Sunday 25th June 2017 21:21

Sunrise – 06:04   Sunset – 20:52   Moon – Day 2
Extras
07:32   09:30
17:28   19:23

A really hot and muggy day with the view hazed out for the most part. At this time of year it is the surface of the sea that interests me most. Work outside is conducted before 07:30am

We used to have a marvellous hen called Mrs Parker-Bowles, quite the best layer we ever had and the second-longest lived. Another hen, who went by the name of Sepia, used to go broody at the drop of a hat and so we got into the habit of storing Mrs P-B's eggs in cardboard egg boxes under the outdoor sink where there was just about the right temperature and humidity to keep them in stasis for about 8 days. As soon as Sepia went broody we would place the 8 most recent eggs from Mrs P-B underneath her and wait the requisite 21 days.

This worked perfectly and Sepia raised three broods of Mrs P-B's chicks. Both Mrs P-B and Sepia earned their retirement and respectful burials.

Today dear old Stella died at the ripe old age of 2118 days, the only one of Mrs P-B's daughters to outlive her. We have no trees to plant and it is too hot to dig so Stella has had a woodland funeral. 
Scruffy is now the last surviving member of the Parker-Bowles dynasty.