I have caught a couple mink in a well disguised small live traps. I had better success with old fashion leg hold traps used for commercial mink trapping in my youth. They must be free of human scent, I use a coverup scent of jack mackerel and it is an attractant bait. If you use a live trap...
Where I live, it is essential to maintain a flock of chickens to provide very secure predator proof habitat for them. I have free ranged many decades ago and it did not work, no matter what I did with fences, guard animals, lights, bells, etc.. I continue to free range some small bachelor flocks...
The Habenero are too hot, with too little flavor in return, for me. I smoke my own chipotles from the traditional open pollinated Jalapenos and can some in adobo sauce and dry many for later or grinding into powder. I make many hot sauces, some fermented and some not. My mainstays are a few...
I once had a crazy cat I adopted from a litter of kittens found in the deep woods near a lake house that caught and brought home to share or show off, live grown rabbits, nearly the same size he was. A rabbit would scream like a women on the porch and Thomas would be there holding the rabbit by...
I have been composting for 6 decades and worked as a pest specialist for a large city and county health department. Proper compost piles do not attract pest in most situations. No meat, animal products, (dairy/eggs/ fat) and do not add lots of cooked foods without plenty of fresh carbonaceous...
I do not put ashes in my compost. In my area the soil is very rich in phosphorus and potash naturally. the PH is the key to unlocking it's availability for the plants to uptake. I do occasionally apply some ashes to certain beds in a rest season. Good compost helps buffer Ph problems and...
I did some smoked pork butt eggrolls with my pak choi, green onions carrots and some bean sprouts. I also made egg drop soup hot and sour style with my eggs, crushed red Joe's long red Italian cayenne, shredded Napa and green onions and some firm tofu. I used a quick Wonton soup base today for...
No worries! You have got the basics well covered for making a great mix. I sometimes add Azomite, for the minerals. Good compost is the key to completing the mix! In fact you could have good stuff with just good compost and vermiculite and perlite.
I love the Gold Laced Wyandotte photo! I have always thought they are one of the prettiest birds. BTW, It was 6 F and 9 inches of snow a week ago down here in west Tennessee! That is not unheard of but much more like winter than normal here. In fact the past ten years , we have had 4 of the...
I am itching to work in the gardens but mine are soaked by a major rain event. I inspected some things under row covers and picked a bit of lettuce and a few cabbages but it was too muddy and I quit. Typical for me here is to have too wet soil for tilling or even walking on in the early spring...
So right! I just mow the bean plants and till it all in! It is a good idea to move your bean plantings regularly to avoid problems with following bean crops and to spread their benefits around your gardens. I often plant a newly broken garden entirely with beans the first planting.
It is 55 degrees F and sunny today! What a difference from yesterday! It is supposed to go very cold in a couple days, predicted to have highs of twenty and lows down to 5 degrees F and chance of up to 9 inches snow! That is not typical winter weather here. It has become common the last few...
Welcome to BYC! I have always loved the look of the Golden Laced Wyandottes and have considered them before. Enjoy your flock and best wishes for your homestead plans.
One more quick story. I was backpacking in the Ozark National Forest about 1970. I took no fishing gear. I ran out of food and money, so I went scavenging the river bank for line and a hook, float or whatever. I cut a stick for a pole about six feet long and attached a length of found nylon...
A high point for me was about twenty five years ago when I took my three year old grand daughter across the field to my neighbors small pond. She proudly carried her Mickey mouse two or three foot long rod with reel. We caught a grasshopper and put it on a bream hook with a weight and a float on...
Fiction or non fiction? I have lots of fish stories but they tend to change over time! More and bigger usually. If you like to hear about disasters or days with no fish caught they are more likely to be accurate!
I think that may be a winner! I hope they all are winners for you! I have never considered disinfecting hatching eggs! I just pick clean looking or brush them off a bit with a scrubby pad.
Let's call the chick "Hope" as I am hopeful!