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She’s Sweet and Her Name is Annie

Zinnia, Tansy, Calendula, Sage, and Sweet Annie are the names of our chickens. Yes, they are all named after flowers or herbs. Would you expect less of us?

As much as we adore each of them, one of these chickens adores a little boy named Ari.

Sweet Annie is smaller than the other hens, and her name suits her perfectly because she really is as sweet as can be. Since they were tiny chicks, Ari favored her over the others and the two became buddies. Every day, as soon as he walks towards the chicken pen, she runs to the latched door to greet him and be let out.

Annie, as Ari calls her, follows him to a garden bed where he picks her a leaf of greens - her favorite being kale. She lets him pick her up, and, if he’s sitting in his outdoor chair, she will jump up into his lap, close her eyes and rest while he pets her gently.  A sweet little boy with his sweet little chicken.

Ari has a deep love of eggs.  Everything about eggs: eating eggs, counting eggs, but most of all, gathering eggs straight from the coop.  There is a large hatch door on the back of the coop, opening upward to allow for easy access to the nesting boxes.  While there are four boxes, all of our chickens predictably squabble for use of the same box for laying.  This means when the hatch opens, we are greeted with a colorful clutch of eggs.  White ones, yes, but also different hues of brown and blue.  

Ari could hardly handle the excitement the first time he saw, held high up in his daddy's arms, that little pile of eggs.  He dove forward, unceremoniously and without warning, secure in the knowledge that his daddy would hold him tight as he plunged half his body down that nesting box to collect his first fresh eggs.  How like a child, to want something so badly you just go for it with trust that you'll be supported while you do.  Ari's Annie is an Easter Egger, her eggs are a beautiful light hue of blue.  Can you guess what color egg Ari emerged from that box holding? He proclaimed proudly, "Boo eggie!"

We named our favorite chicken after one of our favorite herbs, Sweet Annie. Her namesake grows tall, so she needs a home in the back of your garden where she can tower and spread her arms.  Delicate, ferny, almost feathery foliage branches off of a sturdy middle stem. Lovely green that turns golden in color towards fall, mirroring the warming of colors that comes with the cooling temperatures. She produces teeny tiny balls that are her flowers.

You can harvest her fresh for bouquets any time during the season or harvest and hang upside down in a cool place to dry. Use in fall arrangements or make a wreath to enjoy her scent throughout the season.

It's her different and delightful scent that really makes her shine! I once read that Sweet Annie is an herb "with a scent that lasts 100 years." It’s hard to find the words that will help you to imagine her fragrance, but I’d say she’s a little bit sweet, somewhat minty, with a hint of thyme. Just a light brush against the foliage fills the air with her heavenly aroma, nature's delicate perfume.  The scent does last for what seems forever once you dry the herb!

And with a name like Sweet Annie how could you not want her to grow in your garden? 

3 comments

  • Sweet Annie, sweet Ari. They make quite a pair. What a wonderful childhood that little boy is having

    Darla
  • Loved this story! Thanks for sharing your little piece of heaven with us <3

    Amy Fisher
  • ♥️♥️♥️

    Sally Foraker

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