HENS AND CHICKS

No! not the 'cluck'-click,' 'peep'-peep,' 'cock-a-doodle-doo type, especially the White Leghorn type. My Dad kept a  few chickens on his gentleman's ranch as we call a 40 acre piece of land for a little farming as a side business or relaxation if you could call working the land - relaxation.

White Rooster painting, possibly White Leghorn
Broderbund ClickArt

He had White Leghorns, including a rooster. The rooster was over protective of his flock, I guess. In fact he was sort of a 'bully' rooster.

For no apparent reason MR BULLY decided Mother needed a good flogging one hot evening in the middle of a gravel driveway, causing her to fall.

She was calmly walking (more like very slowly ambling) the driveway to the gate where Dad was feeding cattle. She passed within about 50 feet of the hen house, but certainly nowhere near it or any hens, much less the rooster. She was no threat to rooster or hen. In fact I cannot remember she ever gathered eggs, because occasionally there were snakes or other varmits robbing nests and reclining  after a good meal of eggs.

Hen and Chick
Broderbund ClickArt

Being heavy she had difficulty in regaining a standing position, even with Dad's help. Of course, she was bruised and somewhat roughed up, but nothing broken.

Chicken Soup
Broderbund ClickArt

MR BIG STUD ROOSTER, who probably had too much male steroids like HMG, was chicken stew the next day. Much to my chagrin, I could not eat it; in fact I gagged trying, as the "clean you plate, remember the starving people in China" ruled our dinner table. I was not accustomed to eating freshly slaughtered chicken, or any other meat from our farm, IF I KNEW. The grocery store was much more impersonal and came in sterile white wrapped packages--no pinfeathers to singe or mess, etc. 

Hens-and-Chicks in Bloom
in Old Rusty Deco Tiller

Being originally a southwesterner from Texas, I have a natural fascination with succulents, albeit the non-thorny varieties. When I moved to north central Arkansas I noticed a number of succulents seemed to thrive, despite sometimes severe winters. Yucca plants lined driveways, property lines, or just among other plants, offering contrast to other plantings.

Several years ago I purchased several varieties of hens-and-chicks at my favorite nursery, Camp's Plants, which has several outlets in my area. It pleased me they thrived with little care, mulitplied, too, and even bloomed in a special sort of way. A big plus is these smallish plants have no thorns,  a feature of some succulents I thoroughly dislike. My yucca leaves can slice a finger.

So this year I planted quite a few more replacing annuals with them, as they also are perennials. There are several web sites about hens-and-chicks. However, just to illustrate the great variety of these plants, I have linked a catalog here. Wikipedia's brief description is here.

Hen Bloom Head & Stem
After Blooming Finishes,
the Hen Rots and Dies,
but Leaves plenty of Chicks
to Become Hens

I have scattered photos of the varieties I have bought around here, but feel sure many others are able to grow here. Next year I may mail order some as I love the deep ruby leaf ones, too. The only name I remember of the varieties I have is Cob Web Buttons. If you check the aforementioned catalog, you will see there is great variety of spider web hens-and-chicks, too.

These little plants are not flashy nor even seen by a passerby who may hone in on roses, redbuds in bloom, my Japanese maples, etc.  Most are planted near our home entrance steps. When blooming, the flowers are tiny, almost like many field flowers.

Bloom Head Before Flower Opens
(+4 diopter added)

An advantage to succulents, thus hens-and-chicks, is they disdain overwatering. None have died on me; some have not thrived in exceedingly dry summers. This year is a bumper year for blooms and chicks propagation. I need larger pots next year.

However, once the hen sends up a stalk and flowers, it then dies. But there is a multitude of chicks who can become hens. One of the best articles on growing hens-and-chicks is here.


PHOTOS: NitWit1 unless otherwise attributed. Most photos in this post are made with camera lens in Macro mode; some had a +4 diopter lens attached to camera telephoto zoom lens.

Cob Web Buttons Hens-and-Chicks

Cob Web Buttons Hens-and-Chicks

Flowering Hens-and-Chicks Stem
[+4 Diopter Added]
(One of my favorites) 

TRIAD OF TRIOS

ADDENDUM:  BEST FRIEND IDENTIFIES THIS ROSE AS A CLIMBING BLAZER ROSE; a very old variety that seems to survive my inattention, except this year I severely pruned it in February and it has bushed out a lot, but will still want to climb. I have no trellises.


Trio of an Old Reliable Roses
certainly not due to my attention which is nil! See further
information  at end of post.

Our attention to renovation has succumbed to personal reactions to the excessive pollen/allergy season. I've had a right earache since December and finally went to my ANP who serves as my primary care doctor, Monday. Yep! I had water behind the eardrum and postnasal drip. Fortunately the symptoms had not advanced further as I usually go straight to chronic bronchitis. I attribute this to a plus as I use pure oxygen at night.

Then I noticed my husband's chronic smoking cough had materially changed but I have nearly quit nagging. learning after 45 years of marriage it mostly falls on deaf, (I mean truly nearly deaf) ears, unless he has at least one hearing aid in. Oh well, my Dad was stone deaf and claimed the TV heard by us in the driveway,  some 300 feet from the TV, he could hear just fine! I wondered what the neighbors thought!

Three Trios-Begonias, Hens & Chicks, Solar Lights
 [I hope to capture the solar butterfly, flower and hum-
mingbird change colors--maybe a video, if  I have time
to read up on how to do it with my new Nikon!]

Wednesday, I had a full day of shopping in a nearby town, so I left home at 8:30 a.m. before he arose. When I returned near 3:30 p.m. he was still in bed with nurse Luckie in attendance. She did not even come to see who entered the house!. He just said he was sick with a "cold or something." I fixed him us some chicken and rice soup and listened to a night of his hacking, gurgling cough.

Next morning (Thursday) I encouraged him to see a doctor somewhere. He has VA clinic privileges as well as Medicare privilege, but he would have to drive to a nearby town; same-day, or even next day appointments are nearly unheard of at those clinics. I even offered to skip my volunteer hours and drive him. And he has used my ANP, in the past, like 4 years ago. No response to that entreaty.

Before my volunteer hours I had errands: stopping at local grocery store for orange juice and chicken noodle soup for him, a stop by my ANP's office to leave the annual fecal occult blood test samples. I inquired at clinic if they had any time in the day to see him, a favor as it is a busy office as the only source of medical attention in our small town. Since he had a file, albeit somewhat inactive, and I was a long-time patient, they could work him in, if he came in before noon.

When I quickly stopped by with the groceries I told him, and if he chose to go, he needed to call--it was his choice.

Before I left the church office for another trip to a nearby town the return a second special order of the same item at a big box store which got a small piece of my mind, I called home. He had gone to see the ANP and had two prescriptions. At least he sounded a wee bit better, and later, ate a wee bit more supper.

Two Trios
Three Begonias and 3 Hens/Chicks. One hen/chick is almost
 hidden by a  green begonia leaf on the right.  May be more
visible in photo above. 

Since he has emphysema/COPD, I worry about the emphysema, since he doesn't use his inhaler regularly. My COPD /chronic bronchitis is more advanced but I am more regular in my medical regimen.

This is the worst pollen season we've had in years, probably due to the relatively warm winter, but not as bad as the one in Aberdeen NC a few years ago when even the atmosphere was green. Tuesday my housekeeper found green 'dust' every where, despite we do not open windows and I have allergy filters in our HVAC unit.

Needless to say, I've little time to blog! However, I did step out into the pollen polluted air to snap a few shots, which I had noticed a few days ago. Not nearly the quality of some of my work, but I hope to get a second chance later, maybe a couple of night shots.

The red rose is a climber, but I pruned it down to nothing so it might be bushy for awhile. This rose was on our property when we moved here. My best friend keeps telling me its name, which I promptly forget, but it is an old variety which requires virtually NO care, as does my 4 Knock-out roses and 3 miniature roses I cut back this February. You should see their spring bushy growth.

The begonias and hens/chicks have just been planted along with my hanging basket annuals.

Trio of Rose od Old Reliable Rose

This photo was taken at same time as photo at top of blog. Both
photos were taken in the portrait (vertical) mode, a personal
favorite format of mine. It is a rare occurrence two photos are
effective in the landscape and portrait modes in my opinion.

Some photos may be cropped to be in one position or the other.
However, these two photos are not cropped at all, but light was
minimally modified in Adobe Photoshop Elements, as the rose
were entirely in darkest shade at the time of day, I chose to
venture out in the green pollen coated atmosphere.

THREE BLIND MICE - THE GIFT OF SIGHT



Neighbor, Myself, Husband



         Three blind mice. Three blind mice.

See how they run. See how they run.

They all ran after the farmer's wife,

Who cut off their tails with a carving knife,

Did you ever see such a sight in your life,

As three blind mice?

(Lyrics usually sung to the tune of the Old Gray Mare)  

Aren't we cute little mice? This  is a photo of our good neighbor (N), myself and my husband(H)  with the our dark sunshades given us by our opthamologist after cataract surgery. I had my left eye lens replaced May 31. The Day after when the above photo was shot, sunlight is really hurting my eye through those dark shades. My Husband (H) had his cataracts about a year ago and our neighbor had his cataracts removed sometime in between the two of us.

The surgery is nothing like the horrendous procedures our parents and grandparents endured. The procedure itself is less than 30 minutes. You are given VerSed and Fentanyl (at Ozark Eye Clinic) to put you in a suspended state of la-la land, but not general anesthesia (same general classes of drugs given during a colonoscopy or endoscopy).

The eye clinic I use performs the procedure on its premises in a special surgery ward, especially equipped specifically for the procedure. A normal day is about 18 procedures for my opthomologist.You don't even change to a hospital gown!

Riding home, the double yellow stripes marking the center of the highway were bright orange in the left eye, and yellow with the right eye. Ever so often the orange lines wandered off to the right; I had two sets of double lines, yellow and orange. I told my husband I won't be driving if this continued!

The day after surgery the physician examed his work and a refraction test is performed. I aced them both. My left eye was still quite blurred but I could read the refraction letters and numbers as well as if I had my glasses on. They expect these readings to improve.

More importantly the road markings had returned to normal overnight. I drove home. That is even more shocking! I remember in days gone by, cataract removal required a chauffeur for a month or so.

The first day was an Alice in Wonderland experience. Besides the yellow/orange highway markngs, the white calendar sheets and even my white computer screen windows are white with the new lens and distinctly yellow with the right eye lens. I thought the paper had always been white. Something is messing with my mind. In fact every thing white, but especially paper, looks like it had been exposed to the elements for some time from my right eye's view point, and brand spanking new, blinding white from the left  eye's view.

Then I decided to have a Weight Watcher novelty bar, called Strawberry Smoothie Bar, which is pale pink with new lens but an aged yellow with my right eye lens. (The Wal-Mart link shows the correct(?) color, or does it?

The most inconvenient requirement is 3 different eye drops in the eye 4 times a day for 15 days, in addition to my glaucoma drops. Actually about the 10th day you stop one eye drop and continue the others for 5 more days.

It seems as if  I am spending my waking hours glaring at eye drop bottles. It really is going to get hairy when I have the other eye done June 14 and the same regimen is required. The two regimens will be overlapping. YIKES!

The second day vision improved, but the color descrepancies remain to this day. I'll be glad to get the right eye fixed, as one might go mad with two different colors for each eyes, astigmatism, etc. The color descrepancies seem to be more pronounced with  pinkish, or white objects.

One Variety of Hens & Chicks
[I think]

For those who have experienced perfect eye sight, and no glasses, I will not be so lucky, as I have astigmatism in each eye. But being able to distinguish  subtle differences in color will make my photography editing more pleasant, and perhaps focusing a bit easier. My Nikon is not equiped with image stablilization (compensation for camera movement such as hands with tremors), although I am considering a new one---maybe Christmas.


The photos in this post were all taken with my little point-n-shoot Canon PowerShot A1000IS which has autofocusing and image stablization.

A neighbor's son used the camera to take the first picture. I took the remaining 3 pictures.

Below are some photos of a variety of Hens and Chicks I've been told. These semi-arid plants bloom occasionally. Below is a variety I have a lot of.  Don't ask me if the color is right. The photos were taken past full bloom, but I think the tiny flowers were pink with bright yellow centers. But today I really would not bank on my own description!!!


Hens & Chicks [I Think]



Hens & Chicks [I Think]