2016 start

2016 started slowly and quietly.

Actually it started at the same speed as any other year on Earth (we comply with the laws of physics), but it felt slower and quieter than other years.

Just in case you are curious, this is how our chickens celebrated first moments of the New Year. (I do not recommend watching this video if you are not really curious. You will be disappointed.)

Our chickens proved what we already knew - that the New Year is a man-made celebration.


The first week of 2016 was similar to the first day - calm, slow and orderly.

One of the small happenings was planting three kaki (persimmon) trees in chickens' old playground.

Persimmon trees waiting to be planted. Chickens volunteered to take care of them until then.

Edibility check.
Result: The pot soil is somewhat edible but not exactly delicious. 

The purpose of planting persimmon trees is to create more shade for the chickens in the summer and the surrounding seasons. Our chickens really, really don't like to be hot and always avoid direct sun, even in winter. The message is clear: There can never be too much shade.

So why persimmons and not apples or oranges? Because 1) persimmon trees don't grow too big (they must fit under the panels, which are only 3 m above the ground), 2) persimmons are supposedly easy to grow, 3) we were advised to plant persimmon trees by our chicken adviser, 4)  I like persimmons.

During planting, we were assisted  by a rooster and a hen who sneaked in to the old run with us.

Three persimmons and a rooster. (Rooster identity: The-Not-The-Boss)

Nobuo digging a hole, assisted by a hen.

Still digging, still assisted.

Under the pretense of helping us, the rooster and the hen took advantage of our labor and got all the goodies from the soil that we arduously dug out. When asked to lend a hand (a wing, a leg), they refused.
That is yet another proof that chickens are not that different from humans. If they can get easy access to food by exploiting someone else's hard work, they will jump at the chance.

And finally, an hour later, three persimmons are planted!

Just Planted! (Can you see all three of them?)

Nobuo trying to convince the rooster that it's time to go back to the nextdoor run. 

Now let's hope that the persimmon trees will survive our care, and that they will bring as much fruit for the humans as they will bring shade for the chickens. (The peels from the fruit will go to the chickens too.)

*****

To finish this post in an inconsistent manner, here is a tiny happening from yesterday. Natchan The Goat, who is now expecting baby goats, got a Special Grass Box. It's a box full of grass. For Natchan to eat.
As she was eating the grass, a few grass blades would end up scattered around. Chickens waited patiently for Natchan's spills:

Peaceful. That's how you call it. It was a peaceful start of the year.