Wonderful advise there Janet, thank you. May I ask you one more
thing?...I've been planning this for a long while now and bought a compost
bin earlier this year, one of the big black plastic one's with a chute at
the front and a lid on top. I've been putting in household veg waste, waste
from the rabbit hutch and straw and chicken droppings from the hen house
etc. It doesn't seem to be diminishing any way fast though and is now almost
full. Should I get another one and start that? How will I know when it's
ready to use? All the stuff in it looks pretty much as it did when it went
in, a little withered but definately not rotten.
"Janet Baraclough" wrote in message
...

I found it necessary to fence out the hens from the veg patch;
otherwise they mistake the seedbed tilth for a purpose built dustbath
area :-(. But the good news is, that once you have the fence in place,
you can also pen them inside to clean up pests and weeds and scratch
over the soil surface, before you start.

Very easy veg to start with are potatoes (sounds mundane, but fresh
young potatoes straight from the soil taste quite unlike any from
shops); broad and runner beans, lettuce cabbage radish and herbs. If the
patch is warm and sunny, courgettes are easy too. The packets will tell
you what to do and when; it's much easier than you imagine. Buy seed
potatoes from a garden centre to get the healthiest stock, don't be
tempted to use supermarket leftovers. Rhubarb, blackcurrants and
strawberries are also very easy and are usually started from plants not
seed.

Start a compost heap now so that next year, you'll be able to fertilize
your veg patch naturally and build up its fertility year on year. Hen
pooh from their night coop is an excellent compost heap ingredient.

Janet.