Henny Penny Farmette

It’s hard to believe Thanksgiving is next week and already, the first snows have arrived in the Sierras and Rockies.

The water in our Italian fountain froze overnight and now the birds and bees that drink there must wait for the sun to melt the ice.

The plunge of nighttime temperatures here on the Henny Penny Farmette are hovering at frost and freezing levels. This morning, I walked with a steaming cup of coffee and noticed the thermometer hovering at 39 degrees Fahrenheit. That means our citrus trees and other frost-intolerant plants must be protected or moved indoors.

The work I’ve been bearing down on–a new book, mystery promo, and prep for Thanksgiving–now have to be put aside for a few hours. I’ve got plenty of cold-weather work to do outside.

Our Satsuma mandarin orange tree prolifically bears fruit this time of year but is susceptible to freeze

Citrus trees will be covered with blankets against the frost. I’m hanging the heat lamp in my chicken house. I need to clean the chicken house,  put more straw in the nesting boxes, and a ground corncob material on the floor. Already, I’ve put the windows back in (leaving a crack open for ventilation).

My Buff Orpington hen likes a cozy nesting box stuffed with straw

I opened the beehives last weekend and added an extension onto one hive–something not normally done during autumn when you typically shrink the size of your hives. The hive seemed overpopulated and the bees seemed stressed. After closing that hive, I wrapped both of them with blankets.

Hive frames with lots of bees

With the the citrus protected, the heat lamp in the chicken house, and the beehives covered, I can return to my indoor work . . . it never stops but my passion has always been to live close to the earth and write. This is the good life, made better by this wonderful Mediterranean-like climate that enable  our citrus and  grapes to thrive (although plunging temps make for a little extra work protecting them).

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Enjoy reading about farming topics? Check out my cozy mysteries–A BEELINE TO MURDER and also THE MURDER OF A QUEEN BEE  (both in the Henny Penny Farmette series from Kensington Publishing).

These novels are chocked full of recipes, farming tips, chicken and beekeeping tips, sayings and, of course, a charming cozy mystery. For more info, click on the links under the pictures.

The books are available through online retailers such as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo Books, and Walmart as well as from traditional bookstores everywhere.

See, http://tinyurl.com/hxy3s8q

This debut novel launched the Henny Penny Farmette series of mysteries and sold out its first press run. It’s now available in mass market paperback and other formats.

See, http://tinyurl.com/h4kou4g

NEWLY RELEASED! This, the second cozy mystery in the Henny Penny Farmette series, is garnering great reviews from readers and industry publications.

The White Leghorns are the first in my diverse, new flock to start laying eggs

Since March 7, the day I brought home eight baby chicks (The White Leghorns and the Silver Laced Wyandottes are two sets of sisters), I’ve been waiting for eggs. Today, I cleaned out the hen house and noticed that instead of three wooden eggs (I put them in the nesting boxes to encourage the hens to lay), there were five.

That means that either one of my White Leghorns laid two eggs or, more likely, each of them made a little deposit in the nesting box.

It’s a cheap thrill, I know, but I thought the egg-laying would start at 16 weeks but, in fact, it took 17 weeks and five days. Now, all that waiting seems almost silly. Hens lay when their DNA and biology tells them to. That’s all there is to it.

It remains to be seen if they will lay an egg each day or if their schedule will be more erratic. I’m not complaining since it’s nice to have fresh eggs any day I find them.