26.11.39

Cold & windy, rain some of the day. Stuck a root of a wild briar in, experimentally, but not certain whether it will take as it had not much root. Shall plant some more as I want to try budding next year.

10 eggs. Sold 4 @ 2d each & 5 @ 5 for 1/-.

25.11.39

Hard frost last night, which started about 4pm. Thawed this morning about 10 am, cold & miserable all day. Lumps of ice turned out of hens’ basins were still frozen in the evening. Made bonfire, added some of the hay which had rotted to the compost-heap. This uses up the Adco, which will not have made the 7 cwt. of manure as specified, but perhaps I used it too liberally.

7 eggs. Sold 20 @ 4/4. Total this week: 49. + 12 laid out = 60.

24.11.39

Fine, still, rather cold. Finished digging limed patch. Transplanted apple tree. Had great difficulty uprooting it & fear I damaged its roots seriously. Cut down remaining michaelmas daisies & transplanted one clump. Found nest of 11 eggs, not say on & seemingly O.K., so will do for the house, but shall not enter them in book.

4 eggs.

23.11.39

Rain again last night, light rain all day. Cold. Impossible to do much out of doors. Dug some more of the limed patch.

8 eggs.

22.11.39

Much as yesterday. Dug some more of the limed patch, planted out the remaining black currants. A double egg again today & also an egg of the type the Smallholder describes as pimpled. Tom R. says he saw a rat come out of our garden yesterday.

9 eggs.

21.11.39

Still, overcast, rather chilly. Did nothing out of doors. New cwt. Full-o-Pep begun today. Clarke’s say the grain-shortage, such as there is, is of maize & dari (wheatings)[1]. The former comes from the Argentine. The latter was usually imported ready ground, & at present the English mills are not turning it out fast enough, though there is no shortage of wheat.

8 eggs.

 

 

 

[1] Dari, or durra, is Indian millet. ‘Wheatings’ is a proprietary name for the residue of milled wheat. OED, Revised edition, 1991, dates it from 1931. Peter Davison

20.11.39

Fine, still, reasonably warm. Planted 6 lupins (paid 9d), said to be mixed colours. NB. that T[itley]. says that with lupins one should spread their roots out & not insert them too deep. Limed & began digging the final strip. This will need more doing than the rest as the ground is very sour & full of weeds. Cut down the remaining phloxes, tied up some of the chrysanthemums which had been blown over. Difficult to do much these afternoons now it is winter-time. The chrysanths now in full flowers, mostly dark reddy-brown, & a few ugly purple & white ones which I shan’t keep. Roses still attempting to flower, otherwise no flowers in the garden now. Michaelmas daisies are over & I have cut some of them down. The second lot of Brussels sprouts (planted as little plants 19.8.39) sprouting[1] up, also some of the savoys planted at the same time beginning to hearten up a little. All that lot are small kinds. None of my broccoli yet heading to any extent, though the plants have grown well. T. says oak leaves make the best mould, & then beech.

8 eggs. Sold 8 @ 2d each (a mistake – price miscalculated).

 

[1] Orwell wrote ‘sproutening’. Peter Davison

19.11.39

Some rain last night. Today still, fairly fine. Winter[1] time (deferred 2 months owing to the war) starts today is have to give the hens their evening meal about 3pm. Dug one trench, transplanted the little rose (the one that was overgrown by the lavender) & planted peony (price of root 6d). These don’t generally bloom the following year. Afraid I may have put the 3 peonies too close together.

5 eggs. (Notice nearly always a bad lay after a wet day, as yesterday).

[1] Orwell originally wrote ‘summer.’ Peter Davison

18.11.39

Rather rainy. Went into Baldock but failed to get any rose bushes. Bought a peony root which perhaps I can plant at the corner instead of a rose. Clarke’s[1] say the shortage of grains, or the difficulty of sending them to & fro, is actually much greater than the papers make out. Saw a bird which I think must have been a golden plover, though so far as I know they are not found round here. Slightly larger than a snipe (it was certainly not a snipe), redshank type of flight, but its back was brownish. Too far away to see its beak. The only thing that makes me doubtful is that its belly was almost white.

9 eggs. Sold I score @ 4/4. (According to Clarke’s the Gov.t are controlling the price at 4/-). Total this week 46.

 

 

 

[1] Produced food for fowls. Peter Davison

17.11.39

Still, overcast but not more than a few spots of rain. Transplanted the remaining currant bushes except 2, which still have their leaves rather green. One of the bushes had layered itself. Cut the plant off & planted it experimentally. Limed another strip. There will be just enough lime for the remainder of the vacant patch but not for where the bushes have been. To do the whole garden would need a cwt. or somewhat over. Collected another sack of dead leaves. [Total on facing page: 8.] Added a little to compost heap.

7 eggs (actually 8 but one broken).