Celia Hart's blog about what's going on in and around her studio.
Art, printmaking, inspirations, gardening, vegetables, hens, landscapes, wild flowers, East Anglia, adventure, travel.

Wednesday 14 November 2007

Celebration treats!


The under-gardeners are one year old this week (we don't know the exact date they hatched - but they were 17 weeks old when they moved in). Today we enjoyed an enthusiastic lunch time gardening session which involved me digging ground elder roots from the border near the Dragonfly Pond and the under-gardeners pouncing on any unsuspecting creepy crawly that had been disturbed.

Afterwards I decided they deserved a special birthday lunch . . .



Director's Notes:
Never work with animals! The corn was all set up ready and then Phoebe decided she just had to lay an egg (sigh!) so I decided to do some more gardening with the other under-gardeners until she'd done. Almost an hour later and rain clouds threatened - so I checked the hut and Phoebe is sitting there playing with bits of straw. I gently lifted her out (no egg yet) and herded all four hens towards the veg garden and the film set. Just as they got to the garden door the regular flight of Apache helicopters arrived for their daily low-level fly past - good timing chaps! The hens froze and backed out of the veg garden. Eventually got them calmed down and back on set - this was a one-take movie!

12 comments:

  1. I laughed out loud. Great video. Congrats and birthday greetings to the under gardeners.

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  2. How cute! Happy birthday to the chooks. I wonder how many eggs they have laid?

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  3. wow!!! how superb!!! that really was so fantastic to watch, so funny! well done for such hard work! those guys are ace!!! i just realised that eating as a hen must be like eating with chopsticks - they can just pick up a bit at a time, no wonder they gobble so quickly!

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  4. Can only reiterate the above posts: the film made me laugh out loud and I am still smiling as I type this. I'm astonished at just how quickly they ate their birthday message - perhaps they will savour the moment more on their second birthday?!

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  5. Hi Celia, this is such a fun post! Your chooks are very lucky to have sch a special birthday. Thanks for putting a big smile on my face.

    Have a good weekend ahead!

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  6. What a delight! This reinforces my desire to get some hens. But first, to construct the chookenarium...
    Thankyou for the chuckle.

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  7. Hi and thank you for visiting. The under-gardeners daily "Peckathon" always makes us smile.
    NĂ  - I like your analogy to chopsticks :) in a 'me with chopsticks' v 'hen's beak pecking' contest it's a no-brainer who'll win!!!

    The under-gardeners have laid about 200 eggs each since the beginning of April! That's way too many for just me and Cliff, so the surplus are given to family, friends and neighbours in return for a donation to EACH (the local children's hospice). It will soon be time to count the donations and send a cheque to the hospice with a Christmas card.

    Celia

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  8. What a wonderful post!!

    We loved the corn greeting and the movie is a triumph. Thanks for brightening our breakfast.

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  9. Was lovely to meet you today Celia. I'm very happy with my purchases and shall make a point of looking in more regularly!

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  10. Hi CS - there something about hens pecking corn that raises a smile! Like those wooden toys with the swinging wooden ball.

    Now the under-gardeners are film stars they'll want extra special treatment!

    Hi Gina! Gosh you got home and onto the internet quickly!!! I shall look forward to using the beautiful bound book I bought from you for my next holiday journal.

    Celia

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  11. Celia,

    That was a wonderful video - made even better reading about how hard it was to get the movie made. They are hilarious! I think you should make a movie of them helping you in the garden?

    How did the show go? I bet you have sold out of your silk-covered journals!

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  12. What a great birthday treat. Sara from farmingfriends

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