Garden Diary, Bees, and Chickens

Tags

backyard chickens, bees, Chicken coop, gardening, planting, splitting hives

May long weekend!  Time to plant the rest of the garden (plus garden number two).

In our yard, we planted:

• Radishes
• Pumpkins (Sugar Pie)
• Butternut Squash
• Spaghetti Squash
• Golden Summer Squash
• More pumpkins (Jack B Little)
• Tomatoes (bought seedlings; planted some in pots)
• Cucumbers (in pots)
• Peppers (bought seedlings; not in garden yet)
• Melons (bought seedlings; not in garden yet)

In Garden Number Two, we planted:

• Carrots (Danvers, Nantes, Paris Market)
• Beets (Chiggio, Golden, Cylindra)
• Sunflowers
• Onions

Will split the hives.  It was a bit scary, but they were so full, the bees would’ve swarmed anyway.

I finally – FINALLY – cleaned the coop.  Even though Ginger had already laid her egg today, she insisted on breaking in the fresh straw in her nesting box.

On another note, I’ve now napped three days in a row.  I feel as though I’m catching up on six months of sleep deprivation.

The Girls

Tags

backyard chickens, Chicken coop, selfie with a chilcken, Spring clean up, winter

This post is late, I know.  It’s been one of those days.  I’ve been running since I woke up at 7 a.m., and finally, I’ve plunked my butt down on the couch to write a post and watch Netflix before I pass out for the night.  

I haven’t written about the ladies in awhile.  The girls are doing just fine.  They’ve had a great winter, actually.  All three have been laying the whole time, albeit Ginger only lays once every few days (okay, more like once every few weeks).  You can tell it’s a Ginger egg because it’s about a size and half bigger than the two pullets’ eggs.  They haven’t had their first molt yet, so their eggs are smallish.  But small eggs or not, they have been stellar layers, keeping us well supplied with fresh eggs.  

We put a light in the coop on a timer.  I know some people give their girls a rest during the winter, but my two new babes only started laying in the fall, and I really didn’t want them to molt when it was mid-December, so I supplemented their light.  We don’t heat the coop though.  Never have.  Too dangerous, and, in my opinion, unneccessary.  I’m pretty sure my pioneer ancestors didn’t heat their chicken coops in the winter.  

As you can see in the photo, both Barbra and Judy got a bit of frostbite on their combs.  The coop has remained beautifully frost free all winter, so I’m not sure how or why this happened, since it wasn’t that humid in there.  I know you’re supposed to go out and rub petroleum jelly on their combs when it gets really cold, but once again, I’m pretty sure my pioneer ancestors didn’t rub petroleum jelly on their chickens heads in the dead of winter.  Ginger remained unscathed this year, even though she had a bit last winter.  Barred Rocks are recommended as a cold-hardy breed, but I was skeptical when I saw how big their combs were growing in the fall.  I think I might stick to Ameracaunas and other cold-hardy breeds that have pea combs.  No chance of frostbite then.  

What have I learned this winter?  Well, I’m going back to straw in the coop next winter.  I used straw last winter, and it not only kept the amonia smell under control, it also kept the temperature in the coop about ten degrees higher than it was outside.  This year, out of pure laziness (or busyness), I used wood chips because they were easy to obtain.  Which is fine because I can practice the deep litter method, but it doesn’t compare to how well the straw performed last year.  Also, with the straw, I could spread some on the snow in the run so that the girls could eat and drink without getting their feet cold (pampered chickens, I know).  

I have also learned that it is very difficult to take a selfie with a chicken.  They don’t want to be cuddled (unlike that chicken in the viral video that just walks up to the little boy and gladly accepts a hug, mine actively avoid my open arms), and neither will they stay still long enough for a photo.  

They were so pleased that I let them into the garden for a few minutes that they wasted no time getting down to work on spring clean up in the raised beds.   Who has time for photos when there’s a garden to clean up?

Happier, Healthier Chickens?

Tags

backyard chickens, Chicken coop, Molting, Poultry, winter

Maybe it’s the warmer weather, or maybe it’s that the warmer weather has lifted some of my worry, but I think my girls are happier and healthier this week.

I broke my rule of “no extra treats, only layer ration” a couple of times to give them homemade yogurt and oatmeal. Call me crazy, but I think the yogurt really helped. Scruffy is no longer sneezing, and all three of them seem to be more active and have more energy.

Poor Liesl and her second molt in the span of six months. I think now that we probably triggered her molt by messing around with the light in the coop. We turned it off completely for a month, hoping that Ginger would finally finish her molt (that she started in December), and she did, but it then kicked Liesl into a second molt.

Live and learn.

I also had the chance to email with a couple other backyard chicken keepers in our city, and it really helped put my mind at ease about heating the coop. One person does have a heat lamp that they turn on when it gets below -25C; the other person doesn’t heat their coop, other than a regular light bulb (for eggs). I guess there’s no hard and fast rule; I think you just do what makes you comfortable. Honestly, I would feel more comfortable if we had a heat lamp in there for the really cold nights. I think I’ll look into setting something up, that won’t be a fire hazard.

So I’ve come to the conclusion that I don’t think we’re doing anything wrong. Chickens are not vending machines, but living, breathing, biological little creatures, and I can’t expect them to produce eggs like crazy. I certainly wouldn’t want to be laying eggs when it’s -45 C outside.

I guess they’ll start laying again when they’re good and ready.

A Very Worried Chicken Mama

Tags

backyard chickens, Chicken coop, chickens in winter, winter

We’ve been experiencing a cold snap here (oh, who am I kidding? – our entire winter is a cold snap).  It hasn’t been warmer than -15C (5 F) for a couple weeks now.  I worry about my girls.

My logical self has done the research.  We made sure to raise cold-hardy breeds of chickens (smaller combs and wattles – less chance of frostbite).  We winterized like crazy.  We have an insulated coop.  We have a heated water dish so they have fresh water.  We built a wind shelter under the coop.  I feed them cracked corn before they go to bed so they warm up a few degrees while digesting.  I’ve done everything I can.  But still . . .

My emotional self worries constantly for my girls.  How? How can they be okay when the temperature is dipping to -22C overnight?  How can they possibly survive when they only have feathers? (Once again, logical self steps in and reminds me that goose down is very warm, and obviously their feathers keep them warm enough).  The forum at backyardchickens.com assures me that chickens can handle the cold temperatures, as long as they’re dry, but emotional self does not believe it.  Emotional self wants to install a natural gas furnace in the coop to keep the girls warm (hi-efficiency, of course).

On top of all my regular winter concerns, Ginger, my 11-month old pullet,  has decided that December is a good month for her first mini-molt.  She is losing feathers like crazy.  I check her every day, and yes, the new feathers are already growing in, so it’s not like she’s completely naked, but honestly.  December, Ginger?  Really!?

And since this is the first winter with four chickens instead of two, we have discovered that we don’t have enough ventilation in the coop.  Frost has built up on the inside of the coop walls, and if it’s that humid in the coop, then there’s a threat of frostbite.  So, last night before supper, Will got out the Sawzall and cut a hole in the back wall of the coop, up near the top so the warm air that rises can escape.  Logical self says this is a good thing; emotional self screams, “Now there’s a HOLE in the coop.  No one is safe!  They’re all going to die!!!”

This is going to be a long winter.  Then summer will come, and I will replace winter worries of freezing to death with summer worries of overheating.  It never ends!  It’s hard work raising livestock.  You don’t want them to be pets, but you can’t deny the emotional bond that comes from caring for these little creatures.  Sigh.

Related articles

• Lesson 667 – Chicken Waterers and Winter (simplethrift.wordpress.com)
• Hobbit Hole Chicken Coops Bring the Beauty of the Shire to Your Backyard (inhabitat.com)
• Winterizing the Coop (dreambles.com)

Grand Re-Opening of the Nesting Box

Tags

animals, Chicken, Chicken coop, Nest box, pets, pullets

If you took the Tour de la Coop, you’d see that Will designed the coop to have an easily accessible nesting box from which to gather eggs.

Well, when the Little Honkers arrived this spring, they decided that the nesting box was a great place to hide from the Big Girls, and an even better place to sleep at night.

Ginger poking her head out of the nesting box. She looks so young! They grow up so fast. Sigh.

So, sadly, the nesting box was closed for business.  Barricades were put in place, and a smaller, temporary roost was set inside the coop.  The Little Honkers soon learned to sleep on the smaller roost at night, but wouldn’t venture up onto the Big Girl roost.  Until two nights ago.  Sometime during the day, the playing in the coop got out of control, and someone knocked over the small roosting bar.  Instead of setting it upright, I decided to see what would happen when they finally went to bed for the night.  I peeked in shortly after bedtime, and there they were – all happily roosting on the same bar.  Hurrah!  They really are a flock now.  So the temporary roost came out, the barricades came down, and the nesting box is a nesting box once more.

Now to re-train the Big Girls where to lay their eggs . . .

New Girls in the Coop

Tags

Basque hen, Chicken, Chicken coop, Euskal Oiloa, flock, Pecking order, pullets

We welcomed two new babies to our family last week.

These two little lovelies are Basque hens (also known as Euskal Oiloa).  They are the sweetest little things!  They are friendly, and calm, and love to cuddle.

We’re taking things slowly, though.  It’s not that easy to add new little ones to the coop.  The big girls are a bit peeved that they have to share, and the pecking order has to be readjusted.  So they’re still in separate coops during they day, and until the little ones can sleep with the big girls, we have to take them inside at night so they’ll stay warm enough.

But they’re worth the extra effort.  I love them to bits already.

Related articles

• Tour de Coop – Space Farm (spacefarms.wordpress.com)
• Baby Chicks – Moving Outside (hortophile.wordpress.com)
• 5 Green Chicken Coops For The Urban Gardener (earthtechling.com)