‘Saffron and Natasha were amazing, sharing so much practical and useful information that’s easily applicable. We can’t wait to start our own chicken flock!’

Guided by our resident chicken whisperer, Saffron will share her 12+ years of experience raising chickens as an integral part of our family’s treechange and productive garden journey.

This workshop will cover everything you need to know to confidently start your own backyard flock, including:

• Choosing the right chicken breeds for your needs and climate.

• Setting up a safe and comfortable chicken coop.

• Understanding chicken behaviour and daily care.

• Feeding, health, and natural pest control.

• How chickens contribute to a productive, sustainable garden.

During the day, you’ll tour our brand-new artisan-built chicken coop, designed to inspire both form and function, and experience first-hand how chickens integrate beautifully into our way of life. Afternoon tea of just baked cake and refreshments will be provided.

What You’ll Take Away:

• Practical chicken-keeping skills.

• An understanding of how to create a balanced, productive ecosystem in your garden.

• A tour of Little Cottage On A Hill’s gardens and how chickens are an integral part of our family, garden-making and sustainable living.

Secure your place now – spots are strictly limited to ensure an intimate, hands-on experience.

Let this year be the year you bring chickens into your life, your garden, and your heart!

‘Natasha together with Saffron led the most charming and informative session on Backyard Chicken Keeping! In a beautiful and cosy setting with the most gorgeous and practical coop imaginable on display through the glass doors - they led us through the entire journey of starting and caring for our own flocks. Practical, informative riveting and entertaining, a fantastic workshop that left me feeling confident to go home and begin! The bonus tour of Natasha’s incredible garden and delicious gourmet tea and cakes topped off a wonderful experience. 10/10 would absolutely recommend!’

‘I found this workshop really valuable in determining whether chicken-keeping will fit into my lifestyle and whether I can offer an optimal life to the girls in return. I liked the tried and tested information and tips and it was helpful to see Natasha’s set-up and how she goes about it having learnt the prior lessons.’

About Saffron:

Saffron is Natasha’s daughter and our resident chicken whisperer. She has been raising chickens since she was three years old, and over the past 12+ years they have become a steady and much loved part of her life.

From incubating eggs and hand raising chicks, to feeding, handling, observing and caring for chickens day to day, Saffron brings a rare depth of lived experience to the workshop. She understands chickens not just as pets, but as intelligent, social and deeply individual creatures with their own rhythms, quirks, needs and ways of communicating.

She has an exceptional insight into chicken behaviour, particularly how to raise chickens that are calm, friendly and confident around people. Her knowledge comes from years of patient observation and gentle handling. She understands how trust is built over time, how bonds form between chickens and humans, and how good daily care supports not only their health, but their emotional wellbeing.

As a young Saffron once says, “You don’t need to tell chickens your feelings because they already know.” That quiet affinity has never left her. Her connection with chickens is practical, intuitive and deeply felt, making her a calm, generous and insightful guide for anyone beginning their own backyard flock.

About Natasha:

Natasha Morgan is an award-winning landscape architect, educator and creative collaborator. She has worked on some of Australia’s most significant public realm projects, including managing the design and construction of The Australian Garden at the Royal Botanic Gardens Cranbourne. For over 12 years, she has also taught landscape architecture at both RMIT and Melbourne Universities.

In 2014, Natasha made a tree change with a purpose, creating the internationally recognised Oak and Monkey Puzzle in Spargo Creek. Today she continues her design journey at Little Cottage on a Hill. A 515 square metre (5545 square foot) site in Daylesford where she distils large-scale principles into a smaller, highly considered space that supports growing, gathering and seasonal living.

Chickens have become an important part of Natasha’s garden ecosystem and the way she thinks about productive gardening. At Little Cottage on a Hill, they help close the loop, turning kitchen scraps and garden surplus into manure, supporting pest management, contributing eggs and bringing life, movement and companionship into the garden. For Natasha, chickens are not simply something kept beside the garden. They are part of the system itself, supporting soil, plants, people and the daily rhythms of tending.

Natasha shares her work through workshops, public speaking and creative collaborations. She is also currently writing her first book and developing a new online platform to support others in designing and living with the land. Natasha is the Global Community Manager of Gardenstead. An international platform connecting people who grow, design, tend and live creatively with plants and place.