Showing posts with label coop. Show all posts
Showing posts with label coop. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

A Tick Solution

Development number 2: Guineas.
not a guinea. a newborn calf we saw at the guinea farm.
A week or so ago we ordered a dozen guineas and planned to pick them up at 6 weeks old. That day came on Friday, & we were a little unready. The men (drew & lane) finished a rustic coop for them on Thursday evening & Drew & I carted it out, and 'fenced' it Friday before we drove an hour to pick them up. It was silliness really. While the chicken wire around the outside was a temporary thing (as we want them to be free-range), it was more temporary than we expected and by Saturday evening all but 4 of the guineas had escaped.

guineas are faster than chickens. & some cats let you pick them up (not ours).
what's making that noise?
By Sunday we feared we'd never see them again.
Fortunately, they are coming back. There has been a sighting or two but not of the whole flock, so we're not sure how many are left. We backed the coop up to the wood line & they run for cover back there whenever we approach. They have water, food & the comfort of a coop to return to, hopefully they'll continue to do just that...
free-ranging...
What did we learn? Secure your chicken wire. Plan ahead (i.e. have the housing ready before the livestock is on its' way). Secure your chicken wire. Secure your chicken wire.

Sunday, March 28, 2010

New Coop Coming & more

Chickens: With our first coop we were thinking easy, mobile & simple. It has worked great & we've liked many things about it--namely being built on a wheel barrow base for easy transport.
chicken tractor
old.

Well, Drew got it in his head to switch things up & there's never a way for me to convince him that what's working is working. So, he came up with a plan & used me only for re-thinking measurements & such.

He started on Friday & it's almost done. We'll save the big reveal for after she's painted, but it's pretty exciting to see a new home for the birds...I think they'll approve.
backyard chicken coop
sneak peak.
Bees: We've found a gentleman who is willing to let the bees sit on his property while we're in transition. Some folks are terrified of bees & the thought someone might now buy our house because they're out back has crossed our minds, so they'll be visiting a friend for a while...
Also, Drew is reading this book (per my request). He's read much of it outloud to me (it is, afterall, a grouping of speeches). Rudolf Steiner is the founder of Waldorf style education, what we're loosely basing our Homeschooling on. He's an extreme naturalist & his vision of bees is fascinating. It has really opened our minds ideas outside modern science, which leaves a lot of holes in bee-understanding that Steiner is filling. If you're a beekeeper you should take a peek. Even if you're not, Steiner's theories are real mind benders.

On the garden front: things are really coming along. Asparagus is shooting out like crazy, peas are making their grand entrance & other seeds--namely spinach & lettuce, have been planted & are beginning to sprout. As for the seedlings, well. Not much great to say there, but I think we've learned that our issue was having our light too high, it sounds like 2 inches would be a better height, and possibly a system that can be raised as they grow. Thinking...
asparagus

I (lacey) have not given up. I intend to try some heirloom variety tomato seedlings. Drew is going with the farmer's market plants. I think this is how it goes down every year.

We got some great mulch from this local mulch yard for the pathways & our front landscaping. Things are looking fresh & bright & we're enjoying it until the battle of the weeds begins. Soon we'll mow & that will REALLY put us in summer-mode.
backyard garden

On the home-front: We're still looking. We took a major hit a week or so ago. We suddenly were hopeful that we'd be able to purchase this property. Well, as soon as we called & started discussing details it was under contract. Huge disappointment, but we're trying to push forward. We have the distraction of Passover this week & are really trying to take advantage of the cleaning-out spirit to keep the house in a sellable state. We will list it via MLS this week.