as much honey as they can for winter, and they know other bees are looking for honey and might try attacking another hive to get it (a behaviour called 'robbing').
The chickens, meanwhile, have shown signs of moulting. It started with the special needs girls; a few feathers more than usual in the coop every morning. Now the Cleveland Hens are looking a little scraggly, and Agatha is patchy in a few places (although still the fluffiest of butt!). The younger girls took a little longer to start their own moults but it seems to be happening now. The feather loss is minor and very slow so far but I expect it will pick up as the days continue to shorten. Sadly, this means a decline in egg production. I got 4 today!! 3 of those from the healthy, 'young girl' flock of 9! On days like these, I like to whisper "chicken nuggets" at them, just to remind them of their end of the deal. ;)
There's plenty I should be getting done at this time of year. The garden needs to be prepared for winter, and ss the leaves fall, my days will be consumed with raking. I like to cover the base of all trees with a thick layer of leaves, and the rest go on the giant leaf/compost pile at the back of the property. For now, I'm still behind on weeding (I'll never catch up with them all!), and some plants still need harvesting. My sad tomato plant from the 'rescue' bin has only just started putting out fruit, and the whippet seeds have sprouted!
One thing I will be doing for sure is reading up on how to overwinter my beehives. I know there are a few different options there and I won't feel better about the oncoming cold weather until I sit down with my many books and take a ton of notes. I'll formulate a plan and start acquiring supplies. Might even do a podcast episode on it!
Meanwhile, I'm enjoying the cooler mornings out on the deck with my pups.
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