Arizona Chickens

[Arizonachicken]

Hey! Hope everyone is doing well! I was wondering if anyone had any fertile eggs they would be willing to sell/trade. I have a broody silkie and figured it would be a cheaper alternative to chicks! Also was wondering if anyone knew about composting small scale

If my chickens would ever start laying, I'd have some.

I compost, and I don't put much work into it. I'm probably doing it all wrong, but the soil looks awesome and things break down very quickly. I throw in kitchen veggie scraps, pine shavings from the coop, garden leftovers, pretty much anything. I don't add dog waste or any type of meat. You should try to have a good mix of greens and browns. I don't pay much attention, I think I just got lucky. I do water it down to make sure it stays moist, and I turn it about once a week. The chickens have access to it, too and love scratching around and aerating it for me. Hope that helps.

P.S. did you ever get the $$ to go to the FFA show?

 

[Arizonachicken]

Sylvia isn't a Marans, she's a Naked Neck

Dakota, Basil, and Angle are Marans. Sweet Pea and Vony 2 are EE's. Tina is a White Leg Horn, and Rosy (short) is a Minorca? (I think she is a Plymouth Barred Rock).
the other 4 are Georgia is a PBR, Ginger is a RIR, Coney is a SL Wyandotte, Gloria is a GL Wyandotte.

Oh my! Naked Neck!

 

[bcluff]

I ended up having to pay the final amount out of pocket which was not the most desirable way for me but I will go in 4 weeks!! Thanks for the info! I want to hopefully make a small composting area in my run

 

[City farm]

Hey! Hope everyone is doing well! I was wondering if anyone had any fertile eggs they would be willing to sell/trade. I have a broody silkie and figured it would be a cheaper alternative to chicks! Also was wondering if anyone knew about composting small scale

Try Marysong.. We got some beautiful E.E. from her... We have fertile eggs but they are from over a week ago..

 

[City farm]

Ah yes, my sister sent me a recipe for a blueberry scone.  I think I have a new use for at least one of my eggs. lol

http://fedandfit.com/2013/07/28/paleo-blueberry-scones-2/

In other news Cadbury has been a busy girl!   She is still giving me about 1 egg a day.  She's missed exactly 1 day so far.  It's definitely her though.  We've caught her in the act!  We also got one from our Silkie Firey... which kind of surprised me because she's a month younger than both Chell & Peep (who haven't started yet).   I realized something very important though... I think I'm going to be giving my co-worker some eggs when they all start getting started lol. 

It's beautiful today!   I opened up the house and when I went downstairs to make lunch (working from home today), I decided to open up the screen to let the cats out for a bit.   Well Peep & Glados invited themselves right in.   When I was watching cutthroat kitchen and eating lunch Peep hopped in my lap and watched TV with me.  This is super odd for her.  She must be feeling attention starved. She's by far my most friendly chicken, but this is the first time she's wanted in my lap.  I think she'll be laying soon too though since she has been flopping on the ground for pets lately.  Glados just chased Bishop around the island until I chased her back out.  

It is so beautiful out today, & I am so bummed I have been feeling awful for Bout 1 week.. Yuk!! So I am missing out on outdoor
cleaning/planting fun..

 

[heidisue]

a

I ended up having to pay the final amount out of pocket which was not the most desirable way for me but I will go in 4 weeks!! Thanks for the info! I want to hopefully make a small composting area in my run

I'm not sure actually putting it in the run is a good idea first of all, if it is too small it won't compost well. Most say 3 foot square, but I have one that is smaller and it does okay.

The big thing would be the mess the chickens could make of the compost if it is in the run. They will scratch, pull things out, etc. 24/7 access within the run would be a nightmare. Plus, you might not want them to have access some of the time. If I put particularly rotten food in I try to cover it before I let them near again.

I love my compost and I love that my chickens can get lots of bugs from it, just not sure I would dedicate a corner of my run to it - I would stick with having it outside the run or make it something you can cover if needed JMO - others might have a different experience!

 

[pastrymama]

a
I'm not sure actually putting it in the run is a good idea

first of all, if it is too small it won't compost well. Most say 3 foot square, but I have one that is smaller and it does okay.

The big thing would be the mess the chickens could make of the compost if it is in the run. They will scratch, pull things out, etc. 24/7 access within the run would be a nightmare. Plus, you might not want them to have access some of the time. If I put particularly rotten food in I try to cover it before I let them near again.

I love my compost and I love that my chickens can get lots of bugs from it, just not sure I would dedicate a corner of my run to it - I would stick with having it outside the run or make it something you can cover if needed

JMO - others might have a different experience!

I keep my compost on the other side of my yard, in the duck yard. It is made out of pallets and has a pallet lid. When I did have it with the chickens, I found that mice were making it their home. Yuck! While chickens do eat mice, they also carry diseases that I would rather not have my birds eat. So we moved the compost and the mice problem went away. However, the ducks seem to think it is perfectly fine to lay their eggs in there.

 

[Demosthine]

I want to hopefully make a small composting area in my run

Small compost piles can be more difficult to work with, but they are entirely possible. That is essentially what the deep litter method is, a giant compost pile. If you haven't looked at it, that may be one way to utilize your compost pile, but it'd be in the coop, rather than the run. Then again, there are several I know of who have their entire run as deep litter, too. It works really well. So far, mine isn't turning in to the nice, black compost, but I have had absolutely no signs of bad bugs, nor any kind of smell in there at all. I've had anywhere from fourteen to seventeen chickens in there at any given time, without a problem. I find crickets in there all the time, but the clan loves those. It makes the ground nice and fluffy, too.

 

[Twinklin]

I ended up having to pay the final amount out of pocket which was not the most desirable way for me but I will go in 4 weeks!! Thanks for the info! I want to hopefully make a small composting area in my run

I use a barrel tumbler and a trashcan for my compost so nothing can get in it. I compost grass clippings, chicken droppings, vegetables, plants and paper when I need more browns. When it gets gnats or smells funny it needs more browns. Everything goes into the compost barrel until it is full. Then I spin it once a week for 6 months keeping it damp. During those 6 months I fill the trashcan which doesn't break down well because it's difficult to turn it so it's basically a holding area. Then I dump the tumbler into the garden and put the contents of the trashcan into the tumbler and start over. I only use it for the vegetable area which is an 8x4 raised and a 2x16 strip along the back of the house. It makes enough compost for a thin layer over the entire garden.

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

1 day old Black Copper Marans. I think this will be an only child as tomorrow is day 21 and I don't see any movement in the other 4 eggs. Little one may need to go to a home that has chicks it's age.

As I previewed this photo, apparently I did not see that a fly was buzzing about when I snapped the photo.

Really nice picture! Including the teensy miniature birdie!